How can managers optimise team performance when members rarely meet each other and have little opportunity to build relationships with each other?

Technology has redefined traditional workplace identity and has also enabled access to more dispersed pools of talent. Work, workforce, and workplace, continue to evolve, bringing with it both opportunities and challenges.

 

Managers now need to put in place conscious interventions and mechanisms, to curate connection, learning experiences, and the culture they need to succeed.

 

Having a shared purpose, and helping the team understand how their work contributes to this purpose is a key motivational lever. Purpose provides an emotional hook that can drive performance and connection.

 

Communication is critical. Establishing clear communication channels, whether through, instant messaging platforms, information portals, video conferencing, or email fosters transparency and collaboration, which will build trust and psychological safety in teams and across the business. This positively correlates with improved performance.

 

Research by Irish academics such as Dr. Marie Conboy from Dublin City University emphasises the importance of regular, structured communication to mitigate feelings of isolation and promote a sense of belonging within remote teams.

 

As part of an organisation’s communication strategy or structure, clarity regarding roles, responsibilities, and performance expectations is essential for team success. This can also be connected back to the team’s purpose, continuously reinforcing the “why”, alongside the “how” and the “what”.

 

Leading teams requires trust to empower employees and input via ongoing coaching conversations. As dispersed employees develop in a hybrid or remote environment, they have less access to learning transfer. Therefore, managers are required to proactively structure this. As such, organisations are moving toward performance and development experience to drive employee engagement versus traditional hierarchical performance processes. We are also seeing a rise in organisational mentoring programmes to foster learning and connection across organisations, and in some cases across demographics. For example, more experienced managers, being mentored by less experienced colleagues in intergenerational or multi-cultural leadership.

 

Managers have been doing this on a large scale since the advent of the pandemic. What have they learned during this time?

Before many organisations found themselves catapulted into a remote work environment. Now is the time to step back and take a considered approach to maximise the gains remote and hybrid working can offer. This also means, mitigating the risks.

 

One of the key challenges faced by managers in this new world of work is the effective management of dispersed teams. Optimising team performance amongst dispersed teams, requires a different set of skills and interventions. It is no surprise that Leadership Development, Learning and Development, and Performance Management, were the top three HR priorities in our HR Update Survey last year.

 

Managers have learned to think, act, and react differently, customising their employee experiences and interactions. We are seeing a rise in co-creation of work patterns and habits. For example, managers and businesses, asking teams for more input on how and when they want to interact and for what purpose. The Ibec HR Update survey HR Trends and Insights, demonstrates more organisations and managers leaning into intentional activities to draw people back into the office, like on site social, and learning events. More organisations are encouraging people to attend the office for project work, collaborative meetings, and for mentoring, or performance and development conversations.

 

Managers are also operating in a talent and skills scarce market, with skills continuing to diversify and leaders needing to keep up with the pace of change. Managers are adapting to new technologies and online tools that will enhance worker productivity but also the employee experience.

 

The role of technology in facilitating virtual teamwork is sometimes a missed opportunity. Platforms such as project management software, cloud-based document sharing, and virtual whiteboards streamline workflow and promote seamless collaboration across geographies.

 

What are the pitfalls to remote team management - what should managers avoid?

How success is measured success is important. Organisations will optimise performance by focusing on outcomes versus inputs.

 

Empowering team members to take ownership of their work fosters autonomy and accountability. Research emphasises the importance of empowering leadership styles in remote settings. Providing autonomy while offering support and guidance, when needed, cultivates a culture of trust, and enhances individual and collective performance.

 

Ultimately, if businesses can focus on employee centric design, that balances the needs of the employee and the business, the business will be rewarded with loyalty and better performance outcomes.

 

Consider the work, workforce, and workplace, and gain an understanding of the moments that matter to your employees. This will help you determine which of those moment should be structured in person versus remotely. Consider your workers for whom you wish to build a workplace where people want to come to learn, and work, and perform.

 

This is likely to reap greater quality work and interactions. There is great power in in person interaction, for innovation, teamwork, and much more. This power is realised when these experiences are human centred.

 

The management of dispersed teams in remote work environments presents unique challenges that require innovative solutions. By prioritising clear communication, trust-building, goal alignment, technological integration, and empowering leadership, managers can optimise team performance and navigate the complexities of remote work effectively.