COVID-19: How to Manage Remotely with Confidence
Take responsibility to manage your team, even if it’s via video.
Since COVID-19 hit, I’ve been opening public zoom meetings for anyone to drop in and tell me what’s going on for them. Yesterday I had several conversations about managing remote teams.
Begin with trust.
Approach new situations trusting that team members will bring their best.
Uncertainty makes you say stupid things. You’re worried about productivity. Maybe you unintentionally threaten people.
During turbulence, err on the side of support.
- What’s one thing I can do to help you succeed?
- What’s your biggest concern?
Accountability:
Accountability is as simple as a question.
A leader of remote workers in Reno explained that accountability is as simple as asking, “What’s your plan for today?” (Thanks Chuck)
You might say, “I’m going to touch base with you this afternoon. What do you want me to ask you about your work?”
Clarify focus or good people will dilute their impact by doing too many things. When you clarify focus good people:
- Avoid distraction.
- Pull with greater confidence.
Tip: People feel powerful when they have control. Powerful people get more done.
Connect:
Connect with each other.
Create virtual connection space. Bill Straub, the CEO of All4 Inc., showed me their All4Core site.
Tip: Establish a practice of checking in with team members at the end of the day.
Connect with customers:
Stephan Brady, the CEO at the Covation Center, said they’re calling all their customers to see how they are doing and to offer help.
Establish routines:
You might love the idea of wearing pajama bottoms all day but Cesar, a leader of teams at WordPress, said, “It’s good to get up, shower, shave, and put on real pants.”
If you go to the office in pajamas, feel free to wear them in your home office.
I typically observe a lunch hour when I’m working from home.
What mistakes should be avoided when you manage remote workers?
What practices are most important when managing remote teams?
Bonus material:
A Guide to Managing Your (Newly) Remote Workers (HBR)
Tips for Managing a Remote Workforce during Coronavirus – and Beyond (Linkedin)
Thank you!
Thanks for the hat tip Dan. Much appreciated. Chuck.
Thank you Dan…I want to be sure…Linking to your site through a work FB is acceptable?
Your words are always very logical, which is a HUGE need right now.
Sincerely, -Will
Thanks for linking to Leadership Freak. It would be much appreciated. Cheers.
“What mistakes should be avoided when you manage remote workers?”
I think the biggest mistake to avoid would be to expect that everything will work just the same as it did the day before, just with people out of the office. Unless you already had a lot of remote working in place, the chances are you are doing this on the fly and everybody involved is feeling their way. The day before, you didn’t care if one of your workers had a miserably bad broadband connection at home that barely allowed them to do web browsing. Now, if they can’t do a Skype/Zoom meeting it’s a problem. The person who needs to be led through new IT stuff is OK while in the office, but is going to struggle when they have to use an unfamiliar IT system to set up their work from home, using remote IT. And the paper files can’t be in two places at once…
Thanks for bringing this up, Mitch. I’m hearing about bandwidth concerns, licensing, old or no laptops.
And yes, the technology-challenged, are going to be a real challenge.
Sounds like resolve and patience are important here.
Dan,
Yes, even more than normal, resolve, forbearance and patience are the order of the day, even more than normal.
What mistakes should be avoided when you manage remote workers?
What practices are most important when managing remote teams?
Over communicate, over communicate and again over communicate. Don’t expect that everyone working remotely feels clued in or does not want some extra encouragement. Even if its just an email or better a phone call to check in do it. And did I say over communicate, and again overcommunicate.
Thanks Roger. Yes…touch base frequently… send out updates… invite questions… These are the days that a manager really learns what managing is all about.
I know that I have been wrestling with this, and thought this was a helpful article on how to lead during this time of unprecedented unknowns. I especially appreciated the points around how to err on the side of support and simple questions around accountability.
Thanks Deepak. Best wishes for the journey!!
we’ve been doing daily stand-ups with the multiple teams – the situation is changing so rapidly – what was good plan yesterday is now different today. Talk about change management. One member on my team reached out how important is was to lowering her anxiety level in these uncertain times to have a half hour to share struggles and successes for working from home. It is so important right now to stay in touch with your teams. It may seem like a little thing but it really makes a difference. Keep up the good work Dan – you are most appreciated!
