How to manage a distributed team

Managing distributed teams – tl;dr

• A distributed team is a group of employees who work closely together but are located in various places. In some cases, they may never work together in a shared office.

• Hiring a distributed team allows you to source talent from virtually anywhere in the world, boost your intercultural fluency, and optimize business continuity.

• The challenges for distributed teams include engagement, communication, isolation, and team building. Hushoffice pods help by giving on-site employees quiet, focused spaces to meet with their remote peers with ease on a regular basis.

What is a distributed team?

A distributed team is a group of employees who work together but are located in various places, sometimes spanning countries, sometimes continents. Though they take many forms, what makes them a distributed team is that they have no shared central office.

The difference between distributed, remote and hybrid teams: the office’s role.

While hybrid teams are required to work in the office a certain number of days per week, remote teams have full flexibility to work from wherever each day and can come and go as they please. For a distributed team, the office isn’t a requirement at all.

When building a distributed team, an employer’s priority is not bringing new energy into the office. Instead, the priority is hiring the exact individuals with the right expertise in a given niche. This is why many distributed teams operate without ever co-working in a physical space together. Because they rarely, if ever, work in the office, it’s imperative that supervisors who oversee these virtual team members have private, focused spaces in the office like hushWork to connect via call or video conference with their distant colleagues — spaces where office noise and other interruptions are blocked out, allowing one to zero fully in on key discussions with remote peers

– says Mateusz Barczyk, Senior Brand Manager, Hushoffice.

Though physically absent, distributed teams are engines of organizational productivity.

It is no wonder some of the world’s greatest companies are fully distributed. Remote employees have terrific self-discipline and are often self-starters — they can take a nascent idea and run with it. So though their presence is not viscerally felt, their influence on a team can be tremendous.

There are many reasons to consider building a distributed team.

In certain instances, organizations may adopt a hybrid schedule for the majority of their employees but allow for specific teams, such as the app development team or other specialized groups, the flexibility to work in a fully distributed manner — i.e., without ever congregating in an office. This approach can work well because it recognizes the unique requirements of certain teams, allowing a company to leverage the benefits of remote work and maximize talent acquisition for niche skill sets

– says Mateusz Barczyk, Senior Brand Manager, Hushoffice.

1.    Wider geographic reach & access to specialized skill sets

By removing geographical barriers, you can source talent from virtually anywhere in the world. You are no longer limited by commuting distance and you can cast the widest net, capturing talent with niche expertise or specific industry knowledge — talent that may be rare or in high demand.

2.    Reduced hiring barriers

Remote work arrangements win top talent who may not be willing or able to relocate for office-based opportunities. By fully embracing remote work for select positions, you fish a bigger pool of prospects and get access to the best of the best.

3.    Global perspectives & cultural intelligence

Distributed teams are often multicultural. Their blend of paradigms makes for more sophisticated problem-solving. For companies operating in international markets or seeking to expand their global footprint, any intercultural fluency is a serious asset.

4.    24/7 productivity

With employees in different time zones, a team can achieve round-the-clock productivity. This can mean faster turnaround times, continuous progress on projects, and quicker customer support.

5.    Business continuity

Distributed teams have more resilience to disruptions like natural disasters and the like. For when team members are not reliant on a single work location, you can continue operations under challenging circumstances.

What are the challenges of managing a distributed team?

While the distributed team model offers numerous advantages, it also presents unique challenges that managers and supervisors must navigate.

Engagement and communication…

Engagement is tricky for a physically disjointed team that communicates just virtually. It is critical the office have high-quality video meeting and phone call spaces where on-site employees can meet with remote counterparts as easily as possible, maintaining their full attention.

