Over the last five years, the office vs remote working debate has raged but it’s clear that remote working is here to stay and it offers a wealth of benefits. Reduced overheads, improved efficiency, and a wider talent pool are just some of the things you can benefit from.
If this is something your business wants to explore, and you want to expand your core staffing with a remote team, there are certain things you can do to make the process easier and we discuss them below.
1. Define Clear Roles Within the Team and Required Skill Sets
Before you do any type of recruitment you have to be certain of the core team members. What skill sets do you require? What is your salary budget for this team? Do you want specific team members with specific skills, or multi-skilled team members that can overlap roles? Understanding and defining this basic information will allow the rest of the process to run smoothly and that you get the right mix for your remote team.
2. Leverage a Remote Communication Platform
Communication is vital for a remote team and the easiest way to do this is to invest in a communication or workflow platform such as Slack. With these platforms you can send instant messages, create channels for discussion, and easily integrate Google Docs and Sheets and share work documents.
3. Account for Remote Team Challenges
Once you have defined your required roles and sorted a communication platform, you must consider the potential challenges remote working can bring:
- Language barriers
- Cultural barriers
- Time zone differences
- Currency conversions
- Tax and employment law
When all your employees are from your local area, these challenges are virtually non-existent. However, since you will be drawing talent from around the world, you have to be mindful. For example, perhaps you prefer to recruit talent from similar time zones such as a one to two hour difference to ensure similar working hours.
Perhaps you only want to recruit people from countries that use USD as its primary currency to avoid issues with conversions and rates. Consider these challenges, and from them, formulate a strategy for your remote recruitment.
4. Utilize External Recruitment Channels to Build Your Team
The main step involves getting the right talent for your remote team. There are multiple platforms that specialize in remote recruitment such as Synergy Sparq that can make this task much easier. For example, this platform allows you to effectively hire remote software developers.
By leveraging such channels and platforms, you can make sure that you get the right person for the team role and that they can make a positive contribution. Platforms such as these offer far greater scope too compared to traditional local recruitment processes you might utilize.
Don’t Let Traditional Business Methods Limit Your Development
Even if the COVID-19 pandemic never materialized, remote working would have risen in popularity. It’s the natural progression of our digital world and as you can see from the above, it’s perfectly possible to build an effective remote team with members from around the world.
Don’t think that you have to conform with the traditional notions of business and invest in physical office space. By defining roles, utilizing remote communication platforms, and hiring talent from external recruitment channels, you can easily build a successful remote working team.