There are many advantages to having a global workforce. You get to tap into a rich array of cultural knowledge and benefit from a wide pool of diverse talent. But managing a global team comes with many unique challenges, as well. You must learn how to help team members cooperate despite living in different time zones and having unique communication styles. To enhance efficiency and unity within a multinational team, follow these three best management practices.
1. Outsource Your Global HR Functions
When you hire international employees, you have the immediate concern of onboarding them into your organization. You also want to ensure that you pay them promptly and accurately, and that you’re complying with the labor laws where they live. You may be very familiar with employment laws and regulations in your country, but international employment laws can vary significantly. If you step out of compliance — either intentionally or unintentionally — you could face hefty penalties, fines, and other repercussions.
Your human resources department might be able to handle these new responsibilities given the requisite time to prepare. But you can greatly ease your entry into foreign labor markets by working with an HR partner that has experience with global teams. If you’re establishing a business entity in the country where you’d like to hire, you can engage a professional employer organization. A PEO can perform common HR tasks for you, such as managing your global payroll, withholding taxes, and administering employee benefits. Such organizations are not, however, on the hook for ensuring you’re in compliance with local labor laws — that’s up to you.
Consequently, many stateside organizations that wish to hire globally work with an employer of record instead. Like a PEO, an EOR will process your global payroll, file taxes, and administer employee benefits. But because the EOR hires employees on your behalf, they assume responsibility for regulatory compliance. You don’t have to establish a business presence in the country of hire, either — the EOR has already done it for you.
2. Make Communication a Priority
Many factors can get in the way of optimal communication between international employees. You may need to contend with language barriers, different time zones, and culturally determined communication preferences. But despite these challenges, it’s essential to make communication a priority so your international team can work together efficiently. Don’t make the mistake of neglecting global employees because it’s harder to get in touch with them.
A cloud-based project management system offers a solid platform for intra-team collaboration and communication. It allows teams to divide projects into discrete tasks and assign them to the appropriate party wherever they’re located. Everyone on the team can see who currently has a deliverable and who will get it next. Comment panels allow team members to ask questions about tasks and preserve the answers in a way that’s visible to all. Automated notifications make it easy to alert colleagues to handoffs and imminent deadlines.
Instant messaging apps are another convenient way to keep in touch with your international workforce. While email is all well and good, the “instant” nature of platforms like Slack and Microsoft Teams encourages faster responses. Team members can get quick answers from colleagues wherever they are, and special interest channels promote team camaraderie. The sharing of pet photos and favorite recipes can help your farflung team to gel.
3. Use Virtual Meetings to Build Team Connections
One simple way to enhance global communication is to hold virtual meetings regularly. Remember that you’ll be dealing with people in different time zones, so you’ll need to plan your videoconferencing opportunities accordingly. The good news is that you can usually find meeting times that overlap well in most time zones. For example, if you’re based in California but have employees in Bangkok, scheduling meetings later in the day often works well. At 5 p.m. your time, it will be 8 a.m. the next day in Bangkok.
To foster team connections, make time during each virtual meeting to share personal updates. At first glance, these may seem like a frivolous waste of time, especially if you’re approaching a tight deadline. In reality, personal updates can allow each member of your team to feel valued and heard. They can also give international employees a sense of belonging when they might otherwise feel isolated. That’s important: When employees don’t feel a sense of belonging at work, they tend to experience lower engagement and organizational commitment.
Another fun way to strengthen team bonds is to have team members, stateside and abroad, take turns giving virtual tours of their workspace. Encourage tour “hosts” to provide details about their average workday, what they typically eat for lunch, and other specific details. These tours can provide valuable insights into cultural differences and similarities between members of a global workforce. You may find that your employees look forward to these virtual tours more than any other meeting.
Erasing the Miles
There’s no doubt that managing a global team brings its own set of challenges. But with creativity and effort, you can overcome those challenges and help your international team members corroborate well. By enlisting international HR pros, prioritizing communication, and nurturing team connections, you can create a highly cooperative global team. You might even become so well connected that you’ll forget you’re separated by thousands of miles.