TELEWORK PREPAREDNESS: 12 KEYS TO BUI LD AND MAI NTAI N SUCCESSFUL REMOTE TEAMS About Lauren LeMunyan PCC Founder, SpitFire Institute

Lauren LeMunyan PCC, “The SpitFire Coach,” is a professional certified coach with over 20 years of entrepreneurial experience and over 1700 certified coaching hours. After working with over 300 clients in associations, tech, design, startups, real estate, oil and gas, and entertainment, Lauren identified patterns and themes in leadership frustrations, stress and burnout.

The SpitFire Institute was created to give professionals, teams and organizations the support and training needed to address issues at the root and shift approaches and skills to get the best outcome for employees and organizations.

Prior to SpitFire Institute, Lauren served as the executive director of the Environmental Markets Association, National Institute of Oilseed Products and The Weather Risk Management Association. Lauren also started her first business at the age of 12 and leverage the profits to pay her way through college.

Lauren is the author of Spitting Fire: Your Guide to Reignite Your Passion at Home, Work and Beyond and Prioritization Hacks: 5 Key Tools to Maximize Your Day, host of The SpitFire Podcast and SpitFire rapper JRSY FRSH in a Bluegrass-Americana band.

Lauren graduated from Rutgers University and is a Myers-Briggs Certified Practitioner, Energy Leadership Index Master Practitioner, and a Release Resentment Certified Practitioner.

2 Whether you find yourself in a remote situation by choice or necessity, necessity or chance, this eBook is here to help you navigate the unknowns, pitfalls and challenges of managing a team outside of an office.

This eBook was created on March 12, 2020 as the world began self-quarantining and working from home. Even the most prepared organizations and telework professionals faced new challenges in adapting to a new remote environment.

With change all around and frustration leading to exhaustion and burnout, this eBook provides helpful principles, tips and processes to guide you and your team from uncertainty and confusion to trust and communication.

All of the opinions in this eBook are mine. That's the great thing about opinions - anyone can have them or disagree with them.

3 As an executive coach for one of the 13 coolest fully remote companies to work for (according to Glassdoor), I have created and supported remote leaders around the world as they navigate the same issues traditional companies face with an additional twist on limited visual cues like body language, tone, and even real time communication.

This eBook includes 12 keys to running a successful remote team. What isn’t mentioned, and what I am biased in thinking, is the most important - third party support i.e. coaching.

Coaching provides a space to freely flush out ideas, troubleshoot and learn.When we are in our heads and behind our screens, it can be easy to slip into a stress reaction without realizing it. Before we know it, we are overloaded in judgment and assumptions and we feel the weight of the world. Then nothing gets done – you know the drill.

If you'd like to explore what coaching can do for you and your team, visit www.spitfireinstitute.com/contact and a complimentary 15-minute discovery call.

4 Before we get to the keys, let’s talk about the numbers of remote work. has grown 115% in the past decade (State of Telecommuting) 4.3 million people in the USA work from home at least half the time. (Global Workplace Analytics) Before COVID-19, 16% of companies are 100% remote (Owl Labs) By 2028, 73% of all departments will have remote workers. (Upwork) Companies that allow remote work have 25% lower employee turnover than those that don’t. (Owl Labs) The 2019 State of Remote Work report found remote workers say they're likely to stay in their current for the next 5 years 13% more than onsite workers

Here are some of the perks of teleworking: Better work-life balance Increased productivity/better focus Less stress Avoiding a commute Sweatpants!

5 We could paint a rosy picture that teleworking is the panacea for workplace malaise, but that’s not the whole story.

We need to have some real talk about the pitfalls and challenges to better prepare your awareness for points of friction and conflict.

When I became a remote leader in 2010, it was out of necessity. My partner was out of work in Washington, DC for 13 months during The Recession and was only able to find a contract position in Houston, TX.

This meant that I would either need to find a new job or convince my employer that I could be trusted as a teleworker.

I traveled a fair amount with my position and had good relationship with my . My clients were happy, so I thought it was worth a try. The company was extremely traditional and had only allowed less than ten out of 400 employees work from home. Thankfully they agreed to the new arrangement.

What I didn’t anticipate was spending the next six years feeling the pressure, judgment and growth limitations of working from home.

