managing distributed teams

Managing Distributed Teams

Michael Dowdenmdowden@cspring.com

@mrdowden

The Virtual Distance Model

Affinity Distance

Operational Distance

Physical Distance

Virtual Distance

Physical Distance● Geographic

Distance● Temporal Distance● Organizational

Distance

Affinity Distance● Cultural Distance● Social Distance● Relationship Distance● Interdependence Distance

Operational Distance● Communications Distance● Multitasking● Readiness Distance● Distribution Asymmetry

Derived from Lojeski & Reilly 2008, p. 48

Company Benefits

Remote Work, why we do it...

• Less Overhead• Best of Breed Employees• Less Competitions for Employees• A 24 Hour Work Day• Improved Communication• Metrics Become Dominant• Extra Bandwidth During Meetings• Increased diversity

Employee Benefits• No Commute• Flexible Scheduling• Healthier Food• Improved Health• Improved Quality of Life• Fewer Interruptions

The Tools & Methods● Instant Messenger● Skype● Increase Frequency of Verbal Check-Ins● Virtual Phone / Conferencing Systems● Online services (syncing files, bug tracking, project management…)

○ Jira○ SharePoint○ Basecamp○ Confluence○ Slack○ ….

Employee Engagement

Pain Points● Communication● Extra IT Overhead● Large Variation in Productivity● Metrics and Accountability● Inter-Team Conflict● Maintaining Security and Compliance● Harder to Create Culture● Employee Engagement

Employee Engagement“An engaged employee is a person who is fully involved in, and enthusiastic about, his or her work.” 1

Characteristics● Understanding one’s role in an organization● Clear understanding of how the an organization is fulfilling its purpose and

objectives● Being included fully as a member of the team● Trusted and Empowered● Regular Feedback

1 http://iveybusinessjournal.com/publication/what-engages-employees-the-most-or-the-ten-cs-of-employee-engagement/

● Companies with engaged employees outperform those without by up to 202%

● 71% of all employees are not fully engaged

Employee Engagement Stats

● Turnover in 2014 was 15.7%● $11 Billion is lost annually due

to employee turnover

Employees with lower engagement are 4x more likely to leave their jobs than those who are highly engaged.

Employee Engagement and Retention: The Link

Cost of Turnover in % Annual Salary

Entry Level 30 - 50%

Mid Level 150%

High-level or Highly Specialized 400%

At the average company, over 40% of employees work:

● At a remote location● Separate from a corporate office● Where they daily interact with

other people not co-workers from their company

● At a different time than the majority of their co-workers

In Summary (2016)At the typical consulting firm, 85% of employees work:At a remote location...for an average of 14 months at a

time

Is the employee truly connected to their employer, or are they more of an outsider, feeling vulnerable and open to recruitment?

Case Study

Employees

Pre Engagement Survey Results

● Didn’t hear from their manager as often as they wanted

● 40% use Sharepoint infrequently● < 50% use company email

regularly

● Felt isolated● Felt uninformed about their

company● Felt more connection with their

client than their employer

● Improve communication● Given the prevalence of mobile devices, a mobile app seemed like the

correct way to use technology to help solve this problem.● … use our skills to solve our own problems.

The Strategic Plan

● Serve the needs of employees○ Stay informed about what is going on within

their own company○ Increase contact with managers○ Increase contact with peers

● Programs provide back-end service to help remind managers to provide the content

● Automated: Scheduling release of pre-created content through marketing style campaign.

● Maintain a regular drumbeat of engaging content

Content & News Feed

Notifications:● Keep employees engaged● Keep managers on track● Keep content creators on track● Maintain the drumbeat

Engagement Hooks

Engagement HooksPoints:

● Awarded for activity on the app● Provides gamification for use● Can be redeemed for prizes● Encourages employee contributions

Company Directory w/ Photos & One-click call/email/message

● Who is the new person?● Who knows this skill?● Who do I work with?● Who have I never met?

The App Features: Searchable Employee Directory

The App Features: Searchable Employee DirectoryIntegrated messaging:ConvenientPermanent and company-ownedTraceable for compliance, metrics,

enforcement

● Who are your top users?● Who are the holdouts?

Metrics & Analytics

● What posts are the most engaging?

Employees

Post Engagement Survey Results

● Over 85% feel more engaged after implementing the app

● 80% are engaged through the app every day

● 40% are engaged through the app more than once a day

● Positive employee feedback

● Remote work is a reality● In spite of existing tools, employee engagement is still challenging● CSpring supported engagement strategy with a new mobile app

Closing thoughts

Problems Solutions

Employee isolation Direct line of immediate communication

Low adoption of current tools High adoption of app80% of employees use app daily

Low engagement 85% of employees feel more engaged

Thank You

Michael Dowdenmdowden@cspring.com

@mrdowden