Team and unit performance assessments play a key role when it comes to growing a business. When conducted appropriately, such evaluations can prove to deliver a treasure trove of critical information to help run your organization’s core operations more efficiently. They also may be very useful in improving employee retention rates and keeping your staff productive and engaged. Essentially, assessments of teams in your organization traditionally involve performance analysis, which is often invaluable in the continuous improvement of your key work processes.
This conventional approach is not always effective in properly evaluating remote teams since there aren’t any day-to-day in-person interactions in this arrangement, however. Granted, you could probably use conventional enterprise performance management techniques that you apply to your onsite team to measure the performance of remote workers. Yet, in most cases, this traditional approach to managing remote team performance doesn’t work well for a number of important reasons. To this end, here are a few tips for effectively managing the performance of your remote team.
Focus On Evaluating Quality And Quantity Of Work Rather Than Time Worked
Ideally, if you opt to have remote staff, you should then use enterprise performance management metrics that can more accurately portray their progress or areas of development.
This can include tasks accomplished and task quality as opposed to the hours spent on working on the given task. Besides standard KPIs, you can utilize online time cards, along with other related cloud-based platforms like Results Software, in tracking nontraditional metrics. Doing this will prove to be a lifesaver in accurately evaluating the quality and quantity of tasks done, in terms of measuring performance.
When you assess performance in this manner, you will be in a better position of noticing how well your remote teams complete tasks handed to them and the exact time it takes them to do so. In the long run, you can focus on those activities that don’t meet the mark and seek to improve them, while also offering recognition and incentives for successful outcomes.
Focus On Assessing Your Remote Team Based On Outcomes
Generally speaking, there is very little difference between measuring the performance of onsite staff and a remote team.
In either of these two scenarios, performance is best evaluated through enterprise performance management outcomes and how teams attain measurable objectives or even benchmarks. So, it is totally up to you to establish quantifiable objectives or benchmarks for your remote team to ensure you obtain the expected business outcomes. It can be best to clearly communicate to your remote teams what outcomes you want and provide guidance in their work to enable them to meet that desired outcome.
Manage The Performance Of Your Remote Team Based On Clearly Defined Metrics And Expectations
Good enterprise performance management metrics are always essential when you wish to properly evaluate the performance of remote staff.
To this end, with Results Software, you’ll be able to create metrics that are closely intertwined with the expectations you set for your remote team, and then measure their performance based on those metrics. As with all business objectives, employee performance can’t be improved when your remote workers aren’t aware of what is expected of them. The key to managing remote teams well is to always be extremely clear and specific on all expectations you set for them. This goes a long way in minimizing or even eliminating the necessity for micromanagement.
One excellent enterprise performance management metric you could use to properly measure performance is customer satisfaction. This works well if you have already developed a means to clearly ascertain how and when clients are satisfied. Also, you may provide the opportunity in implementing new business processes, strategies, or ways for your remote team to collaborate and keep track of their own progress.
When you unequivocally communicate your expectations including details, and in-depth details, of the tasks you assign to your remote team, you will set them up for success. This is simply because your team will be less likely to request your input even if you don’t see them on a daily basis. The moment all your remote team is on the same page, they will be able to undertake more work and greatly improve their efficiency. It will help you develop more meaningful and professional relationships with them.
Evaluate The Performance Of Your Remote Team With Business Reviews Or Huddles
As is the case with your onsite workers, structured and scheduled business reviews or huddles are a well-proven means of enterprise performance management of remote teams. This includes regular video check-ins with the whole team to review the established metrics for the team, identify constraints, and seek opportunities for improvement. Armed with data from your enterprise performance software, you can keep track of your remote team’s progress, and whenever required, make the necessary adjustments as soon as possible.
Aaron Howard,
President and C.E.O