6 Here is a list of concerns and stumbling blocks from my own experience and from my remote coaching clients:

“If I’m not on my computer or responsive, my team will think I’m not working.”

“I check Slack before I go to bed and right when I wake up and every time it dings.”

“You don’t really manage people if you don’t see them.”

“We can’t promote you unless you have a presence in the office.”

“If I don’t respond to an email as soon as I get it, people will think I’m lazy.”

“Team meetings are usually dominated by one or two people and I’m left more confused and less inspired that before we started.”

“I feel guilty if I do laundry.”

“Most days I don’t shower until after 5:00pm.”

“There have been days I’ve forgotten to brush my teeth.”

“I fear that my customers don’t think I’m professional if I work from home.”

“I get easily distracted by the dishes and reality tv binge watching.”

“I am never disconnected and know I’m not getting enough sleep.”

“I feel like I’m not included in decision making.”

7 T H E 1 2 K E Y S T O S U C C E S S F U L A N D E F F E C T I V E T E L E W O R K I N G T E A M S

The following twelve keys are the basic building blocks of building and maintaining a telework team. These items are suggestions to get you started. It is up to you to add your personal touch and make it work for you and your team. Know Your Company’s Policies

How do your in office policies translate into the virtual space? If you’re unclear ask HR. If HR doesn’t know, reach out to an HR expert or look into resources through SHRM.

Set the Tone

Whether you are new to a team or have transitioned to a remote format, it is imperative to establish a tone.

What does that mean? The tone relates to the shared values, expectations, , and operating principles of your team and how you say it.

If you can establish how you’re going to handle decision making, projects, conflict management at the front end of the engagement, it will save you hours/day/weeks/months of stress and confusion. 8 Action: Schedule a virtual meeting with your team with a clear agenda to set mutual and shared expectations and vision for the remote experience. Allocate 90-120 minutes for this.

Feel free to send these questions a week ahead of time to give people time to think and process.

Sample Agenda

I. Leader Kick Off - What are you excited about, looking forward to? II. Set Intention for Call - What does everyone hope to accomplish on the call? III. What is most important to you? (Recognition, autonomy, freedom, challenges, leadership) IV. Where do you see yourself needing support/what do you need? (, organization, saying no, prioritization, collaborating) V. How do you define success for yourself and for the team? VI. How does this align or work into the company's mission and vision? VII. Establishing a Team Name

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Get to Know Your Team on a Virtual Level

Your team members have more going on than what they share. It is your job as a leader to learn about what makes them tick, what motivates them and how to best communicate with them.

You can start with the basics - their communication preferences.

Do they prefer to talk on the phone, meet on a video chat, respond by email, get urgent texts, or respond off hours on an asynchronous platform?

One of the most common missteps I’ve seen remote leaders make is assuming that everyone on their team communicates the same way, and shocker they usually think it’s like their own preferences. This can be done during your initial kick off meetings or during one-on-ones.

Once you have clarity on communication preferences, you can work on understanding the motivation of each team member.

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Try questions like: What’s gets you most excited about this role? How do you like to be acknowledged? What are you most comfortable with in a celebration scenario? What is the biggest perk for you working remotely? What do you find to be your biggest challenge?

Once you've uncovered their motivation, you can learn their values.

Here’s a worksheet that you can pass along to your team. There’s even a part to establish your team’s values.

VALUES EXERCISE

Instructions Scan the list of words on the following page and select 10 words that inspire you.

There is no right or wrong word to choose. The only thing that matters is that these are your values.