Tonal inflections. Deliberate changes in pace of speech. Fine intonation. All the delicate elements — the stuff of effective phone conversations. The stuff that can be lost in translation on calls held in a noisy office space. This is why managers of distributed teams need private call pods like hushPhone. Pods that mute background racket and enhance speech intelligibility for strong connection and fluid communication on every call with remote subordinates. No matter the physical distance, everyone is kept more invested

– says Mateusz Barczyk, Senior Brand Manager, Hushoffice.

Isolation and loneliness…

30% of remote workers struggle with loneliness. The absence of daily in-person interactions and chance social connections can indeed be alienating. It can hurt one’s sense of belonging and motivation.

Positively, video calls are associated with a decrease in loneliness and social isolation.

Their visual aspect simulates real presence. Thus, enhancing these visual aspects is key if you oversee or are planning for a distributed team. Outfit the office with professional video call spaces (see: hushHybrid) and supply remote colleagues with high-quality laptop video lights.

The majority of remote workers prefer to have their camera on during calls.

According to this majority, it’s easier to communicate when seeing someone’s expressions. This preference means most employees now embrace video meetings. So today’s office isn’t fit for today’s employees unless it is fit with professional video call spaces.

Team training and trust-building…

Hands-on guidance and immediate feedback are difficult to replicate virtually. Remote employees miss out on observing and interacting with colleagues face-to-face. This can impact their learning experience. Without physical presence, people may also lose motivation or focus.

75% of remote workers spend as much as a quarter of the work week in meetings.

The fact that remote workers spend a significant portion of their workweek in meetings highlights the importance of providing perfect meeting spaces in the office. Take hushMeet — a space where in-office colleagues can meet with remote ones uninterrupted. Then team training finds a rhythm and teams find natural synergy despite the virtual nature of their correspondence

– says Mateusz Barczyk, Senior Brand Manager, Hushoffice.

Daily communication and frequent meetings are what build team identity.

71% of teams with remote employees rely on 1:1s to stay connected. No surprise, since those with half as many 1:1s are 67% more likely to drop off. A pod like hushHybrid is an ideal space for these vital virtual connections. Private and quiet, hushHybrid makes both parties feel comfortable sharing.

Video calls promote more balanced discussions and more dynamic brainstorms.

As visual creatures, we are more engaged when we can see someone’s face. Expressions, alone, are rich information, conveying emotions and attitudes. Hand gestures, body movements, and shifts in eye contact all allow for more substantive conversations, too.

Noise-free and peaceful, Hushoffice pods create a metaphorical echo of virtual engagement.

Engagement can reverberate between people. When one invests their energy into another, attentiveness echoes back: the give-and-take of true collaboration. Quiet, private, and minimally designed, Hushoffice pods are the apt environment, fostering the initial focus that sets into motion this reciprocal flow.

Managing distributed teams – tl;dr

• A distributed team is a group of employees who work closely together but are located in various places. In some cases, they may never work together in a shared office.

• Hiring a distributed team allows you to source talent from virtually anywhere in the world, boost your intercultural fluency, and optimize business continuity.

• The challenges for distributed teams include engagement, communication, isolation, and team building. Hushoffice pods help by giving on-site employees quiet, focused spaces to meet with their remote peers with ease on a regular basis.

Distributed teams – frequently asked questions

What is an example of a distributed team?

An example of a distributed team could be a software development team working on a project for a technology company. The team members may be located in different cities or countries, collaborating remotely to design, develop, and test the software. They communicate and coordinate their work through various online collaboration tools, such as project management software, video conferencing platforms, and instant messaging applications. Despite being physically separated, they work together to deliver the software product.

What are the challenges for distributed teams?

Typical challenges for a distributed team include engagement, communication, loneliness, and team training. Hushoffice acoustic pods help by providing on-site employees with private, sound-insulated spaces to meet with remote colleagues without noise or distraction.

How can my office be updated for a distributed team?

Since video calls are a primary form of communication for distributed teams, you should update your office with premium video call spaces like Hushoffice pods and supply remote colleagues with high-quality laptop clip-on video lights to bolster your team’s success.