Help others to cope
Getting used to remote working may be neither quick nor easy. A new power imbalance could appear among your team’s members, some of whom will feel comfortable and skilled when working virtually, while others won’t.
Try to remember what your own common mistakes were when you began to work virtually. Did you:
- Forget from time to time that you were on mute during a call?
- Let noises from your offline activities be heard by others during a call?
- Forget to send out access codes for participants of a call you had scheduled?
Since some colleagues may feel slightly insecure, try to cheer them up and offer help. Start the team meeting by exchanging views on what challenges people are facing. Promote sharing recommendations or best practices in your team.
There are three key steps for survival:
- Ensure as reliable a source of audio as possible. Poor audio causes more frustration than poor video (you can always sacrifice video, but audio is essential).
- That said, you should still use video for a more socially connected experience during calls.
- Create a shared virtual workspace. File sharing is always helpful. Explain the principles to people who may not be familiar with it.
Technology: audio is vital
Not everyone has a technologically advanced set-up at home. However, having the latest technology is not always necessary for efficient virtual collaboration.
At the same time, everyone needs to be aware of their own technical limitations in order to make the appropriate adjustments. Don’t let technical issues become confused with personal issues: this is the advice of the INSEAD business school.
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