11 V A L U E S E X E R C I S E

Abundance Confidence Family Justice Relaxation Acceptance Connection Fearlessness Kindness Reliability Accessibility Consciousness Fierce Knowledge Relief Accomplishment Conservation Flexibility Leadership Reputation Accountability Consistency Flow Learning Resilience Adaptive Contentment Freedom Liberty Resolve Adventure Continuity Friendship Liveliness Resourceful Agility Control Fun Logic Respect Ambition Cooperation Generosity Love Sacrifice Appreciation Courage Grace Loyalty Satisfaction Approval Creativity Gratitude Mastery Science Attractiveness Credibility Gregarious Mindful Security Awareness Curiosity Growth Motivation Self-control Balance Decisiveness Guidance Nature Selflessness Beauty Delight Happiness Obedience Self-reliance Belonging Dependability Harmony Open-minded Self-respect Boldness Depth Health Optimism Sensitivity Bravery Desire Helpfulness Order Serenity Brilliance Determination Heroism Originality Service Calmness Discipline Honesty Partnership Sharing Candor Discovery Honor Passion Silliness Care Duty Hopefulness Perfection Simplicity Challenge EagernessEase Hospitality Perseverance Spirituality Change Efficiency Humility Play Strength Charity Elegance Humor Pleasantness Support Charm Empathy Impact Popularity Synergy Cheerfulness Encourage Independence Potency Teamwork Clarity Energy Influence Power Tranquility Cleanliness Enjoyment Insight Preparedness Trust Cleverness Entertainment Inspiration Presence Uniqueness Closeness Enthusiasm Integrity Privacy Unity Comfort Excellence Intelligence Proactivity Vision Community Experience Intensity Professional Warmth Compassion Expertise Intimacy Prosperity Worth Competition Exploration Intuition Rationality Youth Completion Fairness Joy Reflection Zeal 12 V A L U E S E X E R C I S E

Select 10 words that are important to you. Write 2 – 3 sentences about what each word means to you.

13 T H E 1 2 K E Y S T O S U C C E S S F U L A N D E F F E C T I V E T E L E W O R K I N G T E A M S

Set Individual and Shared Goals

Work with your team members to create weekly, monthly, quarterly and annual goals. Then check in, check in, check in… you get the point.

During check-ins it’s up to you to see where team members are feeling confident, we’re they’re challenged and where they’re struggling.

Scaling is a great tool to get insight around confidence and clarity.

The Scaling Tool

Here’s how it works:

Leader: Hey Joe I know you’ve been working on X project. On a scale of 1-10, 1 low and 10 high, how confident do you feel about reaching your deadline?

Joe: I’m like a 6 or a 7.

Leader: So what does a 6 or a 7 look like?

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Joe: I’m able to get a lot of things done, but I’m feeling stuck when I’m working with the other departments. They are sometimes unresponsive, and I don’t want to keep bugging them.

Leader: That makes sense, so what do you need to make that 6 or 7 feel like an 8 or 9?

Joe: Well I could call Jess over at that department and see if she could nudge things along or I can schedule a meeting with the team to see what we may need to move.

Leader: That sounds like a great plan. What do you needA fdrodm a tsou sbuhpepaodrint gyou in this?

Joe: I think our weekly check-in will keep me accountable to this. I’ll give you an update if I’m not seeing movement on this.

If we were to assume that the 6 or 7 meant everything was “fine”, we could miss the opportunity to support Joe.

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I’ve seen many clients try to skim over issues by saying “good”, “fine” and “okay.” When I ask the scaling questions, they begin to open up and start to get to the issues that are getting in the way and can see solutions.

Document, Document, Document

The wins, the challenges, the plans, the opportunities, the gaps. Everything needs to be documented – meeting notes, project plans, status updates, ideas – all of it matters in a remote world.

Typing not for you? Try a transcription service like Descript (www.descript.com first 3 hours are free) to convert recordings to text or delegate it among your team – you may have someone who actually likes to take notes.

Be sure to make important items bolded and on the top. If you’re finding the notes being ignored, try a with bullet pointed items, calls to action and responsible parties. 16 T H E 1 2 K E Y S T O S U C C E S S F U L A N D E F F E C T I V E T E L E W O R K I N G T E A M S

Create a Shared System

If you don’t already have one within your organization, Google Docs and Google Sheets, Trello and Slack can keep your inbox from overloading. (There are many other options out there too.)

Word on the street is Microsoft Teams is now free in response to COVID-19 if you want to check that out too.

There's also Facebook Workplace, Zoom, and Skype for live co-collaboration.

How to select the right system for you and your team: 1. Know your needs 2. Find the best fit 3. Be clear on the purpose of each tool and how it will be used 4. Create clear expectations and check-ins for the system 5. Know when it's time to move on 17 T H E 1 2 K E Y S T O S U C C E S S F U L A N D E F F E C T I V E T E L E W O R K I N G T E A M S

Establish Routines

Why are routines so important? These regularly followed sequence of actions help to create structure, expectations, order and flow.

