India isn’t ready for the #WorkFromHome culture. That doesn’t mean we can’t learn.
So here are some learnings for managing a remote team and tips on being a productive work from home resource.
For Managers:
1. Share a Plan of Action:
Ask your team to share a plan of action for the day in the first 30 minutes of starting their day.
2. Scrum Call with the immediate manager:
The manager leads the scrum conference call to discuss:
-
Plan of action and suggest modifications(if any).
-
Performance and deliverables for the day.
3. Use Whatsapp Extensively:
Ask your team to pin top 3 Whatsapp groups (office or client). Turn around time for WhatsApp should be around 15 minutes. If in case the person doesn’t respond in 15, a phone call can be made.
4. Use Trello Boards for Tasks Tracking:
Trello boards are a good option to manage a big team and their multiple tasks. Trello is extremely good for task raising, tracking and following up.
5. All Client and Internal Conference Calls to be scheduled via calendar invite only:
When you are working from the office you simply ask the person about their availability.
But since you are remote now a lot of times the servicing guys won’t be aware of the execution teams’ availability, which is why following this protocol will ensure you don’t end up in overlapping meetings.
6. Daily Status Report:
Ask your team to share an end of day daily status report for the plan of action they had shared in the morning.
That my friend is a typical standard operating procedure for Working From Home and will ensure that your team stays productive and the company stays positive.
Well, that was from a functionality point of view. A team cannot be productive if they do not have the right environment or mindset to work in. The following tips intend to help everyone who wishes to have a good and productive time while working from home.
For Everybody:
Tip 1: Shower and Dressup before starting your work:
However, BS that might sound, but trust me it works.
Tip 2: Have a designated workspace:
Place yourself on a proper chair and table at a fixed location. We all know what happens when we are on the sofa or the bed. Before you know it you start doing yoga with your laptop.
Tip 3: Take Designated Breaks:
For the workaholics who lose track of time set alarms to eat lunch and take a coffee break.
Tip 4: Follow the official working hours:
Even though you are remote, a lot of businesses run on a collaborative business model. You all contribute your part to achieve a bigger role. So working and being available when everybody is available is extremely important.
Tip 5: Learn to say ‘No’:
Your family is going to assume that you are home and hence available. You would have to say no to the grocery shop trip or other typical chores your mother or wife expects you to do.
For good or for bad, the novel CoronaVirus has already taught us a lot: in terms of hygiene and in terms of setting up a remote team.
Let us use this knowledge and set up a fully functional and productive remote team. God knows one day work from home might become the new norm.
Also Read: Top 15 Parameters To Evaluate a Digital Marketing Agency For Your SME in 2020
