No matter what industry your company operates and serves, there’s no denying that the majority of businesses have experienced an unprecedented digital migration causing several teams, departments, and numerous employees to work from the digital space. And while utilizing the internet, making sense of spreadsheet software, and operating website functionalities are nothing new by modern standards, the sheer magnitude and the colossal number of businesses existing on digital platforms are mind-boggling.
However, one common problem that many of these established companies and fresh startups share is the mismanagement of said digital teams, failing to bring out the potential of remote work environments, and falling short on overall work productivity. To put an end to these issues and shed light on the possible solutions, we’ll be going over how you can start leading and managing your teams right now to unlock their actual work capacity and advantages.
1. Discern the Extent of Collab orative Effort Within the Team
One reason for the detriment of digital teams and their lackluster results is that companies and many businesses expect the same physical environment to translate into a digital workflow naturally. However, these work environments are vastly different from each other, and expecting your digital teams to operate just as efficiently from the get-go is asking too much. Therefore, your priority is discerning the extent of collaborative effort present within the group, identifying the newly-transformed responsibilities of each member.
- Conduct an Objective Team Audit: Before jumping the gun on task assignments and project delegation, it is in your best interests to conduct an objective team audit that takes account of the group’s shared strengths, weaknesses, and areas for improvement. For example, even though the team may have excellent groupthink abilities, they may not be as competent in technical skills. As a result, this review will identify the need for onboarding new members or highlighting their most suitable workload.
- Discuss the Expectations From the Team: As we’ve mentioned before, a team’s responsibilities and job descriptions sharing the same physical space are unique from a group that operates in a digital space. And no matter how hard you try to integrate the two, deviations and conflicts are natural. Therefore, you must discuss the expectations from the team, so they can grasp their purpose and the role they serve within the new digital platforms for the business.
2. Reinforce Team Dynamics and Diverse Set of Skills
Once you’ve defined your digital team’s collective capacity to work on a digital platform, your next priority is reinforcing the team dynamics and pursuing the development of their diverse set of skills to improve work productivity. You see, while some communication skills and soft skills still carry intrinsic value in a digital space, your employees will soon face more technical and functional problems that require specific competencies. As a result, careful training and investing in equipment are inevitable in the long term.
- Invest in Employee Development and Training: Whether it’s for digital marketing, data visualization, or the basics in product management and analysis, you must invest in appropriate employee development and training to reinforce team dynamics. Remember, you want to provide these digital teams with autonomy, and the last thing you’d like to experience is going over the same problem over and over again when you can excel in those skills instead. Hence, don’t shy away from workshops and coaching services.
- Address Potential Technological Shortfalls: If Bitcoin’s new all-time high and the never-ending surge of inflation rates are to be followed, we can conclude that emerging tech trends are the next economic boom lying in wait. As a result, you must address all potential technological shortfalls that could be holding your teams back from unlocking their full potential or cranking out that extra bit of efficient work completion. Of course, there’s no immediate deadline for technical upgrades, but you also can’t afford to wait forever.
3. Focus on Building Strong Bonds and Connections
Last but not least, given that working with digital teams through remote work environments means you don’t get to see your co-workers and managers anywhere else besides the screen, you must focus on building strong bonds with each other. At the end of the day, a team’s cohesion and the relationships forged in work bonds help groups motivate one another, tap relevant industry knowledge, and resolve conflicts. So, you can’t work with a team unless you unite them as one first.
- Encourage Regular Engagement and Interaction: Even though you won’t be celebrating vis-à-vis with your colleagues and riding Can-Am Offroad ATVs on team-building workshops anytime soon, engagement and interaction are essential to nourishing healthy work relationships. Thus, it is in your best interests to encourage project discussions, productive cooperation, and even some casual conversations to embrace the camaraderie that should be present in any digital team.
Create a Superstar Digital Team That Always Has Your Back
In conclusion, despite the challenges and difficulties any business leader will face when creating a digital team in today’s business climate, all efforts and resources invested will be paid for in bountiful returns. And even if the ROI doesn’t come in liquid cash, you will definitely feel the change in overall business resilience as your employees play to each other’s strengths.
