Virtual Communication Strategies for Remote Businesses

The Nomad, Traveling Savant, and International Business Mogul all have something peculiar in common. They all work for a living but this is no simple work environment. These brave souls are carefully crafting the future of work from different corners of the world. The remote business scenario is slowly becoming the new standard of work. In fact, according to Fast Company, remote teamwork has increased by 91% in the past 10 years.

There are several reasons remote work has grown so rapidly in the past few years. These reasons include:

• Advancements in technology
• Communication infrastructure
• Global markets

Today’s professional landscape allows individuals who prefer a less traditional office environment to work from anywhere in the world whether it’s a secluded island or exploring the seven wonders of the world.

While the world is quickly adapting to today’s workforce model communication strategies for distributed workforces are essential to crafting a successful work environment.

Because make no mistake, a virtual workplace still requires getting things done. 

If you’re a remote CEO or manager of a remote team it’s likely that you’re interested in using communication strategies to strengthen your team’s communication skills. Let’s explore some key virtual communication strategies that every remote team should have in place.

Mandatory Team Time

Remote workers are typically challenging to wrangle together primarily because of the dramatic timezone difference. A developer in Canada is in a completely different timezone from a project manager in Australia. However, geography is only half the battle, as remote workers are drawn to this specific work setup because of their affinity to flexible schedules and time freedom. However, a team that doesn’t play together will never stay together. To build a remote team that actually works, team members first need to actually meet each other, even virtually. Team calls will help them understand communication nuances within the team overall.

A mandatory team call, whether it’s a 15-minute daily standup or a weekly 2-hour planning session, gives every member of the team a platform to share their insight, ideas, or just learn how to participate in team dialogue.

Focus on Team Culture and Fit

Before onboarding, a new team member a monthly trial that allows the prospective member to experience “the day to day”, with the rest of the team is essential. While this may be a more advanced tip, small remote or distributed teams can be highly effective if you do not have to go through the battle of work culture poison. Dissenting work philosophies make it extremely difficult for team members to communicate let alone get things done. So hire well, think about how a potential team member will fit into your culture and if that fit is beneficial to the team overall.

Use Tools That Match Your Philosophy

The internet is filled with a million tools, after all, it is “ The World Wide Web”. However, just because a million tools exist does not mean you need to use them all. Communication solutions for remote teams should always feel right. The “feeling” is subjective akin to the story of Goldilocks and The 3 Little Bears, it has to feel just right.

If you’re not much of a ‘Zen’ decision-maker, here are some tips to help you find the right tools for your remote team.

Inclusion and Team Building

Firstly, inclusion is not a trivial expense. If there’s one thing that unites any group of people almost instantaneously, it’s putting on the uniform. The uniform does not have to be a ‘literal’ uniform. It can be business cards, laptop stickers, tee-shirts, sweatshirts, something shared that makes people feel like they are a part of something. If you’ve ever met a techie in your life before you know, laptop stickers are the coveted Github sweatshirt are all badges of honor. I mean honestly, if it works for Reddit, GitHub, and Slack it’s definitely worth a shot. Right?

Are you are a CEO or manager of a remote team? If so, feel free to share this with your team or coworking colleagues! If you’re feeling fancy, be sure to tag us on Twitter as well.

Are you interested in learning more?