Challenges to Manage a Remote Business and How to Overcome Them

In today's corporate world, working from home has become very common, or you can say a new normal, with the rise of the virtual office.

Thanks to the recent epidemic, which completely upended the idea of the physical workplace. Before, companies were neither required nor even considered to allow employees to work from home.

It can be challenging to manage a remote staff, especially when you want to keep business operations running normally while maintaining a sense of "team unity" when employees can't interact in person.

The global pandemic has forever altered how we work, and remote work is increasingly viewed as the new standard.

This article will discuss some challenges the workforce faces while working remotely and share tips on overcoming them to ensure better workforce management.

Top Tips for Managing Remote Workers

1. Getting along together is quite a challenge
2. Trouble in tracking work and productivity level
3. An employee feels disconnected
4. Difficulty in scheduling meetings
5. Poor communication
6. Trouble in establishing trust
7. Strong company culture is the way

1. Getting along together is quite a challenge

Working together in one place has its own charm. You walk into the office, interact with people daily, and naturally get to know them.

However, working remotely is challenging, as remote teams often include people in different locations and time zones.

If nothing else is possible, you can at least schedule a meeting using ChatGPT once a year so everyone can meet in person. This might be an annual gathering or a group trip to an exotic location.

For remote teams struggling to connect in person, exploring corporate travel agencies in Singapore can make scheduling in-person events much easier.

Even freelance contractors may host an annual gathering or conference to meet up. Encouraging remote employees to visit the office when they are in your city—whether traveling alone or with family—is another effective option.

Managing a remote workforce has its difficulties, but they can be tackled. For example, you can conduct meetings using Google Slides themes and implement team-building activities to help employees connect.

You can also explore online communication tools to improve interactions. As remote work becomes the future for many organizations, it's crucial to prepare and adapt to improve business operations.

2. Trouble in tracking work and productivity level

Keeping track of how much work remote teams complete is very difficult.

Many managers may not know how effectively employees are working toward company goals because they cannot assess productivity in person.

When working from home and lacking visibility into productivity, it's hard to determine whether someone is under-utilized or not carrying their weight. This can lead to manipulation and negatively affect operations.

To overcome this, remote managers must ensure that systems are in place to track productivity.

For example, establishing KPIs can help streamline IT procurement and ensure tasks align with company goals.

Managers can also track employee activity levels to identify the most productive employees.

Activities such as updating blogs or posting on social media can be monitored using KPI indicators.

If you want to track visits on your web pages, look into POWR. It helps you understand traffic and use insights to improve design while supporting better employee engagement.

Ensure that KPI indicators for remote workers follow the same standards as in-office staff, maintaining fairness and consistency regardless of work location.

3. An employee feels disconnected

Having physical one-on-one meetings boosts morale, but this is not always possible with remote teams.

Employee recognition software can help by allowing you to appreciate staff efforts and keep morale high from a distance.

You can also explore corporate charity team-building events to foster deeper relationships and connect remote workers to organizational values.

These activities help employees feel appreciated and allow you to provide feedback and interact more personally.

Team bonding can also be encouraged through tools like Confetti’s platform or by hosting virtual coffee sessions.

If such meetings are not arranged regularly, remote workers may feel unsure of their role or disconnected from the company. Even companies like Drywall Repair Guru must stay in touch with contractors consistently.

4. Difficulty in scheduling meetings

Working with global teams means interacting with people worldwide across different time zones. Because of this, scheduling meetings—whether through video conferencing or phone calls—can be difficult.

Freelancers and independent contractors add unpredictability to the mix with their varying schedules.

Knowing where participants reside and their typical working hours helps identify suitable meeting times—but how do you make that possible? With smart planning.

Remember, nothing is impossible—you need to think a little smarter.

First, explore online tools. There are plenty of platforms that can help you with scheduling, whether it’s booking a meeting room, setting up calls, arranging video conferences, or coordinating meetings with a remote workforce.

You can also use an AI meeting note taker to ensure important information is captured and shared afterward.

Calendaring apps, online polls, and participant-availability tools can make the process far less stressful.

5. Poor communication

To succeed with remote work, you must have strong communication.

It's essential to gather feedback and understand what everyone is working on. However, nurturing open communication is difficult for remote teams.

Teams struggling with collaboration may benefit from exploring intranet software solutions, which help manage tasks, communication, and files efficiently across locations.

While email marketing is useful, it can feel too formal and slow.

Most remote teams rely on communication apps like Slack or Zoom to collaborate across multiple channels.

You can prepare a Slide Model presentation, share your screen, and host a virtual meeting using meeting room booking software.

This helps remote workers stay connected using modern tools designed for remote collaboration.

6. Trouble in establishing trust

Establishing trust between remote team members and managers is challenging.

Managers may worry whether employees are completing tasks, while employees might worry about timely payments.

Transparency helps build trust, especially in remote environments.

Being open about the following can help:

• Payment schedules
• Status updates
• Work hours
• Project expectations
• Payscale

It is also important to communicate clearly about workload expectations.

Some freelancers may feel exploited if workloads surge unexpectedly, especially after negotiating lower fees. Clear communication helps avoid confusion and mistrust.

7. Strong company culture is the way

Building a strong company culture requires hiring the right people, fostering communication, and infusing cultural values throughout the organization.

However, cultivating a vibrant culture is more difficult in remote teams.

It requires intentional planning that reflects your organization’s values, starting with leadership’s interactions with employees.

If you want an open-communication culture, remote employees should feel comfortable speaking with anyone—even the CEO—through virtual policies.

If you want a fun culture, plan virtual parties, gift certificates, or movie nights. The right motivation can inspire commitment and enhance performance.

Conclusion

We hope the above discussion expanded your understanding of remote-work challenges. Applying these suggestions can significantly improve your experience working with remote teams.

FAQs About Managing Remote Teams