Have you ever heard of the gig economy? No, it has nothing to do with music or entertainment, although that would be fun. Anyway, here's some help; Forbes defines it as a modern phenomenon where an increasing number of organizations are willing to hire freelancers and short-term employees, as well as a growing portion of the workforce open to project-based work.
Feedback is essential in every team.
If you've already had an active number of years in the workforce, then first and foremost, you deserve a vacation! Beyond that, you've probably noticed the way the job market has changed over the last decade.
According to Ardent Partners' report on the current state of the global workforce, 35% of the total workforce is registered as "non-employed", and this figure is expected to rise to 43% by 2020: self-employed, external contractors, freelancers, project workers, etc. These jobs are characterized by greater flexibility and shorter tenure than more traditional permanent employees. Although a McKinsey report states that the knowledge-based and creative industries are the ones riding the gig wave the most, we're seeing an increasing prevalence among IT consultants, designers and yes, even accountants.
Can we build a culture with remote employees?
However, a consequence of this fluid and more fragmented form of employment is that these employees are external to the company's organizational culture. As a result, it can be an uphill battle to establish an effective communication habit that aligns the needs of the company and the remote employee. Mostly because there's really no time - or interest - from the external employees to get used to either the formal or implicit parts of the organization's knowledge and culture. Imagine going to a foreign country on vacation - let's say Spain - for just a few days and then expecting to fully understand the culture and be completely integrated. Just because you can say "una cerveza, por favor" doesn't mean you can apply for Spanish citizenship, right?
So what can you do to better integrate your remote employees? First of all, have a well-intentioned conversation with them to define and clarify the expectations of their new job; how do they fit into the team and how can we work together optimally? Then, build a proper communication strategy for your collaboration. This is a great way to set direction and balance the goals of both parties and ensure a level of involvement. Last but not least, implement regular feedback meetings - perhaps monthly - where you talk about the employee's experiences of success, where they face challenges, how you can support them and hear their other ideas and thoughts.
Despite this, engaging and collaborating with short-term and project-based external employees who need to be part of the organization to some degree is not the only challenge in the gig economy. Often these stakeholders reside in different cities and countries than the company itself. Of course, we also see this geographical dispersion in teams in more traditionally structured companies - that is, companies with a predominance of permanent employees.
Interaction habits
Now comes the important question: If I already struggle to effectively express my messages at home with my wife, how will I be able to communicate clearly with a colleague sitting on the other side of the world?
Of course, carrier pigeons are not the most optimal solution - in fact, many people are downright afraid of birds - luckily, the internet comes to the rescue. There are many digital platforms like Slack, Stride, Trello, Yammer, etc. that facilitate internal communication despite obstacles in time and space. However, it's important to keep in mind that these are just tools and not a magic bullet. To communicate effectively in dispersed teams, a shared communication culture is needed and this takes time and effort to build.
According to MindTools, choosing the right players for the team is naturally the first step. Just as you need the right bricks to build a tall and strong tower, a company needs to be built by individuals with the right qualities: self-motivated and independent, results-oriented, but also good communicators who are open and honest about challenges, suggestions and feedback in general. To ensure that all members are united around a common purpose and work with that purpose in mind, rather than their own gain, everyone needs to have a clear idea of the team's goals, key resources and the roles and responsibilities of different members. This requires a good communication habit, with feedback being key to keeping everyone on track when it comes to team performance and morale.
Whichcommunication methods are the best?
Inour usual office environment, we recommend prioritizing giving feedback verbally to avoid misunderstandings - we all know how important body language is -, then phone calls as we can interpret the colleague's emphasis and ask for clarification immediately, and lastly, email. The reality is just a little different for distributed teams. While it's important for all team members to stay in touch, they can only use the latter two solutions.
A good solution is to schedule regular video calls where you can virtually talk "face-to-face" regardless of your physical locations, or use phone calls or email if you're in different time zones. This way you can create a more continuous rhythm of communication at all levels.
On a larger scale, it would be ideal to physically visit your team members working from other locations as often as it makes sense, depending on your and your company's tasks in those areas. Traveling to China every other day isn't realistic, maybe a couple of times a year? Face-to-face meetings are an important step in building more personal relationships with your entire team and will help break down your cultural and relational barriers.
Feedback should be fair - this means offering the same opportunities to your colleagues on the team, whether they're in Hungary, Vallensbæk or Taiwan. Keep in mind that it's easy to feel forgotten if you work in a team but are on the other side of the world. Therefore, it's important to remember to interact with all employees on a regular basis to make them feel part of the team.
I mean, you would also feel left out if your friend throws a party and invites everyone else, but "forgets" to invite you, right?
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