7 Things to Consider When Building Remote Teams
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What's the secret to building remote teams that perform and stay long-term? Use these 7 tips to hire the right people and keep them happy.
Building remote teams that exceed expectations and Staying for the long term is the ultimate dream for remote managers and employers.
But if you're new to the remote work model or are experimenting with virtual teams to complement your in-house team, it might be harder than it looks.
You may have difficulty finding and hiring the right people, or you may have an unusually high turnover rate when you have top talent on board.
So in this guide you will find all the answers you are looking for.
We've taken an in-depth look at the best ways to get one Remote-Team to build a company that performs better and is happy to stick with it.
7 Things to Consider When Building Remote Teams
Consider these seven remote hiring tips and virtual onboarding process to recruit the best candidates and prevent the burnout that often leads to high turnover rates:
1. Design the perfect remote work job ad
Finding the right team members starts with learning how to write a sales-producing job ad.
Of course, you could just copy one of your standard job ads, post it, and call it a day.
But as you may have noticed, this doesn't help you find the best talent. Plus, it could result in you hiring the wrong candidates, meaning you have to start the hiring process all over again in a few months.
Your job ad is likely the first impression a candidate will have of your company, so it's worth spending some time on it.
Your job ad should also be interesting to job seekers and provide them with all the relevant information they need to decide whether the job is right for them.
So take a minute to think about what you're really looking for in a job applicant abroad.
Find out about the basic skills they should possess, what they will be required to do on a daily basis, and what training and experience is required to be successful in this position.
Once you've written down these notes, you can start fine-tuning to create your job posting. During this process, pay attention to the following:
- Use searchable keywords for your job title. Avoid funny terms like “SEO ninja” or “design unicorn” because Job seekers won't look for it.
- Include an emotional introduction that draws people into your position and makes them curious to learn more.
- Describe your ideal candidate in detail. If you need people who are resourceful on their own or can take on many tasks, say so in advance so you don't waste time.
- Introduce your company culture and history. Potential applicants need to see if your mission and values align with theirs (and you want that too!).
- Be specific about the duties and requirements of the position. Even though it looks overwhelming, people should know what they're getting into before submitting an application. Additionally, you don’t want applicants who aren’t 100% capable of completing the tasks you require.
If you follow all of these steps, you should have more well-qualified candidates in your inbox than those who only meet a few characteristics on your wish list.
If you're struggling with high turnover rates and frequent hiring, consider revamping your job postings to reduce both at the same time.
2. It depends on where you post your job ad
Those: indeed.com
Even if you create a top-notch job ad after reading the first step, it won't perform nearly as well if you target the wrong segment of job seekers.
If you e.g. For example, if you try to find remote candidates through general job boards like LinkedIn, you'll likely be inundated with people applying to dozens of jobs just because.
And if you are specifically hiring a remote team, why would you go to a portal that mainly internal Couples offers? Virtual workers with experience are unlikely to search on traditional job boards like this, so you're just wasting time and money here.
Be more strategic and place your job ad on a job board.
You can tap into a base of job seekers who are looking for this type of work and are already equipped to do it. They know they can handle working remotely. You can even shorten the training period and avoid certain problems that come with the virtual learning curve.
3. It pays to set clear guidelines in advance
Once you have found and hired your new employees, you should go over your work policies with them so they know exactly what is expected of them.
Those: frevvo.com
Similar to a work policy for internal teams, creating a remote work policy that clearly outlines your expectations will ensure everyone follows the rules, is in line with your company culture, and lives up to your high standards.
If you e.g. For example, if you want tasks to be completed within seven days of being assigned but don't specifically mention this, you can't be upset if someone doesn't turn in their work until 10 days later.
If everyone follows the same rules and expectations, you can have a solid Remote-Team build one that performs better than one that is confused or doesn't know what to do.
4. Use remote tools and software to your advantage
A team of remote employees needs to stay connected and on the same page if they want to work together and act as a unit. This is especially true if you Hire talent in different countries and time zones .
Cloud-based software and tools keep everyone involved informed and on schedule.
Choose at least one means of communication (e.g. Slack ) and a project management tool (such as Trello or Asana ) to get started. This way communication is maintained while this way everyone can see what needs to be done on their side.
Familiarize your new employees with these tools during the onboarding process and you will create a well-functioning machine.
5. Adopt an asynchronous communication style
Before you blow up your remote team members' communication channels, consider adopting an asynchronous communication style.
Put simply, asynchronous communication is less about babysitting and more about giving people autonomy.
Instead of over-communicating, your team members have enough information to do their jobs and work on their tasks when it's best for them.
This reduces the potential for remote micromanagement, increasing employee satisfaction and making them more likely to stay with the company.
If long-distance communication isn't your strong point, consider checking out these helpful guides on the topic:
- Everything you need to know about asynchronous communication
- 5 tips for effective communication in a remote team
- 3 communication examples that are strong Remote-Teams always implement
A team that communicates well reduces the risk of errors, missed deadlines, and details falling through the cracks.
6. Don't forget to encourage personal development
Encouraging personal development is one of the best tips for attracting loyal remote employees. And when you help your team develop their skills, you too benefit from their newfound knowledge and confidence.
A good employee can do this themselves. But an even better employer provides the tools and resources to improve their team's skills and support their professional development.
Investing in and improving your team doesn't have to be expensive.
You can achieve a lot in individual sessions lasting between 30 minutes and an hour per week. You can also offer affordable online courses from providers like Udemy so your team can learn on their own.
Remember that developing the skills of each employee will improve your team and help your company reach new heights. So whatever you spend will be worth it.
7. Take time to get to know the people on your team
Those: sales-mind.com
Don't underestimate the importance of getting to know your team on a deeper, non-work level when it comes to forming a cohesive unit.
While you want your team to perform well, focusing only on deadlines, performance metrics, and output will lead to burnout.
When this happens, your team quickly loses sight of why they are working with you. These feelings then increase resentment and contribute to employee turnover.
You can avoid burnout by offering weekly virtual happy hours in your communications programs. People can meet online, hang out together, and talk about non-work-related interests to socialize.
You can also encourage camaraderie by scheduling mid-week breaks where you talk for a set amount of time (e.g. 15 to 20 minutes). Use these breaks to welcome new colleagues, talk about the latest series, or laugh at your fur babies.
By incorporating set meeting times, employees can look forward to a mental break and are less inclined to chat during work hours.
You should also consider incorporating virtual team-building activities to further strengthen team cohesion remotely.
Final thoughts on building remote teams
Before reading this guide, you may have assumed that building a remote team was just as easy as hiring in-house employees.
While technically similar, these seven tips will help you navigate some of the ins and outs of recruiting and retaining the best remote workers.
If you follow all of these suggestions, you will build a team that is productive, enjoys working there, and stays for the long term. Then you will have less turnover and your business will run more smoothly.
