7 TIPS FOR MANAGING

Hire employees who are the right fit for virtual work

Create a sense of community

Check in with your team

Set documented rules

Make expectations clear

Constantly test technology

Develop cultural sensitivity

Take time to assess your employee

candidates and decide if they are a good fit

for virtual work. You may want to take a look

at their home/work space environment.

In a virtual environment you can still create a sense of community for your

employees by creating opportunities for team members to “chat” both formally and

informally. Some great virtual tools to use are Skype, Slack, Trello, Basecamp,

Google+ Hangout and WebEx!

Complete a quarterly (or monthly if you are so inclined) review

to see how your virtual employees are coping. Let your virtual

employees know that you recognize and appreciate them. Add

a personal touch by remembering birthdays, sending out words

of encouragement and acknowledging accomplishments.

Just like rules are in place in an office, you need to set rules for

your virtual employees. For example, you can have them clock in

at a certain time or set a number of times they have to check in

throughout the day.

Put into writing exactly what you expect from the virtual work

arrangement for each of your employees. These expectations

should include work deadlines, availability, and response times.

As the manager of your virtual team, it is your responsibility to be

continuously testing your technology to make sure everything’s

running smoothly for your team. Troubleshoot any problems you

may have and get them resolved quickly before productivity is

delayed too much.

It is likely that your virtual employees are based around the world. For

this reason, being culturally aware in your virtual environment is even

more important than in face-to-face settings. Cultivate cultural

sensitivity in your team by making everyone aware of cultural

differences and promoting cultural training for all employees.

copyright 2015