With the rise of the internet and the growth in commute times, many leaders are increasingly looking at the possibility of offering their employees the ability to work remotely. Virtual jobs could lead to an end to the daily commute and a much happier, more productive workforce. Well, that’s the hope anyway.
The few brave leaders who have tried remote working on a grand scale, however, have run into challenges. One of the main issues is keeping people as engaged in their work as they would be, were they working in physical proximity to their colleagues. It’s not always easy.
Then there’s the problem of isolation. Remote workers in far-flung lands can feel cut off from the organisations that pay their wages and not really a part of the team. This isolation can lead them to think that they’re not a candidate for promotion opportunities or career progression, stifling their motivation.
The trick here is to adopt quality leadership practices specific to remote working environments. But what techniques should you use if you’re a business leader?
Take a look at the following infographic. It charts the costs and benefits of virtual teams and plots some management ideas that regular business leaders can use to help them better take care of their remote team. Many of these ideas are simple to implement, such as regularly calling remote workers to check in with how they’re doing. Hopefully, you can use some of these measures to avoid poor performance in your team.
Learn more about building a virtual team
