Managing a remote team in 2022? Here are our tips for success

Remote working is here to stay, but have you adjusted your management style to suit it?

Post-pandemic, most businesses have switched to some degree of remote working. Whether you’re managing a 100% remote team, a hybrid team with some remote workers, or an in-office team that offers work from home flexibility, you must adjust your management style with remote staff in mind.



88% of workers whose roles permit working from home want to do so at least one day a week, and 65% want to work remotely full time. But with most workplaces now permanently offering remote work, simply offering it to jobseekers is not enough to attract top talent into your business. You must ensure your organisation is a place where remote workers flourish in their roles and love where they work. Here are our top tips for managing remote teams.

Trust your remote staff.

Some managers find themselves questioning if their remote staff are working to the same standard as they would in the office. It’s natural to think this, especially when you are first managing staff who work from home.

But don’t let it tempt you to alter your management style and watch over your employees’ work more closely. Staff who work remotely are actually more productive than those who work in the office. In fact, employee performance increases by 13% on average by working from home.

Given this, trust your remote employees just as much as you trust your office-based staff, and ensure that your management style is reflective of this. Micromanaging due to a lack of trust in remote staff will only lead to problems with employee morale.

Set expectations

When you’re managing remote teams, set clear employee expectations with remote staff in mind. These expectations differ amongst organisations, but some things to consider are:

• Are the work hours strict or flexible?
• When is it okay to quickly duck out for something during the workday?
• How is a remote work day structured?
• When should they use what channel to contact you or other members of the team? E.g., email, Microsoft Teams, Slack, Zoom or phone

With clear expectations in place, there will be no confusion about what is okay for remote staff to do and what is not.

Minimise isolation

It’s not uncommon for remote staff to feel isolated and disconnected from the rest of their team. To avoid this, schedule regular one-on-ones, as well as regular informal team meetings to allow your remote workers to get to know you and their colleagues on a personal level. It’s a good idea to schedule a regular Monday morning team catch-up where your team can discuss their weekend for a few minutes and build their relationships with each other, before starting off the week together and sharing what they will be working on.

To keep your employees engaged with each other throughout the whole week, invite your team to use your messaging platform for casual chats as well as business conversations. This will help build team morale and improve your culture in a way that includes remote staff.

When you need to inform your remote staff of something or ask them to complete a task, consider giving them a quick video call instead of sending them an email. This allows you to have a more personal chat and is often a more effective way of telling them something, as it minimises a potential chain of back-and-forth emails. In addition to this, let your remote staff know that they can call you at any time. If you’re unable to answer, prioritise returning their call when you can.

Keep remote staff in mind during meetings

If you’re managing a hybrid workforce, hold all meetings over a video call, even if some of your team will be together in the office. It can sometimes be difficult for remote staff to feel included in a meeting where half of the team are there together in person, and it’s difficult to hear everyone speak from one microphone. Having everyone join over their own video call makes your meetings more equal and increases input from remote employees.

Make the most of WFH technologies

With remote work becoming increasingly popular since the pandemic, there are new technologies constantly evolving that make working from home easier and minimise some of the difficulties associated with managing remote teams.

Be on the lookout for these new technologies as they come up and make the most of the ones that are currently available. Most involve a free trial, so don’t be afraid to give something new a go!

Include remote staff in team activities

Staff that work in the office get to enjoy team activities such as Christmas parties, lunches and social events, and your remote staff should get to experience these too.

Events like your Christmas party are easier to include remote employees in as they usually occur outside of work hours, but remote employees who live far away from the office can be discouraged from joining in. Invite them to come along, cover their travel expenses, and even get them to work from the office for a day or two!

When you’re organising a smaller event during the work day such as a team lunch or a morning tea for someone’s birthday, it can be more difficult to involve your remote staff who can’t be there.

If you have a large remote team, consider running separate remote activities. You could deliver ingredients to your employees’ houses and run a cooking session together over a video call, run a virtual class, or simply send your staff a meal to enjoy together over a call. To keep them more engaged in the team activities, you could organise a competition, trivia, or a fun game to keep them interested.  

If your remote team is smaller, have them dial into the team activities where possible, and be sure to send them something to enjoy on their own, even if it’s just a food delivery gift card. Remote staff shouldn’t miss out just because they’re at home!

When your remote employees have a birthday, make sure that you celebrate it like you would for others! You can deliver cake, flowers, or another small gift to their house to remind them that they’re being thought of by the team and schedule a video call where everyone can sing happy birthday to them. At Fuse, we always celebrate an employee’s birthday with cake, it’s another great way to drive connection in our team, so we always ensure our remote staff get the same treatment!