The rise of remote work has opened up incredible opportunities for teams to collaborate across the globe. Personally, I’ve done what I consider to be all 4 “types” of working arrangements.
- In-office: You commute to work every day.
- Hybrid: You commute to work some days, and other days you’re remote.
- Remote: You work from wherever. Home, coffee shop, office, or coworking space.
- Travel*: You need to set aside significant time to travel to the office or client site.
- This is essentially in-office, but with a more time-consuming and higher-stakes commute.
I was fortunate to experience all 4 types of work arrangements early in my career, but I was even more fortunate to experience remote work, many years before COVID-19 accelerated its adoption.
Remote is great in that it allows you to work how you work best. I have friends who work remotely, but go into the office occasionally for a change of pace—even though most of the time they’re just sitting in front of their computers, as they would working from anywhere else.
Others stay home, where their fancy mechanical keyboard and gaming monitor setup allows them to be more productive. One of my neighbors loves being remote because it gives her the flexibility to spend time with her aging family.
In my experience, a remote-first approach will always attract—and retain—the best talent.
As with anything, working with a distributed team comes with unique challenges, from navigating time zones to maintaining effective communication. By implementing the right strategies, you can overcome these hurdles and create a productive, cohesive remote work environment.
Here are my tips for working effectively with a distributed team:
1. Embrace asynchronous communication
When your team spans multiple time zones, asynchronous communication becomes essential. Instead of expecting instant replies, use email and project management platforms to share updates and information that colleagues can review when it’s convenient for them. This approach respects everyone’s working hours and reduces the pressure to be constantly online.
You can always resort to instant messaging and more urgent ways of communicating, but async communication sets the tone that not everything is on fire constantly.
I’ll never forget the best out-of-office automatic reply I’ve ever gotten, which said: “If this is urgent, please reevaluate, because things seldom are.”
2. Document as much as possible
Clear documentation is the backbone of a distributed team. From project goals and workflows to meeting notes and best practices, having a central repository of information ensures everyone’s on the same page. Use wiki tools to create a shared knowledge base where team members can find what they need without having to ask.
I’ve found this especially important in larger organizations where processes are fairly static. In smaller organizations, documenting solidified workflows is good too, but don’t get caught up in documenting absolutely everything (especially if it changes frequently).
3. Be crystal clear in your writing
In a remote setup, written communication often replaces face-to-face interactions. To avoid misunderstandings, be precise and concise in your messages. Use bullet points, headings, and formatting to make your writing easy to scan. Don’t assume others will read between the lines; spell out key details and next steps.
Many people don’t like this because writing forces you to think and clearly articulate your thoughts. This is why we see people default to the ol’, “Let’s jump on a quick 30 minute call [that turns into 60 minutes].” I’ve seen it all too often.
Writing skills are incredibly undervalued in today’s world, especially in a remote-first digital world that requires writing and reading on screens all day.
4. Minimize meetings
While meetings can be valuable, they’re often overused—especially in distributed teams where scheduling across time zones can be tricky. I like to think of meetings as a necessary evil. Sometimes, there are some things that are easier to explain over a call. However, those meetings are still evil.
So if it’s necessary, but it’s evil, keep it to a minimum.
Meetings are the last resort, not the first option. Five people in a room for an hour isn’t a one hour meeting, it’s a five hour meeting. Is it really worth it? Could you have just written it up instead? Be mindful of the costs and tradeoffs.
Before scheduling a meeting, ask yourself: Could this be handled async or via a shared document? If you’re having a meeting, that means it’s necessary. So keep it short, provide an agenda in advance, and record them for team members who can’t attend.
5. Use the right tools
The right tools can make or break your team’s productivity. Here are some categories and recommendations.
- Communication: Signal, Zulip, Mattermost, Element, and other Matrix-based platforms for messaging and video calls.
- Project management: Baserow, Anytype, or AppFlowy for tracking tasks and deadlines.
- Documentation: Anytype or AppFlowy for collaborative writing and record-keeping.
You’ll need to evaluate your requirements before building a stack that works for you, but try to go open source as much as possible. You and your team will benefit from this in the long run.
6. Foster a culture of trust and accountability
Remote work thrives on trust. Empower your team members to take ownership of their tasks and trust them to deliver. Set clear expectations for deadlines and deliverables, and use project management tools to track progress transparently.
Tasks and communication should be team-wide by default, rather than 1-on-1. It’s so easy for things to get lost in translation (or lost altogether)—especially in meetings.
Instead, track your tasks and projects openly, and document your blockers and achievements as they progress. That way, you can tag collaborators and bring them if and when necessary. This is part of tip #2: document as much as possible.
When everyone knows their role and has the tools to succeed, micromanagement becomes unnecessary.
7. Be mindful of time zones
One of the biggest challenges of distributed teams is coordinating across time zones. Use tools to identify overlapping working hours and schedule meetings during those windows. Rotate meeting times if needed to ensure no single group bears the brunt of inconvenient schedules.
Also be mindful of the fact that we all have different sleeping cycles and we’re productive at different times of the day.
Scheduling an 8 a.m. call for your Monday morning while it’s still Sunday night for your colleague is just gonna cause confusion and frustration.
8. Prioritize team bonding
Remote teams can sometimes feel isolated. Foster a sense of community by organizing virtual team-building activities, celebrating milestones, and creating informal channels for casual conversations. Encouraging personal connections can go a long way in building a cohesive team.
At Baserow, we have a #random channel, which is sort of our “water cooler” chat. Our conversations there are always fun and interesting. People feel more comfortable cracking jokes there, which I always enjoy.
And guess what? Those small, seemingly insignificant makes us learn more about each other and work better together.
With that said, be mindful that not everyone is naturally social or wants to socialize. Follow the “Pac-Man” rule of always leaving room and being inviting so someone can join, but don’t force it, either.
9. Continuously improve workflows
Remote work is a learning process. Regularly review your workflows and solicit feedback from your team. Are there tools or practices that could be streamlined?
Identify bottlenecks and work through some solutions for them. Most of the time, when something goes wrong, it’s a process issue, not an individual issue.
Stay flexible and open to change to keep improving your processes.
Final thoughts
Working with a distributed team offers incredible flexibility and access to global talent. By focusing on clear communication, leveraging the right tools, and building a culture of trust, you can create a highly effective and collaborative remote work environment.
Embrace the challenges as opportunities to innovate and grow, and your team will thrive no matter where in the world they’re working from.
