5 Tips for Effective Team Collaboration When Working Remote
As we step into November, many of us are gearing up for a season packed with travel, holiday plans, and the challenge of managing work across different time zones. This time of year also coincides with the push to wrap up key projects before the end of the last quarter, making it essential for teams to stay connected and collaborative, even from afar. To keep that "teamwork makes the dream work" energy alive, we have to consider ways to make collaboration effective even when working remote.
I’ve been a fan of the work-from-home lifestyle since 2010, so I know firsthand that adapting to remote work can come with unique challenges. For those balancing travel and professional responsibilities, long-distance collaboration is key. Whether you're a leader ensuring your team stays motivated and supported or an entrepreneur looking to maintain productivity while jet-setting, these tips will help you navigate the season smoothly and keep everyone aligned, no matter the miles in between.
How to Increase Remote Work Success
As a project manager, I love helping businesses small and large get set up for successful, team-based remote work. While there are aspects of remote work that may be out of your control, that doesn’t mean there aren’t steps you can take, either as a leader or a worker, that will help foster effective team collaboration. I want to share some tips I implement with my clients (and even my own team here at Nimble Up). These five ideas can make a huge difference in the success of your team’s morale, workflow, and output.
First and foremost, your team needs a place to communicate and share their work. Tools like Microsoft Teams, Basecamp, Trello, Asana, and Slack will help facilitate virtual project management, team communication, and the tips below –
Tips for Virtual Meetings
Hold Video Calls
Working remotely doesn’t mean abandoning all communication other than emails. If you need to discuss something one-on-one, brainstorm, or facilitate a staff meeting; hold a video call. Doing so will increase engagement and help your team stay connected. And, yes, you should turn on your cameras! Body language cues are important. According to this article in Psychology Today, “The belief is that 55% of communication is body language, 38% is the tone of voice, and 7% is the actual words spoken.”
Turn on Closed Captioning
When in a video meeting, make sure to turn on live captions if possible. Not only is this an important thing to do in terms of accessibility, but it can also be helpful to those who have a weak Wi-Fi signal as well as to folks who might just learn and retain information better visually. If closed captioning isn’t an option, consider sharing a screen with bullet point notes or the meeting agenda.
Tips for Virtual Workflow
Set Team Norms
While the work your team is doing may be the same, a transition to remote work means how they accomplish it is going to change. Establishing team norms about how you will work together remotely/virtually is key here. Have a meeting with your whole team to establish norms regarding communication, decision making, accountability and day-to-day operations so that everyone is on the same page.
Keep the Flow Going
You want to encourage forward motion for all members of your team. Waiting on each other can cause more of a roadblock when you’re not able pop your head into each other’s offices and get that response you need to keep things moving forward. But an inbox full of emails about the same thing isn’t the solution. If you’ve been tagged or pinged in your project management tool by a teammate, find a way to let them know you saw it (give it a thumbs up or comment “Seen”). When you define your norms, set up a timeframe for when something should be replied to once it’s been seen – end of day, 24 hours, end of week – to keep follow-ups to a minimum.
Have Fun!
Create an intentional place (like a thread in Slack or a channel in Microsoft Teams) to share gifs, photos, celebrations or jokes. This sort of content can boost the team’s wellbeing. Use your daily communication space to engage and communicate in ways you would if you were in the office – sharing about a recent win, shouting out a co-worker for their help, thanking the team for a great meeting, or wishing someone happy birthday. Positive communication and gratitude are scientifically proven to increase your mood. And maintaining your workplace friendships is important. You know that often balked at question on employee surveys, “Do you have a best friend at work?” What they are really trying to gauge is your sense of belonging and positivity.
According to this article in Gallup, good relations at work lead to better collaboration and productivity. We want these relationships to continue to thrive from afar!
No matter the size of your team or industry, I’ve consistently found these five tips to be integral to my clients’ success. They will help you collaborate remotely no matter what tools your team has in place for virtual collaboration. My tool of choice (for Nimble Up and my clients) is Microsoft Teams. I’ve helped many businesses, through consulting and trainings, learn to use it for workplace collaboration.
Want more resources?
If you don’t have a system in place for going remote and need to transition your team due to increased travel this season, or you need some additional support and ideas, Nimble Up can help! Schedule a free 15-minute consultation here so we can discuss your needs and make customized recommendations.
