Let’s just be honest, when we hear the idea of a virtual team it should become evident that this type of working could be tricky and inefficient. There is a lot to consider and a lot of items you have to get right from the outset. This can often mean there are a large number of constraints that you need to work within.
Remote Software Development – A Brief History
While Covid may have popularized the trend of remote Scrum, the fact is that remote working environments were on the rise prior to lockdowns. In fact, a study conducted by flexjobs / Global Workplace Analytics found that in just five years (2012–2017) there was a 44% increase in remote work and a 91% increase over ten years (2005–2015). In one year alone (2016–2017), remote work grew 7.9%.
The Covid virus, which erupted in 2020 and spread across the globe by 2021, had a dramatic effect on the way we work. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the number of employed people working from home more than doubled by 2020, reaching 42%. However, according to a recent survey, the actual figure may settle at about 30%, outstripping that estimate.
Even though some offices are making a comeback, remote work is here to stay. There’s no turning back from the distributed development teams revolution.
Become Agile With A Remote Team
Agile frameworks weren’t originally designed for people who work mostly from home: we value face-to-face communication and co-located environments that encourage early and frequent collaboration.
“If you have some innovative ideas, don’t wait for others to act,” and “deliver as fast as possible” — so says the agile manifesto. Agile approaches are supposed to encourage innovation and thinking outside of the box. These descriptions seem aimed at people working in the same physical location.
Here are five tips to make the most of your remote working environment:
1. Processes and tools are important but people and interactions are more important.
To address the challenges of remote work, a wide variety of online collaboration tools have emerged. Many Scrum Masters have spent time figuring out how to integrate these new technologies into their process.
If we value people over processes and tools, then we should never start with a tool and then force our processes to adopt it. Rather, be agile by identifying issues that come up when working remotely and creating solutions for only those problems.
It’s tempting to use a virtual office space to replace your real one, but that would be breaking one of the foundational agile principles.
2. Create a team that will work together towards a common goal.
One of the biggest disadvantages of a remote team is that you can’t just grab a cup of coffee or stand around the water cooler to build rapport with your colleagues. Remote teams need to be deliberate about building relationships with one another.
To make meetings more interesting, consider starting a meeting with a few minutes of small talk. Set up a time for a team show-and-tell in which each team member can share something from their home or background that matters to them.
A good way to help your teammates get to know each other better is by finding excuses for them to share non-work-related things. Research shows that the more a team connects on a personal level, the more they will show up for each other and connect in their interdependent work.
3. Become more frequent and innovative in your communication.
When you work with others, it’s easy to ask questions or share information. When you’re on a distributed team, quick and easy communication can be a challenge.
All communication tools have their place and purpose. When you make use of the tools available for communication, be sure to be clear about which tool should be used for each type of communication and how soon a response should be expected.
When you’re dealing with something important, overcommunicate. It’s much better to get the same piece of information twice than to never get it at all. Setting these expectations in advance will prevent unnecessary conflict.
4. Remote team agreements are essential to the success of any virtual team.
Agile teams make use of team agreements, which they create and enforce as a group.
When the nature of our working environment changes so drastically, we need to establish new agreements with our teams specifically designed for remote work.
5. Experiment, try out new things, and be open to new ideas.
It’s a new time. The challenges we face with our teams today differ from those of the past, so the answers for your particular situation may have not been discovered yet.
We’re in uncharted territory here. There’s no road map to follow and no decade of case studies to guide you.
We don’t have a magic solution to remote working, but we do have empiricism. Experiment with new ways of working, and then inspect and adapt based on your results. You may be just the person or team to solve a set of remote working problems that have vexed many teams.
To find out how to make working remotely work, we suggest you try a few things. Experimentation is key! Encourage your team to develop their baking skills by experimenting with different ingredients and methods, then analyzing the results. That is truly the only way they will find answers to any problems they encounter.
Wrapping up
If you’re concerned about whether your team can do great work while working remotely, you should know that it is possible. It’s also entirely possible to make working remotely just as enjoyable and productive as working together in the office each day. But to make this work, you need to be deliberate in your approach. Understand not only what you’re getting into, but also what the benefits of remote working are.
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