A Succesful Remote Team Needs An Effective Communication Strategy
Communication. Communication. Communication. When working remotely you cannot over-communicate. You can communicate poorly. Without an effective communication strategy, you can certainly think you are communicating well. However, it’s not effective if your message isn’t received.
This means tasks and assignments won’t be executed on even by your senior leadership. With all the “communication” swirling around there will be organized chaos that you and your team are confusing with communication.
There must be a strategy for the way you communicate if you want the message to be received. It’s your job as the leader to make sure you not only deliver the message effectively but that it can also be received appropriately. This is the strategy everyone working remotely must be willing to adhere to.
I suggest having no more than four strategies of communication. Each one with a very specific intended purpose. It’s imperative that everyone knows how and when to communicate in every situation.
- For your immediate needs and quick response times. (within the company)
Slack or Instant Messaging (IM) — You’re more likely to overlap via email when attempting to share short, quick bursts of information. Additionally, on Slack or IM, you can remove the formalities that you’ll need to implement over email.
There is a caveat, the conversations should be in open channels so others can have a birdseye view. In a team or group, one person can be responding, and the entire team can view the exchange. This is a great way to make sure everyone is on the same page. If not, it’s the perfect time for a team member to speak up and ask for clarification.
Why I don’t like WhatsApp or Text — These are not open channels. We still want others to view conversations in the channels or appropriate groups. It’s also imperative that work is done using work devices whenever possible. If done over personal phones you are adding another layer of non-compliance.
2. Communicating when a longer response time is appropriate. (in and outside the company)
Email — No matter how long you’ve been using email, chances are you are probably using it incorrectly. Don’t worry. You’re not alone! Emails were never intended to be the novellas that we have made them into. However, no matter if your emails or short or on their way to be the next instruction manual they should all have the same thing in common — the overuse of the words, “please”, “thank you”, and “you’re welcome”.
You don’t have the same interaction remotely as you do in the office. There is no body language and the person receiving the email cannot hear the tone in your voice. You are now one another’s first client. Is your email fit to send to an outside client? If not, rephrase it.
3. Collaborations & Projects
Asana — I default to Asana. Always. There are other platforms you can use such as Trello, Basecamp, and Teamwork. Everyone gets assigned work, has deadlines, and can easily share files. There are a number of ways to make sure multiple people are not only communicating within the project but that everyone can see what progress is being made.
The biggest mistake made in these platforms. You still need someone to manage the project. The software tools are meant to make sure nothing falls through the cracks. Only the project manager can make sure to orchestrate the project seamlessly and keep people moving along before the project gets behind.
4. Phone & Conference Call/Video Chats
Knowing when to take meetings offline and speak 1:1 is imperative. Anyone on the team should be able to call a meeting of this nature and invite the appropriate people. It could be after a few messages are not providing clarity, when the back and forth emails seem to be getting heated, or when team members have become unresponsive.
No-fault calls. Setting up a no-fault call policy might be in order. Remember no matter how clear you believe you are if the person you want to receive your message is unclear it is your job to help provide clarity. Don’t fault the person for wanting to clarify over the phone or video chat.
You could be using all these platforms now, but you could also be using all of them wrong. A strategy ensures you’re using them to communicate effectively. Remember the goal of the strategy is for every team member and employee to not simply deliver a message but to make sure the message is received.
Melissa Smith has been working remotely since 2013 when she became the first employee at her company to do so. Only a few short years later, in 2017, she became location independent. During that time she traveled to 16 countries in 12 months while running her business. Now Melissa teaches and consults others on how to make remote working work. Additionally, Melissa is one of the authors for the first online, globally recognized remote work individual certification through Remote-how Academy.
Melissa is frequently sought after for her knowledge and expertise on remote working. She has since gained international recognition and has been featured in Forbes, U.S. Chamber of Commerce, U.S. News & World Report, as well as many other publications. You can learn more about Melissa at https://melissasmith.io/.
