5 Types of Leaders for Remote Employees

Managing a remote team is not a task for the faint of heart. This is especially the case with the current COVID-19 pandemic as we move towards a remote workforce with little to no preparation. It includes all of the challenges of your typical team leader, project director, or manager — delegating tasks, reaching deadlines, putting out fires (hopefully only in the figurative sense). But it also comes with additional challenges, often relating to the sometimes tremendous distances that can lie between employer and employee.

When your team includes people in other cities, states, countries, and time zones, things can become complicated. The right time tracker can certainly alleviate some of the stress behind remote workers, and even offer deep insights into projects and resources. With such a global team, it takes a special kind of leader to make this work — or rather, several special kinds.

The Coach

Being able to coach your team to success is vital in any workplace. But when distance factors in, the importance of this role is only deepened. The coach is someone who can take any team member and know exactly how to bring out their potential. This is more than just positive energy and encouragement. It’s being able to keep cool under pressure and help lead your team through a crisis. It’s being able to recognize what kind of feedback an employee needs to improve. It’s seeing the big picture and helping each member of your team do what needs to be done to bring that to fruition. Remote employees may have difficulty coming together as a team, but the coach can make it happen.

The Evangelist

The idea of the “company evangelist” is nothing new. But in the context of remote employees, it takes on a whole new meaning and relevancy. A remote worker may struggle to see themselves as part of the team, as belonging to the company culture, since they are so far removed from the hub. This is when the evangelist shines; they excel in communicating the values and identity of a company, and how best to put those skills to work than in reminding remote employees that they’re part of something larger?

The Marathon Runner

Like we mentioned earlier, one of the big challenges that comes with the territory of remote teams is that sometimes your employees are in different time zones. Sometimes you can connect with them during working hours; sometimes you’re going to find yourself sending emails and texts or making Skype calls at some ungodly hour — and that’s after working a whole day at the office, too. For some the demands of working with people in different time zones is just a little bit too much, but not for the marathon runner. (The marathon, in this instance, is metaphorical. You don’t actually need to be an athlete — though if you are, hey, way to go!) This is the kind of person who can go all day and still have some fire left in them, and when it comes to managing remote teams, that fire is always an asset.

The Confidant

Communication is a key to success in any workplace. When your employees become decentralized, it’s no longer just a key — it’s make-or-break. The trouble is, when employees have never met you, how do you make sure that they’ll feel comfortable coming to you when they run into problems? The confidant is someone who encourages communication, someone that team members feel good about talking to. This doesn’t mean you have to be there to answer every question at every time of day; after all, you have a job too. But it does mean fostering open and honest communication. Let your team know you’re there to help them succeed, and take the time to engage directly with them and ask them how their tasks are going and if they have questions or concerns.

The Type-A

Juggling your own responsibilities while also making sure that every employee — even those who work remotely — is on-task and on-schedule take dedication, organization, and attention to detail. For the type-A, their calendar is their best friend and their mobile phone is never out of arm’s reach. They’re never in the dark about what should be happening and when, because they take initiative to light their own way forward.

So when it comes to leading remote employees, which type of leader should you be? The truth is, no one is ever purely just one of these types, through-and-through. Maybe you’re the coach, with a little sprinkle of everything else thrown in; or maybe you’re a mash-up of the type-A and the marathon runner. And that’s a good thing! Being able to combine multiple styles of leadership into a unique hybrid that works for you is an asset, so long as you play to your strengths to ensure that you’re the best leader you can be.