The business landscape has changed dramatically and permanently in recent years. Gradually, the benefits of remote teams for both employers (and employees) have become widely known.
A decade ago, remote work was hardly ever done. Working from home was typically only possible to accommodate families in particular situations under exceptional circumstances. But thanks to teleconferencing and telework technology advancements, some companies now successfully run entirely remote teams. Now, it’s common for companies to let employees work from home once or twice weekly.
The prospect of remote employment in the future is intriguing. Since the advent of the internet, it has been an essential part of contemporary life, and as technology develops, its popularity is rising. As a result, the remote work environment is anticipated to look very different in 2023 than it does now.
The rise of virtual reality, 5G technology, and AI-powered software will give professionals worldwide better connectivity, increased security, and more flexibility when working from home.
This suggests that work-from-home is here to stay, so companies must adopt it as effectively as possible. If you are a SaaS business embracing remote work in 2023, this blog will help you do it well.
But first, let’s see what a global remote team is and what are the characteristics of a remote team.
What is a global remote team – Characteristics and Challenges
| Aspect | Description |
|---|---|
| Definition | A team of employees working from different locations across cities, countries, and continents. |
| Key Characteristics | Digital collaboration through work applications and tools, Diverse geographic and cultural backgrounds, Varied time zones |
| Common Challenges | Juggling different time zones, Linguistic and cultural disparities, Synchronous and asynchronous communication needs, Complex payroll and tax management across borders |
| Opportunities | Access to a global talent pool, Flexibility and potential for increased productivity, Diverse perspectives and innovation |
| Technological Dependencies | Reliance on teleconferencing, digital work applications, and secure network systems |
| Management Considerations | Effective communication strategies, Understanding and respecting cultural differences, Efficient payroll systems for cross-border payments |
A remote team is a group of employees working from different locations across cities, countries, and continents. Although the idea of remote teams has been around for some time, it became more significant after introducing digital work applications, tools, and ecosystems. Today, remote teams make up a sizable portion of the global workforce.
However, managing remote teams presents distinct difficulties that call for specific solutions.
It can be frustrating to deal with the challenges of juggling various time zones, linguistic challenges, and cultural disparities. Additionally, you must be familiar with the distinctions between synchronous and asynchronous communication and when to use each.
To top that up, paying a remote workforce becomes much more challenging when they are spread out across multiple borders. A survey revealed that managing taxes was the biggest issue for nearly half of the businesses.
Every nation has public holidays that honor significant historical occurrences or unique cultural or religious festivals, which presents another difficulty. Moreover, even the number of bank holidays can vary from one region to another.
So, how do you manage it all?
If you want to collaborate successfully with a remote team, you must put in the time and effort to forge strong relationships with people in different time zones. Also, a reliable payment system must be implemented to retain your remote employees. Additionally, organizations that employ remote workers from different nations worldwide have various options for allocating public holidays to their teams.
Below are some best practices you can adopt to manage your remote employees successfully.
Best practices and tactics for managing a global remote team
Enhanced communication
Even in a remote setting, your team must handle the pressure of completing tasks. Because of this, communication frequency varies from person to person. As a result, learning each team member’s strengths and weaknesses will take time.
You must determine the best communication channels for various needs to enable meaningful connections between employees. The same applies to regularly implementing training on new procedures, character development, and methods for accomplishing remote work success.
Request that your remote team members keep their online calendars up to date to easily schedule recurring, one-time, or ad hoc meetings. In addition, utilize appropriate video conferencing programs (such as Google Meet) to complement your team’s efforts.
Establish precise rules for when and how remote employees should use social media to post, instant messaging, email, phone, and video conferences. Use a suitable intranet software platform (like Slack) to share work resources and information efficiently.
Finally, you should make it a habit to schedule team meetings at times that work best for everyone. Doing this will ensure that none of your coworkers will need to get up early or stay up late to attend and participate in discussions.
Effective payroll administration
Which would you prefer for your staff to experience—feeling like outcasts or like closely knitted team members?
Your employees can learn a lot about your attitude toward them from how you handle your global payroll. Your relationships with your team members can quickly become strained due to late checks, incorrect payment amounts, unsafe transactions, incorrectly handled taxes, etc.
