[Interview]
Teleworking, face-to-face, remote, hybrid mode or even full remote. Today's manager is confronted with work organization methods that challenge his managerial skills. Remote and hybrid management pushes him to renew his practices to manage a team that alternates face-to-face and remote. What are the pitfalls to avoid? What good practices can you rely on to be an effective manager? Clémence Rouart, remote management expert, answers our questions.
Clémence Rouart leads the training Managing teleworking staff. Attentive to the expectations of participants, she supports them in implementing renewed managerial practices.
“Managers and employees have already made a lot of effort to adapt to the upheavals caused by the COVID-19 crisis. We are experiencing a paradigm shift that is modifying our relationship to work, to ourselves, to the team, to the company and to the workspace. It is in this sense that any manager may need support to become more efficient in their remote management or in hybrid mode”, she confided to the ORSYS editorial staff.
Remote management, hybrid management… what is it exactly?
First of all, remote work is not necessarily teleworking, even if there can be remote management in both cases. Teleworking means working outside the company premises from your home or a coworking space. On the other hand, when members of a team work on different sites of the same company, there is indeed remote work but it is not teleworking.
Teleworking was already practiced before without naming it. Previously perceived as the privilege of autonomous executives, it has developed at all hierarchical levels since the COVID-19 crisis. Many now consider it a substantial advantage - almost an acquired advantage whose questioning is resented -, in particular because it eliminates the time spent traveling between home and work.
What types of organization are managers now faced with?
Today, three configurations predominate: the 100 % teleworking or 100 % remote which is also called full remote; the 100 % in person, which still has its fans; hybrid mode with home/business alternation.
Hybrid mode is not without consequences on the organization of workspaces. Thus, the flex office, which consists of no longer having a dedicated office, is currently experiencing a meteoric acceleration.
Finally, even if remote work and teleworking are not the same, the difficulties encountered and the solutions to be found may be similar.
What are the main difficulties of remote management?
The difficulties evolve over time depending on the organizations put in place. Indeed, the needs of managers and their teams were not the same in March 2020 during the first confinement or in September 2020 during the first wave of returns to site.
By definition, in a hybrid organization, certain employees are fully or partially teleworking. The rituals put in place when everyone was working remotely – for example, an individual video exchange every morning – could be eliminated. Indeed, the manager who is back in 100 % face-to-face or in hybrid mode, just like part of his team, may no longer have time to devote to these exchanges.
Management in hybrid mode raises many questions. First, how can we recreate informality with only two face-to-face days per week? Then, how can we restore team cohesion and a common vision? Finally, how can operating in hybrid mode be made efficient?
Resolving these difficulties requires feedback from managers and their teams. With Disrupt' Campus Nantes, I also mentor students who collect and analyze employees' comments on new ways of working within partner companies.
What good practices and tools can the manager rely on?
During training Managing teleworking staff, reflection on the difficulties of remote management and the solutions to be found is also approached from a fun angle. A cooperative board game allows discussions between managers on all the themes encountered in teleworking. At the end of the game, the managers take back the different cards played and use them to build an action plan.
Furthermore, the manager should invite his team to think about the different events that can disrupt teleworking and to anticipate solutions. The idea is that employees identify their own obstacles and difficulties. Are they able to return quickly in person in the event of an emergency? Do they need training? For the employee, this amounts to carrying out a self-diagnosis of their ability to telework effectively. For the manager, it is an opportunity to assess the employee's maturity to benefit from teleworking.
Does this mean that teleworking is not suitable for certain employees?
Yes indeed. Some people, due to a lack of organization or autonomy, need a structuring framework within the company. Others do not benefit from a personal living environment that allows them to work remotely (adequate equipment, quiet work space, etc.). Still others essentially have missions requiring on-site presence. It is up to the manager to ensure this. For example, during an interview prior to teleworking based on the employee's self-diagnosis. On the one hand, to check that he has understood and adheres to the framework set by the company. On the other hand, to ensure that the proportion of teleworkable missions is sufficient.
What do managers need to adapt to remote or hybrid management?
In training, managers express a need for autonomy, contact, exchanges, structure, order, stimulation, etc.
What comes up very often is the need to celebrate, that is to say to relive positive things with the team. Managers also need to mourn the loss of the 100 % face-to-face, which had the merit of being a stable situation compared to the hybrid organization which has become widespread. Furthermore, even if this may seem contradictory with the need for contact and exchanges, they need calm. And this, especially since the hybrid mode has reinforced the “non-stop connection”. These new needs may require acquiring or strengthening certain skills.
In your opinion, what are the essential skills for remote management?
Being able to let go is essential: managers need to gain perspective. To do this, they can include “meetings with themselves” in their diary. In other words, set aside a moment to step back and analyze their activity. This can be a good opportunity to identify waste in a “lean” spirit.
Training options : Manager: learn to let go! - Knowing how to let go and take a step back - Lean and Agility at the service of managerial leadership
Knowing how to manage your time is a basic manager skill. And this, whatever the method of organization of work. This involves prioritizing your tasks. And I would go even further by speaking directly to managers: before prioritizing, remember to prune! How many tasks can you actually complete in an hour?
Training options : Managing your time to be more efficient - Optimize your time management when working remotely
Dare to say and institutionalize feedback: to progress in this area, NonViolent Communication is a good training option. I also invite managers to be clear in their communication. They must ensure that their message is understood. For example, in a meeting, they can ask one of the team members to rephrase.
Training options : Give effective feedback, practical workshop - Reinforce your benevolence with Non-Violent Communication - Develop authentic and constructive communication
Finally, thinking about management also means thinking about leadership. This includes a strong capacity for empathy. You must also inspire confidence and trust, delegate and help your team members progress.
Training options : Develop your managerial leadership - Delegating and empowering - Develop the skills of your employees
What are the pitfalls to avoid? And how to ?
Asynchronous communication, multiplication of reports, vague instructions, etc. are practices to be avoided as much as possible. I invite managers to favor the telephone rather than e-mail. When reporting is necessary, it must be explained why. I also recommend clearly defining the “rules of the game” of teleworking. Better yet: build the operating rules with your team. They will thus be better accepted.
Using video correctly: first of all, use the camera! Then, a video meeting should never exceed 45 minutes. I suggest distributing roles so that everyone feels involved: a guardian of the temple who reminds the rules at the beginning and ensures that they are respected, a session secretary who takes notes, a facilitator who helps with decision-making if exchanges get bogged down and a guardian of time. We can also integrate fun with collaborative games.
Finally, do not exceed 50 % of downstream information during remote exchanges.
What are the training needs of managers?
Renewing your managerial practices may require training in different areas.
For example, for:
- host a remote meeting and use video wisely – Succeed in remote interviews and meetings – User teams ;
- involve employees, take charge of collaborative tools and integrate fun activities – Practice participatory management – Klaxoon: use the tool to lead training or meetings.
Training Managing teleworking staff is aimed at all managers, team leaders, project managers in charge of teams or teleworking employees. Above all, participants appreciate sharing between peers, which makes it possible to formalize a community of practices. When training is organized intra-company, they often schedule time for a later discussion to take stock together of what is working and what is working less well. Once the training is completed, they already have very precise ideas on what they are going to implement in the short term:
- delegate more;
- a workshop to build operating rules as a team;
- self-diagnosis of employee maturity.
