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Managing Remote Teams

klinger.io

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Re: Managing Remote Teams

#41

Post by eikenberry »

xchaotic wrote: post #36

I'd argue that at this point you can still hire the self motivated people that you only need to lead not manage. 'Managing' programmers in general is hard enough, managing remote team in nigh iimpossible so don't do it, just remove the obvious roadblock, be aware of what everyone is up to (roughly) and don't interrupt, if not needed. I dare say the daily standups are not needed - just read the commits to see what's a…

That sounds like how all my best managers have worked, whether on site or remote. Their job is to facilitate your work, not control it.

Re: Managing Remote Teams

#42

Post by eikenberry »

> Innovation easier in person

Innovation is not a group activity, it is always the work of a single individual's creativity. You might think otherwise, that brainstorming and bouncing ideas off each other is important, but you'd be wrong.

Re: Managing Remote Teams

#43

Post by planetburgess »

dhh2106 wrote: post #2

Nice article op. I work in a remote-first org and completey agree that org structure is crucial. A couple additional thoughts: people assume remote work expands your talent pool to everyone. I don't believe it does. You're limited by time zones and by autonomy. Not everyone performs at a high level in a remote context. You need people who are very organized, disciplined and self-starters. Additionally, it can be very…

Not convinced you are totally limited by timezones if you can embrace asynchronous working. Definitely makes it harder though. 100% on self starters. Micromanagers or workers that require great oversight aren't going to work.

Re: Managing Remote Teams

#44

Post by planetburgess »

mikemcquaid wrote: post #35
izacus wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> - We tend to only hire highly experienced people. There's nobody with under 8 years of work on the team. Juniors will have to somehow convince us they can do it; it's somehow more believable that an older person will be able to work independently than a younger one. Hm, does that imply that you don't have any process or provisions to train up juniors / begineers?

> does that imply that you don't have any process or provisions to train up juniors If they don't: that's fine. It's better to not hire juniors if you aren't able to provide the mentorship they require than hire them anyway into an organisation that will fail them.

We worried about this but it has proven unnecessary. Juniors can thrive in remote settings if they have the right personality. E.g. Someone who was very disciplined with their University study and assignments I think shows a good base for working remotely.

But take time with onboarding and training. The biggest mistake we made was letting people rush through training.

When remote and particularly asynchronous you'll have times you can't ask anyone for immediate help. So basic process and understanding need to be deeply embedded during training.

Re: Managing Remote Teams

#45

Post by planetburgess »

One other thing I would add to this is don't treat remote employees as "set and forget". The tendency is to sry someone up remotely and assume they will be happy with that arrangement indefinitely. But many people will experience changes over time in their enjoyment of remote work and productivity. Not always work related and not always positive. E.g.we had someone who injured themself and started to struggle being at home all the time. Another person who loved being remote until their relationship ended and then got lonely at home by themselves day and night. There is a simple fix : every quarter check in with your remote workers to make sure it's still working for them.

Re: Managing Remote Teams

#46

Post by andreasklinger »

ctrudeau wrote: post #11
andreasklinger wrote: post #4

author here thanks for posting the article on HN - i am a daily (more or less) lurker and a huge fan :) let me know if any parts in the article aren't clear or major points are missing - happy to extend or answer here

Any good books you can recommend? Most of what I've seen is about "offshoring" rather than "remote-first" situations, I'm about to build a team using the later and want all the reading material I can get my hands on. Thanks for a great article!

I have not read it but it's by Jason Friend and DHH: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00C0ALZ0W/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?...

Re: Managing Remote Teams

#47

Post by planetburgess »

andreasklinger wrote: post #46
ctrudeau wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Any good books you can recommend? Most of what I've seen is about "offshoring" rather than "remote-first" situations, I'm about to build a team using the later and want all the reading material I can get my hands on. Thanks for a great article!

I have not read it but it's by Jason Friend and DHH: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00C0ALZ0W/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?...

Lisette Sutherland's book is very practical and very thorough https://www.amazon.com/Work-Together-Anywhere-Remotely-Succe...

Re: Managing Remote Teams

#48

Post by planetburgess »

ctrudeau wrote: post #11
andreasklinger wrote: post #4

author here thanks for posting the article on HN - i am a daily (more or less) lurker and a huge fan :) let me know if any parts in the article aren't clear or major points are missing - happy to extend or answer here

Any good books you can recommend? Most of what I've seen is about "offshoring" rather than "remote-first" situations, I'm about to build a team using the later and want all the reading material I can get my hands on. Thanks for a great article!

Also this free ebook from Valentina Thörner from the support team at Automattic is helpful for managers creating remote teams. https://valentinathoerner.com/from-a-distance-book-remote-le...
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