What are the benefits of remote team communication?
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What are the benefits of remote team communication?
Helen Jackson
30 May 2024
6 min read
Helen Jackson
30 May 2024
6 min read
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Why is remote team communication important?
6 benefits of remote team communication
The best communication tools for remote teams
How Confluence can help with remote team communication
Learn the benefits of remote team communication, and get some actionable strategies to help you keep communication consistent and beneficial.
Although remote working has so many positives (for both employees and employers), it can also have some drawbacks, namely team communication, or lack thereof.
How do you communicate with staff who aren’t sitting directly opposite you? How do you simultaneously boost productivity and facilitate efficient and effective communication company-wide? That sounds challenging - but it doesn’t need to be!
How do you communicate with staff who aren’t sitting directly opposite you? How do you simultaneously boost productivity and facilitate efficient and effective communication company-wide? That sounds challenging - but it doesn’t need to be!
Why is remote team communication important?
Historically, we all worked in an office environment, which meant people were milling around and available for quick meetings or chats to help move projects forward. With remote communication, all team members are spread out, perhaps working different hours, and communication can shift from personal to impersonal.
You might instantly think of the negatives: siloed and lonely working conditions, minimal and patchy team communication, inefficiencies, etc. And indeed, without effective team communication, projects can flounder, morale and productivity wane, and the employee experience (and the bottom line) suffers.
But, we’re here to tell you that needn't be the case - not if you have the right comms tools and strategies to implement.
You might instantly think of the negatives: siloed and lonely working conditions, minimal and patchy team communication, inefficiencies, etc. And indeed, without effective team communication, projects can flounder, morale and productivity wane, and the employee experience (and the bottom line) suffers.
But, we’re here to tell you that needn't be the case - not if you have the right comms tools and strategies to implement.
6 benefits of remote team communication
Here are six reasons why remote communication helps teams thrive:
1. Keeps office politics to a minimum
37% of employees cite office politics as their main cause of work-related stress. Perhaps not surprising, given we’re there to do a job rather than squabble over who microwaved fish for lunch or didn’t refill the printer paper tray.
By working remotely, employees are able to focus on the job at hand, communicate largely business-related tasks and troubles, and keep the peace and harmony for everyone.
By working remotely, employees are able to focus on the job at hand, communicate largely business-related tasks and troubles, and keep the peace and harmony for everyone.
2. A productivity boost for the whole team
Being able to immediately message an employee through project management tools means quicker resolutions to problems, removing barriers to timely task completion. Desktop notifications help alert staff members to new messages, helping them contribute to the issue quickly without affecting their productivity.
3. Improves collaboration across the organisation
We’re not just talking about team collaboration here. Remote communication means you can easily remove communication silos between other departments too. Need to ask someone in finance a question? No worries - message them individually or tag them in a thread. Communicating remotely means that collaboration can happen anytime a new idea strikes. This makes business operations more proactive and agile.
4. Fewer overheads and less financial outlay
This is a benefit your bottom line will thank you for. Taking your team remote means fewer overheads, lower energy bills, and a smaller office space (or no office space at all). And your employees can save money, too - no commuting or spending hard-earned cash on meal deals.
5. A supportive online community
Just because employees aren’t physically in the same space doesn’t mean you can’t create an online community to help them feel connected. You might consider hosting regular virtual hangouts within your team or encouraging one-on-one chats with team members that aren’t work-related. Online work communities can appeal to many people who might not like small talk or would rather talk via email or chat.
6. Team meetings are more purposeful
Remote communication stops long, meandering meetings and instead helps everyone embrace shorter, more purposeful meetings. Once everyone has addressed the meeting agenda, it’s time to move on to other tasks. This helps focus everyone’s communication, stripping it back to the bare necessities, giving you more time to get the job done.
The best communication tools for remote teams
To communicate effectively, remote teams need to be on the same page - i.e. they need a reliable way to communicate efficiently and collaborate on projects.
Project management tools like Confluence can not only help you create and organise all your documents, strategies, company knowledge, and more, but they can also keep all team members communicating effectively from anywhere in the world.
Learn more: Why is Confluence essential for remote teams?
Project management tools like Confluence can not only help you create and organise all your documents, strategies, company knowledge, and more, but they can also keep all team members communicating effectively from anywhere in the world.
Learn more: Why is Confluence essential for remote teams?
How can Confluence help you perfect your remote team communication?
You can…
- Brainstorm and visualise ideas and concepts using a shared digital whiteboard.
- Make collaboration effortless by tagging relevant employees in documents where necessary.
- Keep all team members in the loop with activity feeds.
- Introduce ultimate transparency into your entire organisation, make it easy to edit and collaborate on documents, and share knowledge to help improve overall team efficiency.
- And more!
Want to communicate better in Confluence?
If you’re thinking of using Confluence (or you already use it), Content Formatting Macros can help you level up your comms by making your content more engaging and useful while improving user navigation.
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Written by
Helen Jackson
Content Writer
Helen is a freelance content writer specialising in Software as a Service (SaaS). She has a BA Hons degree in English, a Chartered Institute of Marketing qualification, and over ten years of experience in content marketing.
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