Knowing how to manage a global team can have its challenges in today’s virtual work environment, especially if you’ve never done it before.  It would help if you kept in mind several things so that your team can be successful and produce to its highest abilities. The below article is designed to give you tips for managing employees who live across the world.  Managing virtual teams is hard enough, but there are different nuances to pay attention to when you have them spread globally. Below you will learn some essential strategies to manage a global remote workforce. Let’s get started!

Check-in Often

Team members need to be checked in with as many as two or three times each week.  According to research done by Gallup,  workers who have regular check-ins with their supervisors are three times more likely to be engaged than those who don’t. Feeling essential and knowing that you are working towards a common goal can help motivate employees who may otherwise feel isolated if they are in their own country. Setting up a consistent one-on-one call with each member keeps them close and holds them accountable to deadlines and tasks.

Balanced Participation Amount Group Members

There are so many different personalities among team members.  It’s important to make sure that everyone feels comfortable participating in group meetings.   Figuring out how to encourage participation amount different people from different parts of the world can sometimes be challenging. To perform your meetings, you may want to establish a common language, possibly English.  If you have someone who speaks the native language, they can be outspoken and vocal in meetings and dominate the conversation. To stop this from happening, you may need to call team members who don’t speak English natively and give them the floor while they express their thoughts.

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Be aware of cultural differences

Every culture has different customers and traditions, and ideas about its world.  As a global team supervisor, your team will be made up of people from various religious and cultural backgrounds. The last thing you want to do is accidentally disrespect or even insult someone unintentionally. If this happens, these employees can shut down and not want to participate in group collaboration or respect you as a leader.

Create Better Teamwork Through Technology

Managing global teams is made possible these days with the help of technology.  Software such as Zoom and Webex allows remote teams to feel more cohesive.  By seeing team members’ faces on screen, it helps create a close environment for everyone in which they feel connected even across the globe. If you are managing a project from afar and each one of your team members is assigned a specific task to ultimately finish the project, you can assign and keep track of tasks through a platform, such as Trello, Monday, or Asana. You can assign due dates or milestones for each task, which allows you to keep track of the progress of each person on your team.

Make use of communication platforms

Communication is vital to managing a successful global virtual team. Many platforms on the market today, such as Slack, Google Chat, or MS Teams, can be used as a global communication platform for your team. These platforms will allow your teammates to instant message each other with questions or comments.  You can also form groups with certain people to communicate specific tasks within these groups.

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Schedule Consistent Meetings

Make sure to have a scheduled meeting with the entire team to create a more cohesive feeling of belongingness as a group.  This is extremely important when dealing with people who live clear across the other side of the world from each other. Meetings present the opportunity for team members to collaborate and share ideas. You must keep in mind that your common time is limited because of the time zones, so make the most of it.

Be Aware of Time Zone Differences

Since you are managing a team worldwide, some people are sleeping while others are working. Assign tasks according to work hours.  You have a small window of time that allows the entire team to be together. You will need to schedule meetings based on this common time.

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Build Trust

It’s important that all team members feel that they can speak freely to each other, ensuring that your team will be successful.  As their supervisor, you are in charge of creating this environment and making sure they feel comfortable coming to you as their boss. The goal is to create a virtual work environment where workers feel comfortable giving opinions, and feedback, receiving constructive criticism and sharing ideas with others.

Be Aware of National and Religious Holidays

Make sure you are aware of all of the global holidays.  Just like our holidays in the United States are important for our family and us, the same goes for other places worldwide. Everyone deserves to be with their family and friends during important religious and national holidays.  Have a calendar created and schedule important meetings around team members’ holidays.

Be Accessible at All Times

Please make sure you let your team know they can call you with anything they need.  Be accessible as much as possible so that you aren’t making any team members feel “cut off.”

Hire Regional Leaders

To make your life easier as a supervisor, consider hiring a regional leader in each country.  This can help with language barriers and keep people more comfortable dealing with someone who understands their culture and language.

Conclusion

The above tips on managing a global virtual team should help you be a successful team leader and supervisor no matter how far your team is from your office.  Remember that becoming a good leader takes time, and if you put some of these suggestions in place within your global virtual team, you should have a productive, happy team that respects you and is pleased to work for you.