Two Keys to Making Remote Work, Work

I’ve been working in a remote position for the past 18 years, first as a business owner, then as a developer and then manager. Remote work has some amazing benefits, of which I’m definitely a big fan, but there are two key things a team needs to get right in order to make it work - process and writing.

Follow a Process

As with any type of business, processes are critical to the operation of a business. With remote work though, having those processes nailed down and worked out very precisely is key to keeping work flowing. When a team is in person, process gaps can easily be overcome with a quick discussion. This is often prompted by either observing what’s happening in the room, or by way of casual discussion.

When your team is remote though, these kinds of interactions are harder to come by. It’s much easier for work to slip through the cracks and go unnoticed for longer periods of time. That’s why it’s key to have a very detailed process through which all your work is handled. It should always be clear what the next steps are and who is responsible for each step along the way. It’s also key to review the status of everyone’s work on a recurring basis - generally daily or weekly depending on the type of work involved.

Write Everything Down

The second key to a successful remote team is to capture everything in writing. In an office setting, it’s easy to have lots of quick conversations and work things out verbally. With a remote team, that can become more difficult. It’s much harder to tell when someone or a small group is available for a quick verbal discussion when you’re remote.

That’s why it’s key to capture everything in writing. Meeting notes, comments, questions about a change, documentation - everything should be captured somewhere. This has a few benefits, including keeping a precise record of any key decisions, leaving a paper trail that others can follow along with later when reviewing discussions or decisions, as well as making it easier for more people to quickly stay up to speed without needing to be in lots of meetings.

The biggest benefit to writing though, is that it forces everyone to be as efficient as possible in sharing the key information needed to move work and the team, forward.

While running a remote team is not without some unique challenges, if you get these two things right, then it becomes a much easier process which leads to a better, happier team and company.