As the benefits of remote work continue to become more apparent, business managers, employees, and entrepreneurs are becoming more and more intrigued by the idea of building remote teams.

So, how do you get the best out of your remote team? How do remote teams embrace flexibility without sacrificing productivity? All these questions will be answered with tip guide and helpful apps, collaborations and communication tools to start using.

Tip 1: Set production-focused goals

Remote teams tend to be result-oriented, and need clear deliverables within their work. Prioritizing production-focused goals rather than performance-focused goals can help teams get tet their footing. Setting SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Timely) is vital. It lets you and your team both be on the same page about the outcomes you’re working towards.

Another goal system is Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) to create alignment and engagement around measurable goals. Giants: Google, Spotify, Walmart, and ING Bank all use OKRs to set and achieve goals.

Tip 2: Use project management tools to stay on track

Your instruments of choice have the potential to either boost productivity or hurt your progress. You’ll need to utilize modern communication tools such as Jira and Trello to make it easy for teams to work together on projects with hundreds of moving parts.

To get a self-hosted communication system (set up on your clouds or servers) for your team, Zangi has Private Network solutions. Essentially its an app/desktop for all your team — a safe place for them to collaborate and communicate, protecting your core business interests, data transfer and data management. The great part is that it includes modern messengers features that work with poor internet: messaging, HD audio/video calls, file sharing, group chat, virtual goods, in/out VoIP termination, etc.

Flock’s Shared To-dos and Trello to manage day-to-day tasks within channels and cross-functional projects. Similarly, time management apps like timedoctor, paymo, toggl, and timecamp can make it fun and easy for everyone on the team to accurately track their time and progress on tasks.

Tip 3: Measure the right metrics to drive performance, not hours

Replace the flawed “hours at work” model of productivity measurement with result-oriented performance analytics based on goals.

Measure the output of team members (A/B test) working on similar projects and tasks to calculate median values for good performance.

Set fair deadlines for specific tasks and track how long it takes to complete them to measure productivity with more clarity.

Look to achieve goals on different levels, from small wins to reviewing the overall bigger picture.

Tip 4: Have the right tools for effective team communication

Making sure that you’re including remote employees in even the small discussion to loop them in is important, as sometimes they’ll get skipped in larger meetings.

Team collaboration tools like Slack can quickly help coworkers touch base with each other, without all the formality of an email. Just a quick message can help employees who are working remotely continuously be part of the workspace, even when they’re not there.

Make and receive HD quality calls through your business phone system, even when out of the office, via your office phone system, with Zangi. Zangi is essentially a messenger app that connects with your office phone system, allowing anyone to call using their smartphones (even from abroad) while paying nothing for roaming.

Video conferencing can also help everyone be on the same page during meetings. Actually seeing your teammates helps foster a sense of connection and adds layers of communication through body language cues. Screen sharing capabilities let everyone’s visual participation in the same presentation, with the same experience. All of these add up to create more effective communication and a much more productive team.

Tip 5: Find the middle ground between management and freedom

Spend too much time on calls with your team, and they will begin to feel micromanaged and become disinterested. Spend too little, however, and they may feel like they have been left out. The best thing to do is find a middle ground that both you and your team is comfortable with. Offer support and let your employees feel like they can check in with you when things come up.