More specifically routines help to: 1. Make us more efficient 2. Reduce our need to plan 3. Create good habits/Change bad habits 4. Prioritize 5. Build Momentum 6. Increase Confidence

Routines are important for every person on your team including you!

Here are some areas and activities to support your routine building:

For You: 1.Jump Start Your Morning – List one thing that gets you going in the morning. For me it’s 3- page journaling and meditation. Maybe it’s stretching or making a cup of tea.

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Do this every day around the same time every morning. After a week, add a second activity to do after your jump start.

2. Admin Workflow – Remember that part about documenting? Build in time following meetings to tie up loose ends. If your meeting is scheduled for 1 hour, add an additional 15-30 minutes on your calendar for you to summarize the meeting, capture action items, and breathe.

When we can take the time to honor our word, it allows us to better show up for our team. When we become the embodiment of our commitments, we work to build trust

For Your Individual Team Members:

1. Check-Ins – Working with each team member, find a frequency that works for both of you to check-in. This can be weekly or bi-weekly depending on the need. During the check-ins, it’s your opportunity to see how each team member is doing, ask empowering questions, identify gaps or blocks, and build trust. To avoid scheduling overload, aim for 30-45 minutes per check-in.

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2. Random Acts of Silliness – You won’t be able to see the pictures or figurines on someone’s desk in a remote situation, so it’s up to you to engage in random acts of silliness and connectedness.

Some of my clients share memes and GIFs to express their mood. Some have an obsession with snarky cats. If you see something that someone else cares about, share it with them.

Happy Employees are 12% More Productive! (Forbes)

For Your Full Team:

The Virtual Huddle Up – If you’re tired over long- drawn out meetings or overloaded inboxes, The Virtual Huddle Up can be your best friend.

Here’s how it works: 1. The Huddle Up is a 15-minute high-level priority share for each team member.

2. First, you’ll need to agree on a time at the start of each day with your team. (I’ve seen 9:00am or 9:30am as a typical time.)

20 T H E 1 2 K E Y S T O S U C C E S S F U L A N D E F F E C T I V E T E L E W O R K I N G T E A M S

3. Then make the meeting a recurring event in everyone’s calendar.

4. Select a rotating weekly Huddle Leader list. (To keep it simple, go by birthdays or middle name alpha order)

5. At the time of the Huddle Up, the Leader says good morning and sets the expectations:

"This is an opportunity to share your wins, what you’re working on, and where you need support.

In an effort to keep this efficient and value your time event more, if you have ideas or solutions for a colleague, let them know and then have a chat at the end. We’re going to keep this under 15 minutes. Ready and go!"

6. Each person should report in under 2 minutes and if they start to lag or go off on a tangent, it’s up to the Huddle Leader to bring them back or suggest and offline conversation.

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7. The Huddle Leader will select the order of reporting and will wrap up each session with gratitude.

Honoring people’s time is the ultimate form of respect. If you notice that daily is too frequent, shift to a 3-day or weekly mode.

This does not replace your project deep dive meetings, but it should reduce or eliminate long, drawn out staff meetings.

The 3 Rs to Creating Lasting Routines

Make sure they are Reasonable, Realistic and Repeatable.

Keep Your Word

If you schedule a meeting every Monday morning, show up. If you say you’ll follow up with someone by the end of the day, do it. Your words carry even more weight when you don’t have run-ins to remind you of your commitments. 22 T H E 1 2 K E Y S T O S U C C E S S F U L A N D E F F E C T I V E T E L E W O R K I N G T E A M S

Give Frequent Feedback

Bi-weekly or weekly feedback meetings are a great way to let people know how they’re doing so that they can either continue or shift where it’s necessary. Feel free to share your feedback with individual team members to help them in their professional development and support them in finding remote solutions to support them if it’s beyond your scope of expertise.

