Leading a Virtual Team

Being an effective leader is challenging and requires many skills

Being an effective leader of a virtual team is even more challenging

But there are advantages as well as challenges of having a virtual team;  and you can of course have a mixture of the two.

Virtual Team Challenges

There is no doubt that leading a virtual team presents unique challenges

🙄 Communication barriers

🙄 Difficulty building trust

🙄 Challenging to build team engagement, collaboration, and a sense of belonging

🙄 The need for clear goals and outcomes rather than observation.

🙄 More heavily reliant on technology

🙄 Blurred work-life boundaries

Virtual Team Advantages

However, there are also many advantages

☑️ Access to a wider pool of global talent

☑️ Cost savings on office space and resources

☑️ Diversity of perspectives with cross cultural teams

☑️ Greater flexibility for employees particularly important for women.

☑️ Effective when managing a team of employees & freelancers

☑️ Business continuity & scalability

My Story

Flexible and virtual working was unheard of when I first started working.  Firstly, we didn’t have the technology that we have today and secondly, it was not part of our culture.

In my early career, I worked in Central London and loved it. It was exciting, it was part of my social world and I am a Londoner so I was used to the busyness of it all.  When I got my first job near Marble Arch, I moved into a rented flat and had a 20 minute commute by foot.

My career progressed, I bought a flat, but still an easy commute away.  Work was the centre of my world and I spent more and more time there as my career progressed.  I travelled all over the world for my work, negotiating with suppliers and meeting clients; but didn’t have a laptop or even a Mobile phone!

All that changed shortly after launching my first business.  We found a tiny office in Covent Garden and due to our rapid growth soon moved to larger offices at St Paul’s.  I had moved out of London to Colchester by this stage so was commuting into London on a daily basis with a total of 3 hours travel time.

Then I unexpectedly got pregnant; following several failed IVF attempts.

Everything changed!

By this time tech was a lot better so I was able to work from home half the week and spend the other half in London.  We set  up the tech to make this possible and even had some of our team working in France.  But most of our team were young and single so they much preferred working in an office environment. Although the back office work could easily have been done remotely, the call centre wouldn’t have worked so well as the team spirit and slightly competitive edge was very motivational for the team.

Business Continuity

I was working from home on 7 Julye 2005 when the suicide attacks in central London saw bombs detonated on three underground trains and a bus.  Most of our team were supposed to be in the office but of course had not arrived.  Its was a very scary time. Fortunately none were involved and with me as well as our team in France working remotely we were able to cope with screening the calls.

Fast forward to 2019 when Covid proved that most work could be done remotely and Zoom had a field day taking over from the traditional Microsoft Teams for virtual meetings.  However was the work being done to the same standard?  What was the level of motivation?  How efficient were the people?

The Return to Work

There has been a slow return to work since Covid, but this remains a contentious issue.  In September 2004 Amazon CEO Andy Jassy announced that corporate employees would be required to work from the office five days a week, effective January 2 2025.  Before that the requirement had been 3 days per week.

A blind survey of 2,585 Amazon employees found that 73% were thinking of quitting and 91% reported being overwhelmingly dissatisfied.  But employees reported mixed views; with some feeling demoralised and stressed, particularly care givers, while others saw benefits such as , renewed collaboration, better mentorship connections and improved visibility.

How do you feel about remote working?

As a solopreneur, there are many advantages and few disadvantages, especially as women. However, when it comes to growing your business and having a team, it can be very different.  Where you work is very personal as everyone has different priorities and work/life balance. The main thing to remember is that everyone is different, so don’t make assumptions.  

This will depend on your industry, company culture, type of work and business goals but in order to attract the best talent and ensure that they stay, a hybrid solution is probably the best option. Your team could come into the office 2-3 days per week, with flexibility the rest of the time.  This works well for small but growing companies in the following ways:

💥 Promotes in-person collaboration where it counts (meetings, brainstorming, onboarding)

💥 Supports work life balance which boosts retention

💥 Reduces overheads (office space. utilities)

💥 Makes it easier to recruit from a wider geographical pool

💥 Particularly encourages women back to work after maternity leave

I hear about so many women leaving corporate careers because of burnout, and often starting their own companies.  This is a great solution for them but what about the companies that have lost all this talent?

We need more women in large corporations and more women in leadership roles in order to even up the balance.  These companies are losing so much talent due to a culture that is very much set in the past. Lack of flexibility is just one of the reasons for this.  Other reasons included

❌ Burnout and unrewarded extra work  - often on the HR side of business

❌ Bias and authority undermining - often excluded from key conversations

❌ Insufficient career development and mentorship

❌ Lack of support with life transitions, particularly motherhood

The Importance of Culture

To my mind the likes of Amazon insisting that employees return to work show a poor culture and lack of trust in their team.  A positive culture in a company will allow for some flexibility to ensure they attract and retain the very best talent by providing an environment where they want to work and a business vision that they are aligned to.

As you grow your own business, remember that everyone who joins your team is different - they will have different levels of experience, different motivations and different career goals.  Think about what they value and what will bring them together as a team which treats them all fairly. Are they young and value the community & learning environment of being in an office or are they more mature, capable and reliable but have other commitments to balance?

Get to know your team, or if at the recruitment stage, make sure this is raised.  It is important to centre  conversations around purpose, autonomy and well being. People need to feel heard. 

The foundations skills you need to be an effective leader whether that's inhouse or with remote teams are just the same:

1️⃣ You need to be an effective communicator 

2️⃣ You need to be an expert delegator

3️⃣ You need to understand how to effectively motivate your team

Don’t forget, your team may be virtual, they may be freelancers and work for other business owners; but they are still a vital part of your team so treat them accordingly.

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