The work landscape has changed dramatically in the past few years. As more organizations continue embracing remote work, managing remote teams is becoming commonplace, with 12.7% of full-time employees working remotely and 28.2% working within a hybrid model.
This increase in acceptance of remote work has led to the emergence of new technologies that are meant to enhance remote work performance and help people be more efficient and productive. Managers working with primarily remote teams must learn to leverage this technology to best lead their teams.
“It’s important that managers working with remote teams do what they can to achieve peak productivity through effective monitoring and guidance,” says Bryan Agpaoa, Director of Guidance at Cyberbacker, a company that specializes in pairing workers with virtual assistants.
Remote work is here to stay and will likely seep further into the work landscape in the next few years. Here are some ways that technology can help managers and leaders get the most out of their remote teams.
Communication
Remote teams could not function without robust communication technology programs. Video conferencing software such as Zoom revolutionized how people work, especially during the pandemic, and has shown that companies can run smoothly even if the teams are not in the same room.
“Effective communication is a building block of a strong remote workspace,” says Agpaoa, “and tools are needed to attain that goal of effective communication.” Today, those tools are going beyond video conferencing.
Additionally, messaging apps like Slack have allowed teams to have real-time conversations, create groups for more focused discussions, and streamline their workflow. “Most of these communication apps allow team members to quickly and easily share files and upload to shared cloud servers,” explains Agpaoa.
There are also collaborative tools that work with video communication programs that allow teams to break out into groups for projects and even offer team-building opportunities. “Communication within remote teams can be a challenge, but with the right tools, it can be just as collaborative and productive as in-office communication,” Agpaoa says.
Project management
Effective project management can be one of those tasks that anti-remote work leaders may point to when espousing everything wrong with remote team environments, as those naysayers may not fully understand how project management can happen in a remote environment. However, several programs have emerged in the last few years that have made project management a breeze. Programs such as Asana give teams a forum for communication on individual projects, a way to document every step of the project, and a connection between stakeholders within projects.
“When working with cross-functional remote teams, it helps to have the most up-to-date project management software,” says Agpaoa. “The most innovative parts of these newer project management platforms are the real-time updates and organizational ability.”
With everything well-organized and out in the open, it’s easy to trust your team members to do their parts within individual projects. “We want to create a positive environment within our remote workspace,” says Agpaoa. “Real-time work within project management software allows us to see how each team member is contributing to a given project, strengthening trust between team members.”
Monitoring employee performance, productivity, and digital safety
As many managers of remote teams have found, it’s far more challenging to monitor the output of their team members when they aren’t all in the same office. “Implementing tools such as ActivTrak, Hubstaff, Teramind, and Time Doctor to track team productivity and performance can help them achieve this with a workforce located all across the globe,” Agpaoa notes.
However, the more remote a team is, the greater risk there is regarding not only their performance, but also their — and their organization’s — digital safety. According to a recent report, phishing scams and malware attacks increased by 173% and 110% respectively in Q3 of 2023 alone.
“Remote employees and the companies they work for must remain vigilant to the risk of cyber crimes,” says Agpaoa. “Any third-party software used should be properly vetted before being implemented, and tools like multi-factor authentication and VPNs should be used to safeguard against hackers and cyberattacks that could put organizations — as well as their customers — at risk of data breaches.”
Automation and AI
Among the most significant technological advancements to move towards remote work are automation and AI tech. “AI and automation technology can help with repetitive tasks, freeing remote workers up to work on other more complex or creative tasks,” Agpaoa explains.
AI and automation are also where issues of ethics and responsible use are most likely to arise. While automation tools and AI can be used to do everything from content creation to chatbot customer service, there has also been some concern about issues such as plagiarism and AI taking over the jobs of humans.
“To ethically use AI and automation within a remote environment, there needs to be clear leadership on prioritizing security, non-bias, and human interaction with the AI technology,” says Agpaoa.
Remote workers should also never be placed in the dark about the possibility of job displacement due to AI integration. With transparency and open communication, AI can be used to better productivity and efficiency, not cause harm.
Making strides and remaining human-focused
While new technology that can aid remote jobs is brought to the table seemingly every day, it remains the duty of managers to deploy such technology responsibly — keeping a focus on the human element of their organizations. “We are committed to a tech-focused and cutting-edge environment for our remote teams, but even as we champion technology, we still emphasize employee engagement,” says Agpaoa.
With exciting advancements in technology at the ready, it can be easy to fall into the trap of believing that tech can solve any issue that may arise within a remote team environment. While technology plays a significant role in remote work, organizations must keep the human connection between their teams and management alive. Through virtual team-building and tech that makes communication easier, the human element of work can remain vibrant — even with global teams.
The move to remote work has opened up a world of technological advancements that have positively impacted the productivity of remote workers. As managers learn to guide remote work teams into this new world of work, learning how to responsibly implement the myriad technologies will lead to better team connection, collaboration, and efficiency.
