These practical examples show you how to improve your communication Remote-Teams can improve to easily ensure fewer downtimes and more productivity.
Whether your team has been forced to work remotely due to the COVID-19 pandemic or your entire company Full-time remote work If you want to make the switch, there are some important communication questions you should clarify first.
If you don't address these issues up front, they will quickly grow into larger problems or, worse, cause a rift between you and your team.
Luckily, we'll help you avoid these problems by sharing our top three communication examples for remote teams in this guide. If you emulate these examples, you'll be creating a stronger, more connected team in no time.
These real-world examples each solve a potential communication problem before it can sabotage your team's productivity or progress. Not only will you understand why they work so well, but you'll also find ways to make each strategy work best with yours Remote-Teams can implement.
Example #1: Swapping synchronous communication for an asynchronous communication style
The first tip, which is also one of the most important, is to get your team to abandon the synchronous communication style in favor of asynchronous communication. What is the difference?
Teams that use a synchronous communication style check in throughout the day and expect a response as quickly as possible. This is the most common form of communication in the business world, but it is not nearly as effective for Remote-Teams .
These constant interruptions break your team's concentration and disrupt work flow, which negatively impacts productivity and can lead to missed deadlines.
With asynchronous communication, on the other hand, you leave your team messages with all the relevant details and allow them to respond whenever they have a free moment or a break in concentration.
While you won't get an immediate response, you'll increase productivity and make it easier for team members to communicate across different time zones.
Let's look at an example of how this can be put into practice :
Next time you reach out to your team members on Slack, Skype, or through project management software like Trello, don't leave a vague message like, Hey! Can you contact me when you have a moment?
If you do this, you'll waste both your time and the recipient's time waiting for a response. Leave a message asynchronously:
Mention all possible details in your message so they can get started right away . Give your team everything they need to solve a problem, complete a task, etc. without needing further instructions from you. This may also include the provision of supplementary material, e.g. B. Project outlines, spreadsheets, email chains and more.
Example #2: Always respond to messages within an agreed upon time frame
In your remote work policy you can set policies for confirmations so that you and your team members receive replies to asynchronous messages without having to wait 24-48 hours for a response.
When you and your team members agree to acknowledge messages within a specific time frame, everyone knows when to expect a response and can be confident that messages won't get lost in the shuffle.
This doesn't mean you should expect a response right away - again, that doesn't suit an asynchronous communication style - nor does it mean the person needs to resolve the issue quickly.
Rather, team members simply need to confirm that they saw the message at a specific time within the agreed time frame to notify you or a project manager that it has been edited.
Create a policy like this for your external company and set this example for your team members so everyone knows what is expected . This way you will have fewer communication problems and project difficulties later.
Example #3: Save difficult conversations for video chats
Our final tip on how to improve communication in your Remote-Team What can improve your conversation is knowing what should be discussed via online message and what should be discussed via video chat.
This tip may seem like common sense, but it's often overlooked in remote companies. And confusing one with the other can lead to massive conflict between team members.
As a rule of thumb, you should give feedback and have difficult conversations just as you would in person in a traditional office.
For example, if you have your Team Want to leave general project feedback, such as: B." Next time please do XYZ you can probably paste this comment into a project management task. All employees assigned to this task can refer to it for current and future tasks.
However, if a particular team member really made a mistake, you shouldn't leave a long-winded message about a task in front of everyone. Not only is this embarrassing, but your tone or comment could also be misunderstood or misunderstood.
That's why it's better to have these conversations "face to face," like you would in a traditional office. If you work remotely, consider having these conversations via video chat.
Let's put this tip into practice :
Contacting a remote team member can be nerve-wracking for both parties. To soften the blow and the fears that come with it, to arrange an appointment for a meeting and to discuss the project .
Once the session begins, you can discuss in detail what worked, what didn't, and what you'd like to do differently next time, similar to a project debrief.
Remember to provide both positive and negative feedback so that your team members don't leave the session feeling disappointed. But that doesn't mean you should praise them just for the sake of praising them. Instead, keep it simple by acknowledging their hard work and dedication and pointing out what you would like to have improved next time.
Since this requires much more discussion than a simple comment on a task, as previously mentioned, it is best done over video chat. And when you need to criticize, your facial expressions and reassuring voice will sound more empathetic and encouraging than a cold, impersonal comment or Slack message.
Ready to put these remote team communication examples into practice?
While these remote team communication examples may seem simple, they will make a big difference in the way your team works.
By following them, you'll help increase your remote team's productivity, improve communication, and streamline operations. All of these benefits help build a better team that feels valued.
The most important thing is that you put these examples into practice immediately. Make sure everyone understands what is expected of them and why you have chosen this course of action. This transparency will help them understand where you are coming from and why these actions are beneficial for everyone involved.
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