Ah, remote work. The dream of pajamas, back-to-back Zooms, and someone’s cat interrupting a meeting. But for leaders managing distributed teams, the reality is juggling time zones, endless Slack pings, and a constant battle against disengagement.
How do we stop remote work from feeling like an endless game of “Where’s Waldo?” with your team? Let’s break it down with five best practices across all levels of leadership—from individual contributors to the mighty Chief PMO.
The Remote Work Reality Matrix
Different roles, different struggles. Here’s a cheat sheet to help you navigate remote work at every level.
| Level | Responsibilities | Biggest Pitfall | Pro Tip to Avoid It |
|---|---|---|---|
| Personal (Individual contributor) | Time management, self-motivation | Procrastination disguised as “research” | Time-blocking + focus apps = your best friends |
| Team (Scrum Master/Project Manager) | Team alignment, ceremonies, engagement | Meetings that could be an email | Async updates + “2-minute rule” for meetings |
| Project (Project Manager) | Scope, timeline, risk management | Silence = alignment (it’s not) | Regular but brief check-ins |
| Program (Program Manager) | Cross-team dependencies, escalations | Slack wars over priorities | Use a RACI matrix (and actually update it) |
| Portfolio (Chief PMO) | Strategic alignment, funding, execution | Vanity KPIs (that mean nothing) | Measure real impact, not just activity |
| Across All Levels | Culture, engagement, trust-building | “Camera off” culture = disengagement | Gamify participation or bribe with swag |
5 Best Practices for Managing Remote Teams Without Losing Your Mind
1. Asynchronous Work: Embrace It, but Don’t Overdo It
Not every update needs a meeting. Use async for daily standups, status reports, and documentation—but don’t let your team turn into ghosts.
📌 Example: A global engineering team eliminated 6 AM standups for Europe and Asia-Pacific by switching to Slack-based updates + one weekly sync. Result? More sleep, fewer grumpy engineers and managers.
🔧 Try This Template:
- What I did yesterday
- What I’m doing today
- What’s blocking me
- Meme of the Day (optional, but encouraged)
2. Work Boundaries: Respect Them or Watch Burnout Rise
Just because your team is remote doesn’t mean work should be 24/7.
📌 Example: A portfolio manager implemented a Slack bot that auto-replies to messages after hours:
“Hey! I’m off right now. If it’s urgent, call me. Otherwise, let’s sync tomorrow.”
🔧 Set These Habits:
✅ Define “Core Collaboration Hours”
✅ Use Slack’s “Send Later” feature
✅ Lead by example: No 10 PM emails
3. Virtual Meetings: The Art of Making Them Suck Less
If half your team is secretly checking emails during your call, you’ve already lost.
📌 Example: A program manager introduced The 15-Minute Rule:
✅ If an update takes more than 15 minutes → Write it down
✅ If no decisions are needed → Slack post instead
✅ If a meeting exists just to “check in” → Cancel it
🔧 Try This Meeting Template:
- Purpose: Why are we here?
- Decision Needed: Yes/No
- If No → Async update instead
4. Build a Remote Culture or Watch Your Team Rot
If your team only interacts for work, you’re in trouble. You don’t need forced virtual happy hours (please, no more awkward small talk), but you do need culture-building efforts.
📌 Example: A remote team launched “Fail Fridays” instead of a DSM (Daily Scrum Meeting), where everyone shared their funniest work mistakes. Result? More psychological safety = fewer hidden problems.
🔧 Other Culture Hacks:
✅ “Shoutout Showdowns” – Publicly recognize wins
✅ “GIF Wars” – Let Slack channels get fun
✅ Donut Bots – Random coffee chats
5. Measure What Actually Matters (Not Just Hours Worked)
Stop tracking how many Slack messages or emails people send and start measuring impact.
📌 Example: A PMO lead at a healthcare startup ditched task tracking in favor of measuring customer outcomes. Result? Less busywork, more meaningful progress.
🔧 Better Metrics to Track:
✅ Employee Engagement – Pulse surveys
✅ Cycle Time – Speed of work delivery
✅ Customer Impact – What’s actually changing for users?
Final Thoughts: Your Exec Playbook for Remote Success
If you’re a Program Manager or Operations leader, your role is to set the tone for remote work success. Here’s your high-level playbook:
✅ Define Remote Work Policies: Core hours, tool usage, and expectations
✅ Standardize Best Practices: Async updates, meeting hygiene, culture building
✅ Coach Teams, Not Micromanage: Trust them (or lose them)
Try one of these tips this week and tell me what worked (or flopped spectacularly). Either way, let’s embrace remote work—and make it better. Feel free to reach out if you want to find out more tools and techniches 💡