However, it becomes more complicated when working with a global workforce (people who work on opposite sides of the world). For example, if someone works in Australia while another is located in the United States, it may be difficult to attend a meeting at the same time unless the Aussie gets up pretty early in the morning. We have a few standing methods of making sure these types of communication happen often, including the daily pair call and weekly or biweekly mastermind chats. These chats are normally only 2-3 people maximum, so more often than not it’s possible to find a time that works for everyone across multiple time zones. So, those are some of the best practices for working across multiple time zones that can hopefully help you and your team. Working and collaborating with a team with different locations and time zones can pose its own challenges compared to the traditional way that we all know.
With about one-third of all workers working from home in May of 2020, it was clear that the work could still get done and people could be productive even when they were away from their normal desks. There is a false perception that remote workers are lazy, taking every opportunity to slack off because nobody is watching. In fact, remote workers are generally more productive than their in-office counterparts. If so, then you know the challenges in staying on the same page that come with working remotely.
Make remote work…work
In this article, we’ll explore the benefits, challenges, and essential best practices of working across time zones. Teams working remotely and across time zones lack the spontaneous chats in-office coworkers are accustomed to. The social disconnect can breed various productivity and personal obstacles that could wreak havoc on your organization over time. To foster better relationships within your team, be intentional about cutting across time zones, cultural, and generational differences and creating more opportunities for connection between your remote team members.
If a meeting is necessary, make attendance optional so you’re not asking teammates to stay up late to get up early. If it’s recurring and unavoidable (and it often will be), try to schedule meeting times so that the burden is shared across the team rather than by the same people each week. Undoubtedly, one of the trickiest parts of working across time zones is scheduling meetings.
Project Management Apps
Following the above tips and practices will help you develop a schedule and a working model that will keep everybody happy and included while valuing the personal needs of each team member. It will help if you switch meeting times weekly and make them more convenient for people worldwide to prevent burnout in one employee. Perhaps you can have two different meetings on one day at two different times so everybody can get a chance to participate. Managing teams across different time zones don’t have to be difficult, even though it may look frightening and complicated. Virtual teams have increased in popularity in the past few years because of their capability to offer variety, specialization, and better production. Use this article as your guide to overcome these challenges and you’ll be well on your way to building strong relationships across time zones.
- For example, implementing a virtual project management platform can help teams coordinate assignments, track individuals’ progress on tasks, and boost overall efficiency.
- These moments will strengthen your team’s bond, making working remotely more productive.
- Even with a smaller difference, the morning and late afternoon meetings can be really challenging for some, especially if they are managing a family and multiple schedules.
- This sort of impromptu, off-the-cuff discussion can resemble “watercooler chat” and enables colleagues to brainstorm various topics and connect on a more personal level.
- If a phone call or video conference is necessary, try rotating the schedules so everyone gets a turn to take calls late-night or off-hours.
But while this can affect performance, it can also alter the effect exercise has on our health, too. In a few months, the world’s top athletes will gather in Paris to compete for the ultimate prize in sport – gold at the Olympic Games. For those hoping for a chance to enter the history working remotely in a different time zone books with a record-breaking performance, they might want to look at the hour on the clock before they settle into the starting blocks. Mexico is another great option if you are a digital nomad in North America looking for a plug and play lifestyle elsewhere on a budget.
How to Work Across Multiple Time Zones Efficiently as a Remote Team
Remarkably, as much as 70% of businesses have adopted remote working as their primary operational model. A key to communicating with colleagues is knowing precisely what time it is—for everyone involved. Even for remote employees who have worked remotely for years, knowing the time difference between CEST, PDT, and other time zones may still be challenging. Even between the east and west coast of the United States, there is a three-hour time difference. Hosting an 8 AM meeting in New York City, which seems completely appropriate to start your day, would mean someone in Los Angeles needing to be up and ready to go by 5 AM.
It will help if you consider splitting the workdays as part-time in the office in the morning hours, and the rest of the hours could be remotely done in the evening. When working with a distributed team, it’s important to understand the differences between sync and async communication, and the extreme importance of asynchronous communication. The lack of physical presence makes it easier for remote workers to lose connection with their team. This can be especially challenging when working with a distributed team in different time zones. It’s not all 9-5 anymore with remote teams, with some works preferring to wake up in the early morning to get a head start before the day begins, and others starting late but working in the evening.
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