Chapter 2: Challenges that can be faced by virtual teams and how to overcome them


Posted January 21, 2021 by shonesdaniel

Different challenges that can be faced by virtual teams and how to overcome them
 
DISCLAIMER
Responsibility is a tricky issue in any environment but with virtual teams, it can become a serious problem if not addressed quickly. Since there is no physical supervision for virtual teams, it becomes difficult to calculate productivity and efficiency. Employers are often afflicted by the following questions:
Are employees really working during working hours?
Are they being productive?
Is everyone on the team making the same amount of effort?

And while these questions are common, it’s important to find the real cause behind them.

Employees can also rely on trust in their team members and ask if they are taking the short end of the stick. All this results from a lack of trust within the team.

WHAT CAN YOU DO?
While there are several solutions to this virtual team challenge such as using time tracking software to detect your employees ’activity during work hours, these types of solutions it will only strengthen the seeds of mistrust.
The best way to go about this is to change the way you measure employee productivity and change KPIs to be more results-oriented. That way, it doesn’t matter if your employees are working eight or 12 hours, because results will be the key in this scenario.

In addition, transparent and effective communication is an absolute necessity to ensure that the entire team is on the same page and no one feels alienated or exploited.

SHORT FOCUS
Office spaces are designed to enhance attention and reduce distractions. Everything, from the seating space to the colors, is designed with a particular purpose in mind. Therefore, it becomes easy to just sit on your desk and start working when you are in office. However, this is not the case with remote work. Since many people in virtual teams work from home, the environment is full of distractions. Everything from the noise in the neighbors ’house to the children in your hands, can distract your attention and prove to be a challenge for virtual teams.

Reduced focus is a common challenge among virtual teams and even though remote work is known to improve productivity, if the focus is reduced, your employees may feel burned out quickly.

WHAT CAN YOU DO?
Encourage your team members to practice the following regularly and rigorously:
You get a separate work corner in your home
Keep the workspace free of clutter
Discuss child care with family members to make sure you have a few hours without distraction

From your end, you can offer them financial support to add remote work infrastructure to their home. And a good performance incentive. Communicate with your team frequently to check if they are facing any issues.

MAINTAINING OFFICE CULTURE
From an employee’s perspective, working virtually can be overwhelming. No travel, flexible hours, and work from the convenience of your home are great advantages. But many remote workers experience feelings of isolation after a few months of remote work. The primary reason for this virtual team challenge is that there is no ‘socialization’ in remote teams. Their peers rarely get along with each other and lose the human connectivity that an office offers.

This is where office culture can be very supportive. Office culture is an ambiguous term but covers the entire office experience. But how do you shape an office-free culture?

WHAT CAN YOU DO?
Office culture is not just fun birthdays and Fridays. Going beyond that, involves interpersonal interactions, sharing with your colleagues, discussing your weekend, and being social. This can be achieved by involving employees virtually. You can do this by holding inter-departmental groups, encouraging conversations, and adding rituals such as sharing weekend stories on Mondays. You can also reward socialization. At first it may seem silly, but small rituals can add up and create a community.

Read more: https://humanresources.report/blogs/8-common-challenges-faced-by-virtual-teams-and-how-to-overcome-them/8737?utm_source=Human%20Resources%20Report&utm_medium=Neethu
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Issued By Shones Daniel
Country United States
Categories Advertising , Human Resources , Marketing
Tags human resource analysis , human resource companies , human resource development , human resource management
Last Updated January 21, 2021