In today’s overall scenario, as the acceptance of tele-working and remote working increases, its essential to understand how workers can work together across cities, countries, and different time-zones. This trend is mainly propelled by a rapidly growing aging workforce and an increasing gig economy. In this article are top 5 habits of working with a distributed workforce. It gives an idea on how to be successful as a team while working apart.

1. Hire the right people

Remote work isn’t really for everyone. According to experts, employees who work as a disturbed team usually face loneliness, reluctance or even distractions at home. Additionally, for a distributed team to perform well, employees need a high level of self-discipline, especially because they are not surrounded by motivating and encouraging co-workers, neither is there a manager to control their tasks or help around. So, look for people who are energetic, passionate, and motivated to work alone and online.

A good way to recruit such people is to check how well they have taken up a remote task.

2. Get the right tools and set clear expectations

When talking about tools, a number of elements need to be integrated. Hiring someone to join a distributed team is much different from hiring someone to work in an office. Ensure that the job advert is clear and doesn’t get the wrong people to apply.

Once a person is hired, communicate to them efficiently what’s needed from them and how to get things done, for example, what their goals of the week are and when to respond to emails, etc.

Also, make sure that the leaders should communicate their availability to their team – when can people reach them and via what channel? And the same thing should be applied to all teammates working overseas.

3. Move communication online

Clear expectations and communication work best when used together. It’s always essential to communicate with your employees, especially when you work remotely. After all, the distributed team doesn’t physically share the same space. If communication isn’t strong, it’s easy for the team to start feeling forgotten, become less engaged, less productive, and eventually leave.

One way to avoid this is to have regular team meetings, by trying to hold them on different times. This is relevant as distributed teams are based in different time zones. By changing the meeting times it’s not always the same people based in, for example, the United States that have to get up early or stay online late to attend the meeting.

4. Have productive face-to-face time

A big part of our communication is non-verbal. Especially if your entire team works remotely, face time and video calls are integral means of communication. If managers and teammates see you, it helps build relationships.

One hour of a weekly call should be enough time for a ‘bonding’ talk, resolve work issues and/or personal affairs and the employee’s career. Push team heads to do this and make sure they don’t cancel these calls!

An excellent team bonding and real-life face-to-face meeting would be to arrange a meetup once a while so that all the distributed employees get to know each other better in real-life. Keep it half work, half fun.

5. Encourage team bonding

When you don’t work in a physical office environment or have a  coffee machine where colleagues can joke around and no canteen to have lunch in. All the the coffee machine jokes and lunch laughs will have to move online, too. Similarly, team bonding sessions must go virtual. HR professionals have to recognize the importance of it and come up with a plan. The plan should without doubt incorporate e a blend of technologies – like video and chat chat tools –  but also face-to-face parties a couples times a year.