Resources for Managing Remote & Offshore Teams
We share our expert experience and knowledge to get the most from your BruntWork team.
Managing Remote Teams: Part 1
Adam from BruntWork discusses the keys to successful remote work, emphasizing that it lies in addressing cultural challenges, not just technical problems.
Strategies such as creating a “working with me” profile, running micro-surveys, and implementing a “right first” model for decision-making to build trust and clarity with remote teams, while maintaining accountability without excessive oversight.
- Micromanagement is inefficient, leading to 30-60% of leadership time being wasted on checking and rechecking work.
- The self-managing flywheel of clarity, ownership, outcomes, and trust is more effective.
- Cultural intelligence is key for remote leadership, not just technology. Understanding time orientation, communication styles, and motivations is crucial.
- Creating a “working with me” profile builds vulnerability and trust with new staff.
- Micro-surveys on communication style, hierarchy comfort, and preferred channels help tailor management approach.
- Reframing meetings as decision-making events, not just discussions, improves punctuality.
- The “right first” rule of documenting ideas before discussion reduces communication barriers.
- Weekly “culture swap” sessions humanize remote relationships and improve retention.
- A decision log tracks accountability and prevents costly disputes.
- Addressing the “iceberg” of hidden fears and cultural norms is key to successful remote execution.
Managing Remote Teams: Part 2
Strategies for building trust and accountability within remote teams without resorting to micromanagement or lowering standards. Part 2 highlights the value of providing growth opportunities, transparent performance tracking, and a consequence ladder to address missed targets, all while fostering a culture of continuous improvement and early issue escalation.
- Outcome-based OKRs (Objectives and Key Results) are crucial for defining and measuring success in roles.
- The 30-60-90 day onboarding blueprint helps new hires learn, take on small projects, and contribute meaningfully.
- A “Results Only Work Environment” (ROWE) provides flexibility, but requires daily “wins” reporting for visibility.
- Weekly “traffic light” meetings identify and address any yellow or red flag issues early.
- Considering “meeting fairness” by adjusting schedules for global teams can boost loyalty.
- Providing clear career progression paths is a powerful retention strategy.
- A transparent consequence ladder (coaching, action plan, role change) ensures accountability.
- Monthly meetings for continuous improvement, including rewards for best process suggestions.
- Key steps: set outcome-based OKRs, implement daily wins reporting and weekly traffic light meetings, and provide career progression.
- Effective communication with remote teams is crucial for scaling, to be covered in the next session.
Managing Remote Teams: Part 3
Strategies for separating good remote leaders from elite ones, focusing on building effective communication systems that respect cultural differences, particularly in the developing world.
Part 3 introduces a “communication charter” to define protocols for different types of communication, a “hierarchy pyramid” approach for cross-cultural collaboration, and various productivity-enhancing tools like AI meeting assistants.
- Implement a communication charter to reduce digital noise and improve cross-cultural communication, including response SLAs and emergency protocols.
- Develop a “hierarchy pyramid” with 4 levels of communication – shared documents, threaded discussions, loom videos, and live calls – to cater to cultural preferences.
- Introduce AI meeting assistants to capture action items and follow-ups, saving executives 1 day per month.
- Create cultural connection channels like food pics, pet show-and-tells, and playlists to build relationships.
- Implement a “lessons learned” program with monetary rewards to shift the cultural fear of admitting mistakes.
- Conduct quarterly pulse surveys on 6 key areas (clarity, tools, recognition, communication, belonging, growth) to identify and address cultural conflicts.
- Introduce “2-person skill pods” where team members teach each other valuable skills, building relationships and eliminating shame.
- Implement “failure retros” and “daily success snapshots” to increase speed and productivity by 26%.
- Organise in-person team meetups to build loyalty and cultural connection, even for remote teams.
- Advise to start slow, implement one tactic at a time, and build cultural trust gradually.
