4 Remote Leadership Shortcomings and Solutions

Many businesses have chosen to operate in a remote or hybrid capacity over the last few years, and statistics show that more will follow this trend as we move through the 2020s. Even though remote working has clear benefits for teams, it can be challenging to pivot into this environment, especially for team leaders. With this in mind, we’ve put together a series of common remote leadership shortcomings and strategies to address them.

Not Communicating Clearly

Failing to communicate tasks clearly means you’ll eradicate productivity and hinder project timelines. To overcome this problem, you have to learn how to communicate in the digital world including effective video conferencing, communication platforms, and emails. As well as this, you have to know how to break down large projects into simple manageable tasks that can be delegated and tracked daily.

If you’re struggling to get to grips with communication in a remote workplace, we recommend you find courses on effective leadership. All of these courses can be carried out online, meaning you can work on improving your skills while your team takes care of the upcoming project.

Micromanagement

If you’re a remote leader that’s guilty of trying to control every aspect of how your team works, this is called micromanagement. You may believe that you’re helping your team, but you’re simply getting in the way and preventing them from getting tasks completed.

Instead of micromanagement, you need to communicate tasks clearly in the first place and then step back while your team gets on with the task at hand. This doesn’t mean you can’t keep tabs on your team, it simply means monitoring progress without constant interruptions. To do this, you can use a time-tracking software, which will keep you updated on all progress. Naturally, if a member of your team falls too far behind, you should intervene to find out what the issue is.

Not Having the Correct Tools

Remote teams have to have the correct tools to complete tasks efficiently. If you can’t provide the right tools, you’re putting in a pin in progression. With this in mind, you need to be 100% open to embracing innovative technology that can boost productivity. For example, in 2023, the artificial intelligence (AI) revolution is well underway, so consider looking for ways that AI can make your team’s life much easier.

Focusing on Input Instead of Outputs

We’ve already established that remote leadership involves delegating tasks and then having the power to step away from the process. This touches on another shortcoming that involves being overly concerned about inputs, which means how a task is being completed. Instead, you should be more interested in the result. For example, if one of your team members prefers to work at 1 AM but still produces excellent work, you shouldn’t hold this against them because it doesn’t fit a traditional working model.

Remote team leadership comes with a number of challenges that don’t present in physical settings. By learning from the mistakes outlined above, you can make sure that you become a more efficient remote team leader.