Technology has now allowed people to connect with other people everywhere first through correspondence, then phones, then the internet. Businesses have evolved now to a point where companies employ the services of a virtual team—motivated by the benefits of cost-effective labour and a wider reach of hires while being able to work just about anywhere.

In the face of coronavirus, many companies have gone full-remote for the first time ever. Managers and owners quickly realised that it takes a lot of effort to make virtual teams work effectively for running their business—especially those, for the longest time, who have worked in an entire office or in-person setting.

All is not lost, however. Remote teams could work—daresay that if managed properly, virtual teams can work more effectively than in-person would. 

Here are some tips to make your virtual teamwork for your business.

• Goal-setting

One mistake many failing teams make is that they fail to make the overall team goal and vision clear. One key question for goal-setting for virtual teams is that “how do you make sure that you stay connected and aligned?”.

Start simple, be specific, and be clear. Whenever you set goals, make sure that there are no grey areas. You don’t have to be verbose but make sure that everyone knows what to expect specifically and when.

• Organize online meetings effectively

Good communication goes a long way for every team. That goes especially for virtual teams.
Business meetings, however, have that universal reputation of eating up a lot of unnecessary time that could have been better spent on things that “matter”—and more so with remote meetings.

Getting remote employees to actively listen and collaborate effectively in a virtual setting can be a real challenge—connectivity problems, communication delays, and even distractions. But once those hurdles are overcome, online meetings prove to be the bread-and-butter of minimizing miscommunication and going forward with your goals.

Always keep your meetings structured to avoid wasting time—discuss the most important topics with coworkers. Meetings with a vague purpose often lead to confusion and miscommunication.

Regular online meetings work well to discuss weekly achievements and have catch-up to where everyone is up to.

• Reward achievements

Going full-remote means that the traditional rewards and recognition style might need to have some adjustments to suit the demands of a virtual workspace. 

Frequent recognition makes sure that your remote employees feel remembered and can raise team morale. Acknowledge business results and give feedback. When an employee takes initiative or exceeds expectations, you’re sure that a message that specifically points out their accomplishment would be appreciated. What you’ll find are talented individuals who stay with your team.

• Work-life balance

There can often be a fine blurry line between work and personal life for remote workers—especially if where you work is in the same space as where you live. It’s important to get your virtual team to completely unplug after work hours—essentially giving them enough time to recover from their daily regular duties.