Working in an office presents many challenges — the most obvious being constant interruptions. The idea of working remotely sounds appealing in contrast, but remote working is not simply a quieter version of office life. It requires a different approach to face-to-face working, and the infrastructure, habits, and culture needed to make it effective must be deliberately built. For those who can work remotely, it can be an energising and highly productive environment — provided the right foundations are in place.
Creating and Building Trust
Trust is important in any team, whether face-to-face or remote. It means having genuine belief and confidence in the people around you — but it takes time to build and can be lost quickly if someone fails to deliver on what they have committed to.
Building trust is more straightforward in person, where body language reinforces words and feelings. When people cannot be seen, the signals are fewer and more ambiguous. That does not mean trust cannot be built in remote teams — it simply requires a more deliberate approach.
A strong starting point is to write a basic set of guidelines that capture the team's working ethos. These might cover values, communication norms, and ways of working — for example: be honest, be open, fulfil commitments, and flag problems early. Once agreed, the guidelines only have value if they are lived out consistently. The team leader plays a critical role here — demonstrating the values through their own behaviour and reinforcing them through how they respond when issues arise.
Establishing Communication Tools and Norms
Communication breakdowns are frequently cited as a reason why tasks do not get completed on time or to the right standard, and they also contribute to poor working relationships. Setting out clear communication guidelines is a simple and effective way of keeping a remote or hybrid team productive and aligned.
A practical communication framework might look like this:
- Phone — for emergencies where an immediate response is needed
- Instant messaging — for everyday, straightforward communication where a response is needed within four to 24 hours
- Project management and workflow tools — for managing tasks, deadlines, and project progress
- Email — for non-time-sensitive communication and sending calendar invitations
Where possible, using communication applications and software designed to work together — or those built on the same operating platform — reduces friction and keeps information in one place.
Having a Meeting Strategy
Many teams book meetings with colleagues whenever a gap appears in the calendar. Working this way means a significant proportion of time gets consumed by arranging and attending meetings rather than doing the actual work. The key to working more effectively in a remote or hybrid setting is to have a deliberate meeting strategy.
A useful starting structure involves two types of regular touchpoints:
A brief daily virtual huddle — around 20 minutes — gives everyone visibility of what is coming up over the next 24 hours. It serves as a daily check-in and energiser, keeping the team connected without consuming significant time.
A dedicated meeting day — one day per week set aside specifically for longer meetings and collaborative work — creates a predictable rhythm for the working week. The remaining days can then be protected for independent, focused work. This structure reduces the volume of ad-hoc meeting requests and cuts the time spent on calendar coordination significantly.
The Importance of Thanking People
Working together is about more than completing tasks. It is also about recognising and being genuinely thankful for the contributions people make. Recognition is a powerful motivator — psychologist Frederick Herzberg, whose two-factor theory of motivation was developed in the late 1950s and 1960s, identified recognition as one of the key factors that produces genuine job satisfaction. His research found that certain factors in the workplace caused satisfaction whilst a separate set caused dissatisfaction — and the two operated independently of each other.
There are two practical ways to build recognition into a remote team's culture. The first is simply to express thanks more frequently and more specifically — a short message or mention on a call acknowledging a contribution costs nothing and has a meaningful impact on morale and engagement.
The second applies particularly to those in leadership positions: setting aside time to reflect on and celebrate what the team has achieved. Where a team is co-located, this might be done in person. For globally distributed teams, a virtual celebration or recognition moment serves the same purpose and ensures that distance does not mean contributions go unacknowledged.
Making Remote Teams Work
With the right planning and structures in place, there is no reason why a remote or hybrid team cannot function as effectively — or more effectively — than a co-located one. Keeping people's minds focused on smart ways of working, rather than on the logistics and friction of remote collaboration, is what enables the team to reach high performance. The benefits of remote and hybrid working are substantial; realising them requires consistent attention to the foundations of trust, communication, meetings, and recognition.
How Professional Academy Supports Your Journey
Managing remote and hybrid teams effectively is a core management and leadership competency. Professional Academy offers a range of CMI-accredited management and leadership qualifications that develop the skills needed to lead distributed teams with confidence — available via flexible distance learning to fit around existing professional commitments. To find out which programme is the right next step, use the Qualifications Navigator or book a call with the admissions team.
