Managing a virtual team at the end of the year requires specific attention. What can you do to ensure that employees you don't see physically do not go shopping instead of working on something important that must be completed before Christmas? That's the question Entrepreneur.com recently answered using the following five tips.
1. Offer free time
Although this may sound like a waste of precious time, the opposite is true. Don't resist giving your remotely working employees a day or half a day off. They will take care of necessary errands and then be better able to concentrate on their work.
2. Define clear goals
Make sure that everyone knows what they have to get done by the end of the year. Divide bigger tasks into smaller parts and give your people the exact dates by which they must complete certain phases of the projects you are working on.
3. Agree on weekly reports
If you have not introduced this practice in your virtual team yet, it is the right time to start. Ask the individual team members to provide weekly reports on what they have finished, what they will be doing the next week, and what delays they may be facing.
4. Start big projects after New Year's
The period before Christmas is not suitable for launching new long-term projects. Leave it until January and communicate with your people now instead about what you can improve or what you should do differently in the new year.
5. Thank all individual members of your team
Individual communication with people you normally don't see in person can do a lot. Find the time to express your thanks individually and personally to all your team members. Emphasize the benefits of each individual and, if possible, add a small personal gift. It may be an extra day off, something for a newborn child, something for a new house or at least a handwritten thank you note - just something that shows that you see your employee as an individual who you appreciate.
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