Can You Hear Me Now?

Field-Tested Communication Tips For Remote Teams.

Recently we discussed the decision to let your employees work from home. Today, I want to focus on one aspect of that process: communication. There’s good news and bad news here. The good news is that the world is your hiring pool.

The bad news is the same.

Setting things up so that your remote workers feel a part of the team, are on task and on time takes special consideration. There’s no popping by Joe’s desk to see how that report is coming. Additionally, certain social cues like body language and eye contact aren’t a given when talking with someone who’s several miles away. With that in mind, we’ve gathered some tips for communicating with your remote workers effectively.

Get To The Point

A lot is lost when communicating with remote workers, like body language, tone of voice, eye contact and so on. For this reason, be clear and concise with instructions sent electronically.

Does this message require a response? Today? Say so.

Are you asking the recipient to make a decision? Again, make that clear.

Re-read electronic messages quickly before sending. The tone you hear in your head might not be what’s interpreted on the other side, especially since queues like those mentioned above — body language, facial expression — aren’t available, nor is the opportunity to “pop by” your desk to confirm.

Choose The Right Venue Or Tool

Next, and this is a big one, ask yourself: “Is this the right venue for this communication?” I’ve been on the CC chain of an email thread that started as a single exchange, then grew to three back-and-forth messages, then four, then five, then….something was getting lost in communication.

At that point, it’s time to pick up the phone.

A good rule of thumb is this: if you’re quickly issuing a clear assignment, a digital communication is fine:

“Please draft four options for Twitter announcing Monday’s release and send them to me by 2:00.”

Conversely, open-ended discussions are often best handled via a phone call, as that’s where back-and-forth conversations have the most effectiveness.

Learn To Love The Available Technology

Let’s say you’ve got to have a back-and-forth conversation with a remote worker. A phone call is typically the best way to handle this, but often you want that face-to-face time. Consider something like Google Hangout or Skype. These tools allow for discussion and the social queues that texting and email miss.

Of course, there’s a whole world of collaboration tools beyond Skype and Google. Slack, Basecamp, Trello and many others offer real-time communication, file sharing, project histories and more.

Be The Leader

An at-home worker is less inclined to call into the office than you are to call him or her. Take that leadership role and call your off-site workers when you need to.

Make sure that remote workers feel like a part of the team, even if they’re rarely in the building. Also, communication breakdowns occur infrequently among people who know each other well.

Detail Communication Procedures

As the employer, it’s up to you to decide if you want to communicate with remote workers after a specific amount of time — daily, weekly — or on a per-task basis. No matter which you choose, make this clear in the interview process and have something formal written up and available to new and existing hires.

Offer Feedback

It’s easy to forget about your remote working colleagues, especially if they’re doing well. The squeaky wheel gets the grease while the functional wheel gets, well…ignored. Reach out to your co workers regularly and keep those communications feedback-oriented.

As When I Work founder Chad Halvorson wrote:

“Part of your regular communication should be on an interpersonal level to help your remote workers “bond” with the company but a majority should be constructive feedback (positive or critical) that helps them see what they’re doing and the way they should be doing it. Not only will the feedback shape the overall outcome, it will reinforce the connection between employer and remote employee.”

Following these simple tips will create a sense of belonging, make your expectations clear and ensure that nothing gets misunderstood along the way.