Leading & Accountability with a Remote Workforce
How do you lead a team remotely when it's new to your company? With the Covid 19 virus changing our world overnight, it's essential that all employees that possibly can work remotely, begin doing so immediately. This new landscape creates different challenges for many leaders that have never managed a virtual workforce. Without the right tools and techniques, it's easier for things to spiral out of control in a virtual workplace. Here are some of the methods that have a proven record of consistently, innovation, and profitability.
Daily Standup Meeting
Start every day with 'standup.' This meeting includes everyone at the company, which is compulsory (and if in person would be done with the entire team standing). We break our standup into two parts; the first is the team updating what's new and exciting in our industry. It is a popcorn format where anyone that has something worth sharing has a voice to the entire organization. This part of standup facilitates the distribution of knowledge efficiently while sparking new ideas throughout the organization as a whole. The second part of standup is all about accountability while keeping your pulse on how everyone is performing in a few short minutes. Everyone answers three questions:
1 - What did you complete yesterday?
2- What are you working on today?
3- Are you blocked by anything that will stop you from completing today's tasks?
The answer to the first question should align with what they said they would complete the previous day. It is your responsibility to make sure the work is done and done well. Paying attention to everyone's daily progress is the first step in holding your remote team accountable. As the leader, you must be engaged and tracking progress. A task that should take a couple of hours should not be 'almost done' for multiple days. If a team member has consistent excuses for not completing the task, see question number three.
The second question gives clarity around where everyone is spending their time today with them committing to what will get accomplished. You also have transparency into how the different team members' efforts align, which decreases redundancy and increases collaboration.
The third question removes any potential roadblocks that could prohibit an employee's task from being completed. If someone needs help, the team can step in to provide support. Maybe they are blocked because of dependency from another team member. All of these issues are resolved at the start of the day when everyone is together.
Communication Tools
With the plethora of options for collaborative communication tools that exist today, I recommend two essential methods for effective virtual communication. The first is to have a single tool that everyone uses. I prefer Slack at my businesses, but it could be whatever technology you prefer. A few features that I like with Slack is the ability to create groups, ease of file sharing, and intuitive interface. I can see who active or offline at any time. If your team is working during the day, they will be able to respond to your communication quickly. The second recommendation is to have a protocol around communication so that nothing is lost. Here is what we use:
Slack - Real-time communication between teams and individuals
Email - Detailed or robust internal discussions and sales communications
Zoom - Internal and client video meetings/presentations
Basecamp - Any tasks, file sharing, and client communication
Video Meetings
Don't just do calls, make sure you can look your team in the eyes during meetings. If you can see someone's face, you can tell how engaged they are in the meeting. Similar to the options for communication tools, you have a wide variety of choices when it comes to hosting virtual meetings that include video and screen sharing. I am a big fan of Zoom; it is easy to use, stable and has the best pricing.
Level 10 Meetings
The business book Traction has a stellar tool for highly effective meetings in EOS (entrepreneur operating system) called Level10 meetings. Level10s are 90-minute meetings that start at the same time, with the same agenda. This meeting provides tracking insights into leading indicators of business health. The key metrics in the form of a scorecard, tracking progress on the most critical 90-day company initiatives, transparency, and accountability into the teams' action items, any company/employee headlines or cascading messages while leaving a full 60 minutes to work on solving the most pressing issues from the last week. At the end of 90 minutes, the meeting wraps up with everyone acknowledging any to-dos that have been assigned during the Level10.
Project Management Tools
Basecamp, Asana, Google Docs, and many others exist to help organize projects and facilitate collaboration. Like with communication technology, your project management system will be based on personal preference. A few essential features to look for when selecting your Project Management software:
File Sharing
Communication
Tasks (assigned to individuals and due dates)
Project Schedule or Gantt Chart
Not only is it possible to maintain employee productivity with a virtual workforce, but you could also find yourself being more profitable as a result. With these techniques and technologies, it's possible not to miss a beat in the transition from a traditional workplace to the virtual office.
