5 Best Tips for Effective Remote Collaboration

You must have noticed it by now.Remote work is here to stay — whether it’s organizations transitioning to fully remote operations due to COVID, digital companies applying the asynchronous setup, or companies doing a hybrid structure for compromise.

While the pandemic back in 2020 forced industries to make this drastic change, it looks like this new normal is now being embraced even as COVID restrictions have eased up. It speaks volumes that only a few companies are returning to the way they were, and these are typically businesses whose products rely on physical labor, such as retail, restaurants, and hospitality. After seeing how remote work brings significant convenience and work-life balance, workers today are choosing companies that can offer this setting.

But wait, there’s a catch.

Just like in any typical office, there are principles to be upheld to make remote work effective and successful. Remote work has its own specific dynamics. It’s not simply doing the digital version of your operations in a physical office. There is a particular layer of complexity to it because, in the absence of physical interactions, there are other variables to consider instead. If managers don’t do it right, it is a management disaster waiting to happen.

The 3 Distances in Remote Work

Geography is not the only thing that puts a distance in remote work collaborations. According to Erica Dhawan and Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic in their HBR article, there are three kinds of gaps that takes place in remote operations:

• Physical distance — refers to the difference in time and place
• Operational distance — refers to the team size, bandwidth, and skill levels
• Affinity distance — refers to thevalues, trust, and interdependency of remote colleagues among each other

Remote managers must carefully take into consideration each of these three barriers of remote work when it comes to their employee management strategy. Virtual offices are more complicated than simply walking over to an employee’s cubicle if you want to check in with them. Trust is an essential ingredient to make it work because managers need to allow remote employees autonomy since they can’t lay eyes on them during work hours.

5 Rules for Better Remote Collaboration

1. Establish clear expectations on workplace communications.When it comes to virtual communications, it is crucial to get everybody on the same page. Otherwise, miscommunication and misunderstanding are bound to happen, which often spark turmoil in the office. After all, a virtual conversation is very different from an in-person one.
2. “Establish structure and necessary guidelines to keep team communications streamlined and organized. You can’t simply assume that everyone else can understand your shorthand and cues,” said Dov Breuer, COO of Fixlers. “One way to do this is to use official acronyms that everyone in the company understands, such as “Please Prioritize Response” (PPR) or “Response Not Urgent” (RNU). This way, every message has a clear expectation, and nobody is left hanging.”
3. Equip employees with the right tools.Provide employees with the proper tools that can assist them best in doing their jobs. It can be high-quality monitors, an Internet subscription, or an ergonomic keyboard. Use collaborative software to make remote collaboration more seamless and efficient. They should be using tools that make their life easier instead of hindering them from producing better output.
4. Brian Campbell, Founder and Lead Water Geek of WaterFilterGuru, shares the impact of doing this. “I work with a small but quality team of water experts to help me with my blog content. I make sure that they are provided with any product samples, water treatment equipment, and research software they need to help them in their tasks,” shared Campbell. “By ensuring that your employees have the equipment they need to do their jobs effectively, you are enabling them to perform at their best and to achieve maximum results,” he adds.
5. Don’t micromanage! Whatever you do, don’t annoy employees by bombarding them with endless messages asking for updates. That will make them feel a lack of trust from their superiors. It’s proven to be counterproductive anyway because who likes to work under such unnecessary pressure, right?

“Schedule recurring weekly check-ins instead of micromanaging remote employees,” suggested Preston Powell, CEO of Webserv. “Give instructions, communicate the goals, and check in with them at a designated time for a progress report. Show them that you trust them to do their job, and they will be motivated to step up to that expectation.”

Set boundaries between work and personal time — and respect them.If anything, setting clear workplace boundaries is more important in a virtual setup because there needs to be a separation between work and personal hours. It’s the equivalent of physically clocking out of the office at the end of each workday.

Have a hard stop for sending out emails and work messages. Respect an employee’s leave. Otherwise, employees working in their homes will have a hard time switching off from work mode when these boundaries are muddled, and this can lead to burnout and turnover eventually.

Strengthen company culture in lieu of in-person camaraderie.Plan virtual hangouts where employees can interact and bond with one another. Conduct company-wide team competitions with incentives awaiting as rewards. Build a strong workplace culture that will give them a sense of belonging and make them forget the barriers of remote work.

“One of the most important aspects of strengthening company culture is establishing a set of core values and guiding principles that all employees can rally around. Having a strong and vibrant company culture is essential for attracting, retaining, and motivating talent,” emphasized Kevin Huang, CEO of Ambient Home US. “It is key to reducing affinity distance in the workplace, which is a crucial aspect in bringing everyone tightly together.”

Build a healthy and efficient virtual office

Remember that employees are assets that employers must highly value if they want their company to thrive. Show this by curating a pleasant and healthy virtual office experience for them through the tips mentioned above. Create a strong company culture that will support their growth and potential. Make sure they are comfortable with their setup and that they are happy with where they are, so that they will not be eager to leave the company for another.