Our global village becomes smaller and smaller as the communication develops during time. Providing services to every part of the world and receiving services and products from the other side of the globe is a must for many companies. This situation creates a major management and control challenges.
There are many challenging aspects to deal with.
- Communication channels
- Language
- Culture differences
- Working hours' differences
- Measuring remote employee performance
- Periodic team meetings
Communication channels – It depends on the business nature. In case that both sides (management and employees) are working in an office equipped with computer and internet connection and phone then it is not a problem. In this case there are many ways to communicate such as VOIP, Instant Message, Email and direct call by phone. In case that at least one side is not equipped with the mentioned communication channels then it is a bigger challenge and this challenge must have a solution. The solution can be in a form of a contact person that will be available or any other creative way. There must be an open communication channel – it is crucial.
Language – We are talking about different parts of the world, so in many cases it will be hard to find a common language that both sides can speak. Even when both sides can speak a common language, each side has its own unique accent which is difficult for the other side to understand. Sometimes, in order to overcome the accent issue or poor language, a written format can help.
Culture differences – One form of behavior of one culture can be a great insult to the other. It is better to prepare yourself and study a bit about the other culture before having any interaction, it will save inconvenient situations and it might even be the difference between closing a deal or not.
Working hours' differences – The situation of less working hours overlap of two parts of the world, forcing the manager to be more organized and to communicate tasks, instructions, comments etc' on time.
Measuring remote employee performance – As a manager it is not easy to evaluate the products and productivity of your remote employee. A mechanism must be set to enable the management to evaluate the productivity and quality of the remote employees. The mechanism is different for each industry.
Any company or manager that has a remote workforce has to use all organizational and planning skills and to be assisted with tools that will help in controlling of all assignments and required performance.
Assaf Katzir is owner and CEO of Katzir Soze Investments Ltd
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