Your remote team most likely comprises local and international employees. This calls for a payroll system that benefits everyone and guarantees prompt payments across borders.
If your employees’ welfare is a priority, consider your provider options carefully.
*Tip: To avoid all this global payroll hassle, you can utilize virtual assistance – where your virtual assistant will work for you at a fraction of the cost of a conventional employee, and you won’t need to worry about their salaries, employee benefits, or any additional perks.
Improved technical assistance
The SaaS industries are closely related to the technical tools remote teams require. They require technical equipment to work without interruption or detour, which will also improve their work efficiency.
The business should give the team the tools they need for an efficient process in every aspect of the work, including a competitor analysis tool or technical SEO auditing services if needed.
Incorporating automation into your business processes will help create more productive workplaces and streamline all operations. In addition, automation processes will assist your company in meeting goals more efficiently and timely.
Image Source: Freepik
Security-prioritized processes
In SaaS companies, file transfers are essential because employees frequently need to collaborate. Therefore, you should use a secure app for any such transfers. Additionally, you must use apps that assist in securing a file’s privacy by encrypting it with a password.
You must prioritize data security because your team will exchange data remotely. Making sure that your teams only share files that are compatible with the tool you are using is necessary. Additionally, coordinate with the team to send it in a common format instead of various file types. Since remote teams are more likely to use email, you can integrate an SPF record checker as well to make sure your email data is secure
In 2023, it will be simple for remote SaaS teams to access shared passwords securely – thanks to two-factor authentication (2FA), secure password management, and sharing services.
Clearer workflows
Processes are designed to benefit the team, not the other way around. Therefore, each step must have distinct hand-off points and outcomes. Each team member needs to be aware of the overall structure of a process, its moving parts, and the timelines and results that should be anticipated.
You’re in trouble if your procedures are unclear and you fail to convey the message clearly! And you can do that by outlining specific tasks with due dates and other requirements.
Additionally, ensure everyone on the team can see the task list. To make it easier for your remote SaaS team to refer back to documents and conversations later, project management tools like Teamwork and Zoho Projects are helpful. In addition, many project management systems offer file sharing and other collaborative features for document collaboration.
Scheduled local holidays
Numerous calendar and planning tools enable you to create a comprehensive team schedule depicting public holidays in each hiring location and remote team members taking time off on these dates. You can avoid potential issues by ensuring everyone in your organization can access the schedule.
But if your staff is unaware of the expected procedures, all the advice we give you is useless. As your team expands, consider using a workforce management tool to help establish company guidelines for handling regional holidays. Also, consider celebrating international public holidays, as it significantly increases cultural sensitivity among your remote team members.
So why not encourage your remote employees to invite their coworkers to share in local celebrations and holidays?
Increased motivation
Nearly all areas of life are affected by motivation. Therefore, inspiring your remote team and bringing them together around your brand slogan is essential because feeling cut off from the team may cause them to lose motivation.
There are numerous ways to inspire your team every day. It can take many forms, such as creating rituals, adhering to them, and giving the month’s top employee a special gift or bonus. A gift will benefit them professionally and personally, such as subscriptions to productivity apps, gym memberships, a comfortable chair, or a desk. Additionally, you can consider gifting them something they enjoy doing in their free time, such as cooking books or streaming subscriptions to watch action movies or books.
Employee training can occasionally be an intelligent idea to uplift your staff while enhancing their professional abilities.
Conclusion
Image Source: Freepik
Managing a remote team can be tricky, especially for a distributed team. Nonetheless, a few tips can enhance your work with your remote employees.
- Plan brief checkpoint meetings—two at most
- Use a single tool for collaboration
- Keep the data centralized.
- Organize the tasks proactively, at least one day beforehand.
- Track progress in real time
Whatever you and your Remote team are doing, you need to put into practice strategies that increase output, encourage connection, and uplift morale in a remote work environment.
To effectively lay the groundwork for your remote SaaS team, you must interact and work with your global workforce. Implement the appropriate strategies and tools to prioritize employee satisfaction and goal accomplishment.
If you want to build a successful global remote team – without all the hiring hassles – hire a virtual assistant.
Why?
Virtual assistant services from companies like Wishup offer flexibility in every way possible – from payroll management to fixing schedules. Moreover, you only pay for the hours of services used.