Thanks Katie. Yes, it makes sense to take time just for conversation. Just stay in touch! You nailed an important idea. Sometime it’s the simple things that make a big difference.
Ah the urban sprawl, surely your “fighting for Bandwidth”! Big cities less of an issue but the remote part becomes touchy business. I have had those moments it would be nice to work from home, then reality sets in, geez I need a Plotter, need more than 1 Telephone line, Fax, etc. sure MFC could work, Oh, we have limited bandwidth! Best dress and go to work!
This is great advice, but I have to wonder, how will parents with young children manage to focus? My daughter is 21 years old so I don’t have that same concern for myself, but I have several younger employees who have younger children and will now be responsible for possibly more than ever considering home schooling and schoolwork. Sometimes I can barely concentrate when my office door is opened, and the guys are laughing or on break. I can’t imagine having to balance work and 3 young children all day. Surely the expectations will have to be adjusted for employees (parents) in this situation? It’s the balancing act of expectations vs understanding that is baffling. But I get it: “During turbulence, err on the side of support.”
Hi all, I’m in Australia and although not quite as bad as the USA yet we all have to face these issues. We need a level of empathy and understanding and trust of our teams working remotely. I’m fortunate I have a great team that are highly motivated. But we will all lose motivation as this goes on. And it is normal to feel anxious – it’s not normal for this to get in the way of your life and those people need more support. Communication is key with the correct information. Video calls are great because you feel connected again. My guys say they are spending more time on the phone now they are remote and that’s to be expected.We also use Skype chat and are sendin each other pictures of our new work environments and kids/pets that are there. Any way to make a connection is really important. We have daily quick video chats to just catch up and see each other. Exercise is really important, however you can get it, and eating well. Good luck everyone and thanks Dan for more great advice 🙂
When managing remote workers, I believe two factors should be avoided; lack of communication and micromanaging. Coming from a public health perspective and the pandemic we are experiencing right now, communication plays a huge role in human interaction and addressing the targeted audience. This is because as a public health worker, it is our responsibility to address the audience with correct information and guidelines to stay safe and flatten the curve. We are the leaders that can potentially stop the rising pandemic if we have effective team communication and work to optimize efficiency. Sometimes it is easy to fall apart, especially during a crisis and lacking communication can not only affect you, but also many others that need guidance. Micromanaging is another mistake that should be avoided when working with remote workers. This is because it is prone to more human errors on both side, which can be the root cause to many adverse events. Not only causing human errors, it can also cause other members in the team to become dependent, which defeats the purpose of working together. Especially in the public health field, it’s important to feed off of each other because an entire team comes together to improve a patient’s well-being. Working in teams helps break down hierarchy and thus giving more leverage to healthcare workers. It is important to incorporate other people’s time and schedule and to find the right workflow management system that’s best suitable for you and your team. With a pandemic such as COVID-19, working efficiently is important to improve the quality of life of many Americans. It’s beneficial for everyone on the team to know their responsibilities and roles. This way there is no confusion or uncertainty towards the team as a whole. Having clear procedures during COVID-19 can also improve efficiency in that carrying out procedures and processes can be clear and turn into a routine. Many standard protocols and routines are imbedded into multiple organizations such as CDC in order to be successful and have high expectations.
Working remotely has always been a dream of mine. Creating my own schedule, staying at home with my dog, and not having to deal with rush hour traffic all sounded like a great way of life to me. However, I never thought that I’d be working remotely due to a global pandemic! I must say that I am grateful to remain employed throughout this time as many others have lost their jobs due to the nature of COVID-19. Now that I’ve dabbled with working from home, I must admit that remaining productive and maintaining focus throughout the day are definitely struggles that I faced. Throughout the past few months, I found it easier to stay on track if I followed my normal schedule prior to the epidemic. A few things my managers have done to overcome this obstacle is to communicate with consistency. Every week, our team holds two conference calls through Zoom with updates regarding the workflow and projects. The managers also reach out to every employee individually to connect which I find incredibly helpful in terms of communication. We have also been lucky enough to receive options for mental health services and supplemental support if need be. I find these techniques to be incredibly useful in times of such a drastic change. Once again, efficient communication is absolutely necessary when working remotely. While micromanaging may become an issue as managers are unable to physically see employees throughout the day, I believe communicating 1-2 times weekly would help with maintaining efficiency.