Managing Remote Development Teams Effectively

Managing a remote development team and a team spread across time zones can be challenging. In contrast, leaders who lead remote teams see increased engagement, efficiency, and results.

You may think you can assign tasks to your developers and expect good results, but the truth is that it’s much more effective to manage them as part of your team, contract recruitment can help here as well. Getting the most out of remote employees is a priority for the best tech leaders.

Consider time zones

You and your team can use the “golden hours” when your time zones overlap to solve this problem. Your team and time zones are all you need to calculate.

If your team is in Ukraine (UTC+2) and you are in London (UTC), for example. Even though there is a 2-hour difference, you and they can interact for five hours each day if you start your day at 9 AM and work eight hours daily. You can consider the problem solved if all meetings and discussions are moved to those times – instant communication is available. Tools like EveryTimeZone and TimeAndDate can help you find those hours.

Describe the vision and goals of your company

The best managers take the time to share their company’s full vision with all the developers, rather than simply finding good developers and assigning them tasks. In addition to increasing investment and team cohesiveness, this will also lead to better results.

The better developers understand your company, its vision, and the customers’ needs, the better the final product will be as they make decisions throughout their work.

Schedule Video Calls

Regular video calls should be scheduled during those overlapping times. There are so many ways to communicate – from emails to Slack to management boards and tracking tools – that facetime meetings seem unnecessary.

However, regular facetime improves relationships and communication. It is also an excellent opportunity to communicate the company’s vision to the development team, so they know what drives the projects. Make sure your development team uses video calls regularly, but don’t overdo it.

Reward your team members

Despite mistakes or inefficiency, appreciate your colleagues – even if they don’t meet your expectations. It would be helpful if you also let them know how much you appreciate them.

• Praise the team’s work so far at the beginning of each meeting;
• Let them know how much you escalate their suggestions – or at least explain why you are dismissing them;
• Whenever the project reaches a milestone, give them corporate gifts. There is a lot of value in cheap merchandise like t-shirts, coffee mugs, pens, and other items;
• Give them cash bonuses if they regularly stay overtime to resolve a critical issue.

The most pragmatic managers might find it unnecessary to spend time on it. The development of a team often occurs faster when morale is high.

Get to know every member of your team

Some leaders only communicate with a project manager, who then communicates with the rest of the team. Even though this seems efficient for managing remote development teams, it’s not the best option.

Consider getting to know each team member and building a relationship. As a result, communication will improve, investments will increase, and a shared understanding of projects and goals will be achieved. Provide your employees with regular feedback, let them know you appreciate their work, and allow them to share any questions or concerns they may have.