Feedback Tips 1. Be clear on what you're giving feedback for (context is everything) 2. Be clear on why you're giving feedback (what is your intended outcome. 3. Check your story and judgment at the door (if you want to be of service, focus on how the other person needs you to show up.) 4. Use data over assumptions (if there are patterns, trends or observations, lead with that) 5. Allow the other person to acknowledge, recognize and come up with a solution. 23 T H E 1 2 K E Y S T O S U C C E S S F U L A N D E F F E C T I V E T E L E W O R K I N G T E A M S

Look Out for Energy Drops

If you notice someone isn’t showing up or keeping their word, check in on them via phone or text. Schedule a video chat to see what they need for you and the team.

If your gut is telling you something is off, acknowledge it. You can say something like, “Hey Lisa, I’m noticing that you haven’t been showing up to meetings like you used to. We’ve really missed your ideas. What’s going on?”

If you need more support on this topic, there is a great article at spitfireinstitute.com/resources 24 T H E 1 2 K E Y S T O S U C C E S S F U L A N D E F F E C T I V E T E L E W O R K I N G T E A M S

Treat Email as Sacred Space

You know the feeling or working on a project and seeing previews popping up in the corner of your screen, or the panic that floods your body when you get an email from your boss at 9pm.

Email etiquette is not just important, but essential to effective and trust-based teams.

The average person is interrupted on average 56 times per day and it takes 2 hours of that day to get back on track. As you’re learning about your team, acknowledge email and create an operating principle around it.

Here’s an example: “My inbox will be checked throughout the day during working hours. If something is urgent and on fire, I want someone to call me. Email is not instant messenger or text.” Refer back to team members’ communication preferences 25 T H E 1 2 K E Y S T O S U C C E S S F U L A N D E F F E C T I V E T E L E W O R K I N G T E A M S

Create a Celebration Tradition

Share the wins in a fun and celebratory way wherever and whenever you can. This can be a standing agenda item or a board in your team’s Trello or Slack. Be sure to mention people by name. Gratitude and acknowledgement go a long way in the remote space.

26 Resources

Video Meetings Zoom www.zoom.us Skype Facebook Rooms Microsoft Teams Google Hangouts

File Share and Collaboration Google Documents Google Sheets Trello Slack DropBox

Scheduling Sign Up Genius Acuity Scheduling Calendly Doodle

Websites and Resources www.spitfireinstitute.com www.spitfirecoach.com www.theremoteleader.com

27 TOOLS AND METHODOLOGY

Lauren LeMunyan holds a Professional Certified Coaching designation with the International Coaching Federation and has acquired over 1700 certified hours.

Lauren LeMunyan is a certified practitioner of The Release Resentments Coaching Process - an ICF certified process that effectively acknowledges, addresses and releases the impacts of individuals' stress, frustrations, and deep resentments.

Lauren LeMunyan is a Certified Professional Coach through the Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching (iPEC) with a focus in Core Energy Coaching.

Lauren LeMunyan is a Master Practitioner of the Energy Leadership Index Assessment - an attitudinal assessment that pinpoints and individual's leadership and stress triggers,

Lauren LeMunyan is a Certified Practitioner of The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator Step I and Step II.

28 HOW DOES COACHING WORK?

Coaching is only effective when both parties are aligned, invested and accountable in the shared expectations of the engagement.

HERE' S HOW TO GET THE MOST OUT OF COACHING 1. Select the Right Coach Ensure you have the right coach for you. From our experience and research, we know that good rapport and trust between the coach and coachee is the key to success. We adapt our approach based on your needs.

2. Make Time for You Your time is valuable and your time in coaching will pay dividends if you commit the time to it. Coaching allows you the opportunity to focus on your unique needs and challenges. Topics may be challenging at times. but in working through them, you will be able to achieve more.

3. Remain Focused The best results are achieved when there is clarity. You may not know how to get there; you may not know exactly what you want. We recommend an initial conversation with management to agree on overall objectives and go from thee.

4. It's Up to You The time outside of coaching sessions is just as important as your scheduled time with a coach. Your coach will challenge your assumptions and thinking to support you in your future work and goals. Whether or not anything changes is based on your actions and decisions. Coaching only works when you do the work. 29 Need More Personalized Support for Remote Leadership?

Schedule a complimentary 15-minute Discovery Call to hear how coaching can transform the way you communicate and work.

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