1

How to Manage
Teams Remotely

Angela Sirbu, PMP

❑Experience
• 2014 - BASS Systems SRL -> PMO / Portfolio Manager / Program Manager

• 1999 – 2004 Intracom Telecom Solution GR - >Manager

• 1998 – 1999 – MegaDat -> Sales Manager

❑ Certifications and Diplomas

• 2016 – Master in Law, “Anticorruption”

• 2016 – Certificate Management of Risks

• 2013 - Certificate PMP

• 2004 – MBA, New Port University

• 1998 – ASEM, REI

 Challenges in managing remote teams
Even though the transformation of a workforce to remote working has many advantages, it has created
new challenges for leaders in the Talent Acquisition and Learning & Development domain. Leaders
now find it difficult to ensure training and reskilling sessions for employees working remotely.

The common challenges while handling remote teams are:

Absence or lack of effective Tracking employee

communication tools performance

Handling different M aking sure everyone feels

t ime zones part of the t e a m

Setting Setting defined roles

schedules and tasks

Respecting
everyone’s t ime
 Agenda for today:

 1. Feeling disconnected from your team?

 2. Infrastructure and Tools

 3. How to make a remote work on an individual level

 4. What to do as a remote team manager

 5. Virtual meetings could be more productive and fun

 6. What to AVOID and what to do when meetings

 run amok

 7. Recommendations

 8. Q&A
 • 1. Feeling disconnected from your team?

• Not clear set vision & company’s strategy

• Poor Management

• Lack of career growth

• Poor Communication

• Lack of recognition

• Poor Leadership

• Lack of training

• Excessive workload

• Lack of tools and resources

• Lack of collaboration
 6
2. Infrastructure & Tools

Project Mgmt Conferencing Chat Collaboration Documentation

3. HOW TO MAKE REMOTE WORK ON AN INDIVIDUAL LEVEL 7

Setup your workspace

● Keep a separate space for work

○ Make sure you have a separate space
— ideally outside your bedroom
● Isolated room for calls
● Comfortable chair and table
● Stable and strong internet connection
● No dirty laundry in the background!
3. HOW TO MAKE REMOTE WORK ON AN INDIVIDUAL LEVEL

Routine is king! 9am

Wireframes
10am

● Treat the day as a normal work day 11am

○ Get ready as if you’re leaving the house. No PJs ;) Setup Invision

● Have fixed work times and non-work times 12am

LUNCH
set in your calendar
1pm
● Block in deep work sessions
Prep Slack / Jira
2pm
3. HOW TO MAKE REMOTE WORK ON AN INDIVIDUAL LEVEL 9

Communicate well

● Over communicate!
● Ensure your calendar is up to date
● Always take calls with your video on
○ non-verbal communication matters!
● If you use Slack, use emoticons
for effective communication.
○ Confirm you’ve read something ✅
○ Investigating 👀
○ Share love 😍
○ Applaude 👏
 3. HOW TO MAKE REMOTE WORK ON AN INDIVIDUAL LEVEL

Stay sane 10

1pm
Hangout w/ Jenny
● Expect frustration
2pm
● Start your conversations with personal social time
● Block in virtual coffees with your colleagues 3pm
○ No work talk!
4pm
● Make sure to walk around and stretch, take a walk around
the block and do a call on the go
● Set break blockers in your calendar
● Get some headspace using mindfulness apps, by doing
sports or in a normal setup meet with friends or clients
4. WHAT TO DO AS A REMOTE-TEAM MANAGER 11

Ensure clarity & open communication

● Make sure your team knows what they are

working towards, i.e with OKRs
● Setup rituals
○ Weekly all hands
○ Weekly 1on1s
○ Daily check-in and outs via Slack
(top 3 priorities)
● Have a clear communication protocol
○ When to use which medium
○ How to structure messages and invites
● Ensure a mindset of availability & reachability also
virtually
 4. WHAT TO DO AS A REMOTE-TEAM MANAGER 12

Empower your team

● Trust your team
○ They work, also at home. Promised!
○ Don’t micro-manage, instead rely on the established communication
structure and culture
● Encourage a mindset of being self-sufficient
○ Point people in the direction of documentation / get them to start
documenting
● Structure the social onboarding of new hires
 5. Virtual meeting could be more productive and fun

Meetings are opportunities for employees to exchange ideas and discuss objectives.

It is in a meeting that conflicts, if any, are resolved; better decisions are made; time, effort, and
money are well spent; and team members realize their importance.

Some examples of questions to be asked for employees engagements :

 Are you happy with it?
 What interests you the most and why?
 What is your favorite / least favorite part?
 If you could change anything, what would it be? Why?
 What’s one thing that could increase your satisfaction with this project, and why?
Don’t underestimate the power of
face-to-face interaction

Remote working is definitely the way

forward, but face-to-face interactions will
never lose their charm.
This helps them stay connected to the
culture and enforces team spirit.
 6. Recommendations: what to AVOID and what to do

Virtual meetings run amok

Problem Cause

One-way Street One presenter drones on and on with little opportunity for others to participate

The meeting consists of nothing more than a long, complicated PowerPoint

Death by PowerPoint®
presentation

The Blob The session has no structure, and oozes from topic to topic without a plan

Participants have no role in the meeting, so they use the time to get other work
Multitasking Mania
done.

The meeting doesn't accomplish anything—no progress is made—so after an hour,

Chinese Restaurant Syndrome
everyone's hungry for action.
 16

7. Recommendations
For individuals: For team leads:

● Setup your workspace ● Ensure clarity & an open

● Routine is king! communication
● Communicate well ● Don’t forget to send a follow up /
● Stay sane... MoMs
● Empower your team
● Come up with your own edge
● Build a learning & development
culture
 If you want to go
quickly, go alone,
if you want to go far,
go together.
 Resources:
1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LFw8VEb6-oU
2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6uu0r5saLEk
3. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ss-Gk5_lEPM
4. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l9Vr1QjrRMA
5. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8qA6mzwD1Js
6. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYRCSvEB01I
7. https://www.scruminc.com/solutions-to-common-remote-work-issues-during-
covid/?utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=March%202020%20Newsletter&utm_content=M
arch%202020%20Newsletter+CID_f61f9998ba62fd18f34e73598d945eaa&utm_source=Cam
https://www.scruminc.com/distributed-teams-
webinar/?utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=March%202020%20Newsletter&utm_content
=March%202020%20Newsletter+CID_f61f9998ba62fd18f34e73598d945eaa&utm_source=C
ampaign%20Monitor&utm_term=Watch%20Nowpaign%20Monitor&utm_term=Read%20Blo
g

8. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1vDerf9fujvcoxG0vXledr5GFlfFv6SKS6udqE17zFeQ/e
dit#heading=h.5nsqrg93khrn