The glue of remote teams

Any ideas of how your operations team can run your business better? And how can you build alignment between your teams? Let's talk about it in my recent blog post.

Operations teams are the glue of remote companies.

Whether just you or a handful of people, operators are running around getting everyone on the same page and driving execution. The main goal is to build momentum and alignment around an idea. This Saturday, I want to share 5 tactics to be an excellent remote glue.  

1. Identify the decision maker(s)

If you are a small company, it's the CEO, end of the story. But it gets a bit more complicated as you add team members. Multiple people will probably believe they can make the decision. I have seen a group conclude too often only to find out someone else claims the decision rights and puts it on hold. The first step is to list the possible players and ensure you don't leave out any key decision-makers.  

2. Don't forget the influencers

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about the RAPID decision model. If you missed it, click here to read the past issue.   One of the RAPID decision model groups is named "Agree". It has the power to veto the decision if appropriate. Be sure influencers, who have the power to agree, are always aligned and involved as a stakeholder.  

3. Frame the idea in "their terms"

Developers don't speak like sales. Support doesn't speak like marketing. To discuss the same idea, use a different angle depending on your interlocutor.  

4. Acknowledge and disarm objections

Following the previous point, every stakeholder will have their point of view and protests.

Here is where the operator's glue effect can make the difference:
Collect feedback from all stakeholders and prioritize them by topic.
Giving the right weight to input based on the subject is vital.

A practical example:
The developer's feedback will be crucial in evaluating a product idea.
The developer's feedback can be considered in evaluating a marketing idea, but less than the sales team's.  

5. Incorporate feedback

I will never tire of talking about the importance of the retrospective.
Every time you make a decision, evaluate the result.
Take a breath and look back.
Think how you could have done better.
Think about what you can do the next time to be a better glue for your remote company.