Crossover's RemoteCamp for Managers (an inside view from an outsider — Jorge Dias)

-“Do your Daily Check-in Chats”, “Enforce your team’s Quality Bar”, “Do your Rank and Review and S2G”, “Set your ZBT”, “TMS”, “IQB”, “EQB”, “FTAR”-

Yeah! You might be wondering as I was, what in the world are they talking about? What do all these letters stand for? — “here is the context, here are some videos to assist you with and start producing your units!” — That was the ultimate sentence I got when I joined the RemoteCamp (by the way, I was hired by Crossover on one day and joined the RC (RemoteCamp) on day 2).

Just to give you some background information about myself, I have 20+ years of experience in the IT industry, traveling across multiple areas of expertise such as Network, Telecommunications and Project Management. Working in big multinational companies like EDS, Hewlett Packard, General Motors and Skidata.

Recently I got picked up by Crossover in order to manage remotely a team of Central Support. However before I was even introduced to the team, I had to go through a 4-week program called: Remote BootCamp for Managers.

Without having any previous experience within the company and it’s culture, it’s tools, I was being challenged on a daily basis, to follow a calendar, follow a process and execute the work as expected…

I was failing, week after week…

But then it ‘clicked’.

This is not your regular office environment, where you can reach out to your colleagues by simply walking into their room, or having a meeting (in a physical room), or even grabbing a cup of coffee while you address your peers or employees. This is different! You can do all that in a virtual (remote) environment. How? By using technology, by applying the Framework and skills that I’m being taught. Amazing!

Now it all comes down to you being close to everyone, although we are in different Countries, different timezones, different cultures. By doing Daily Check-in Chats I’m having a daily individual call with the team (upstream and downstream) and checking whether or not the person is working as desired, or if they have their Quality targets achieved, or even if there are any ‘blockers’ that are preventing them to perform their work. By “Enforcing the team’s Quality bar” you are ensuring Quality comes first while measuring individually each one of your team, producing a Stack Rank for your Rank and Review, where you find your Top/Bottom Performer. Thus giving you the opportunity of coaching individually your team.

This is just a small sample of the Framework and how they fit together, as that was exactly what helped me in delivering all my work in order to hopefully graduate the RemoteCamp. Not to mention the strong and insightful coaching you receive on a daily basis, the constant feedback you get (so put your defenses down!) and the Dry run simulations preparing you for the Oral Exam…However, make no mistake, your weekly target is challenging, the Oral Exam is defiant, as you must always deliver your best (Writing or Speaking).

As of today, I was able to achieve my targets, with a lot of effort, long weekdays and long weekends, striving as much as I could to get it done! I’m at the final stage of an incredible journey that for sure changed my way of thinking, changed my perspective and finally broke/shifted a lot of paradigms.

Oral Exam Experience

I’ll take this opportunity to share my experience on the Oral Exam, and give you some tips in order to be successful at it.

I failed my first attempt. Luckily, I had a second shot…however this time I would do way better!

While preparing for the second (final) attempt, I was seeking insights from the Managers who already passed the Exam and also from the coaches, especially from the coaches. “We are on your side! But we will ask you deep questions that only an Elite Manager is capable of answering” — That’s what I heard on a coaching session…

With the above statement in mind, I’ll give you some tips and hints for the Exam:

1 — Know your numbers/metrics: Explain how you reached them and what kind of data was used;
2 — Master the Framework Skills: Know exactly their meanings, when to apply each framework and their correlation;
3 — Remember it’s all about Quality Improvement: Every decision/explanation/insights should be Quality driven;
5 — Communicate clear and concisely (do not deviate from the subject!)
6 — If you did not understand the question, ask them to rephrase it for you (They will gladly do it).
7 — Practice: Practice will your coach, with your peers, even with your family, practice your initial speech (it will be given you a five-minute speech to approach the panel members with an overview of your insights in the RemoteCamp);
8 — Last but not least, Welcome the negative feedback: Even during the Oral Exam, you will be coached! So find the thin line between welcoming feedback and defending your point of view.

Ah yes, I passed the second (final) attempt in the Oral Exam.