As a new Edger, and a remote team member in Marquette, we can agree that working remotely may be difficult at times. Whether you work across the country, across the state (like me) or reside only a block away from your office that is closed due to the pandemic, you may have some difficulty adjusting to the remote work life especially when it comes to interactions with co-workers. As a remote team member, I use three different strategies to stay involved with the team.
Although I am not able to be face-to-face, attending Zoom meetings with the team gives me the ability to create a strong bond with them weekly. During these meetings, we share our current client work, prospects for the future, and the takeaways from a webinar or conference we attended during the week.
These weekly conversations bring us together as a team and generate brainstorming with one another to come up with client ideas or offer advice to another team member. We regularly find ourselves talking about not only business but our personal lives. Learning about someone’s family and home life helps you create relationships and gain trust among employees without being invasive and asking personal questions.
Discovering your peers’ preferred form of communication is an important skill to stay engaged, whether it is via text, phone, video chat or email. Making a conscious effort to learn their preferred method of communication not only improves reaction time to one another throughout the workday, but also makes conversation easy and accessible. After a professional relationship develops between a co-worker and me, I begin to infuse my sense of humor and personality into our communication to create a more relaxed and fun relationship.
I also take into consideration scheduling and organization. When I communicate with others, I determine if it is at the right time and are my thoughts organized? When interacting with the CEO, we frequently plan weekly phone calls to check-in. Written communication can be mistranslated and overlooked in chaotic inboxes. Successful conversations with my colleagues improve our interpersonal communication and provide me with a clear picture of what is expected at work and with clients.
Another tool to utilize while corresponding with a team is group collaboration on files, projects, and presentations. Using tools such as Google docs, word editor, or drop box allows us to work together in real time. These tools give you the opportunity to ask for feedback on anything and everything, such as how to meet company goals, improve client satisfaction and gain constructive feedback.
As an added effort, I take a trip to visit the team and the home office once a month. I spend a few days at the office working alongside my coworkers to obtain a better understanding of their day-to-day work schedule. This gives me the opportunity to observe everyone’s workstyles and determine how to best accommodate them during my typical workdays spent outside of the office. During the visit, we gather as a team off-site to let loose and create memories together that build relationships between co-workers. Who wouldn’t like to go go-karting or do a round of laser tag with your co-workers?
Working remotely can present a range of obstacles and challenges. Incorporating communication tactics inside virtual meetings, correspondence methods, and social interactions will keep you engaged with the team and create a powerful relationship both inside and outside of work.