Training Industry Magazine - May/June 2018 - 46
participant to interject. Likewise, the
urge to multitask or become distracted
is more likely if you aren't physically
present and don't have an expectation
to contribute. The learning function
Having a shared
sense of purpose
accelerates team
development.
can support this skill development
by offering meeting facilitation skill
development. Trainers can help the
teams create and implement meeting
norms, leverage technology and provide
coaching on meeting facilitation.
Relationship management
Effective meetings are one way to
ensure engagement, but relationship
management will also need to occur
outside those events. Some remote
workers report feelings of isolation or
a disconnect from the organization's
happenings. For those located in an office
environment, they might not connect
with their remote peers as frequently,
thereby missing opportunities to
leverage one another's support and
best practices. To counteract these
possibilities, teambuilding activities
should emphasize the importance
of building interactions like instant
messaging, social learning platforms and
picking up the phone to connect with
each other. The emphasis should include
both the how (use of technology) and
the why (e.g., building trust, fostering
collaboration,
knowledge
sharing,
etc.). Teambuilding activities can also
| 46
emphasize problem-solving scenarios in
which a virtual team needs to collaborate
to achieve a common goal. Having a
shared sense of purpose accelerates
team development.
decreased costs associated with real
estate/buildings, etc.
Delivering feedback
The communication and training plans
should include an acknowledgement
of both the pros and cons of a virtual
workforce with strategies for dealing
with matters that arise. Being transparent
about potential risks enables the leaders
and employees to address concerns in
an up-front manner.
Leading remote team training should
focus on how to deliver coaching and
performance feedback without an inperson presence. Providing frequent,
specific feedback builds trust and
engagement with employees. The use
of video can provide the facial cues and
overall demeanor that help to convey
meaning. Relying too heavily on email
communication should be avoided.
The training function should create
experiential learning opportunities that
enable the manager to practice giving
feedback without the benefit of an inperson presence.
IMPLEMENTATION
After conducting the needs analysis
and creating learning strategies to build
the skills needed to perform in a virtual
environment, it is important to have a
strong delivery and implementation
strategy. Building awareness and desire
to adopt these new skills and behaviors
is vital. Everyone needs to understand
that a successful remote workforce has
to adapt to new ways of interacting. As
part of the implementation strategy,
include these components.
Describe the business need for a
remote workforce
Communicate the business decisions
behind a remote workforce. Building
stakeholder awareness of the need will
help diminish resistance and increase
support for the transition. Some
potential benefits are an expanded talent
pool not tied to a certain geography,
flexible scheduling to meet client needs,
employment value proposition, and
Identify strengths and challenges of a
remote workforce
Associated metrics
In correlation with the remote workforce
business strategy, key metrics should
be used to monitor effectiveness.
Measure not only business outcomes
but identify employee engagement
metrics that can gauge the health of the
culture/environment.
A team transition plan
A team transitioning to a virtual or mixed
workforce needs to create a transition
plan. Key items to cover are remote
worker policy, technology needs, skill
assessment and team operating norms.
Make sure everyone has the resources,
knowledge and skills to be successful in
this new way of working.
The learning function should plan to
offer consulting and coaching until the
skills and behaviors are embedded in
the organization's culture. The virtual
workforce is quickly becoming an
organizational norm. Having a learning
and development function ready to
implement and support these skills is
vital to the organization's success.
Nancy Nagdeman earned her Master of
Arts in education and is the director of
educational services at TeamHealth. Email
Nancy.
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Training Industry Magazine - May/June 2018
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_spring2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_winter2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_fall2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_summer2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_spring2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_winter2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_fall2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_summer2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_spring2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_winter2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_20210910
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_20210708
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_20210506
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_20210304
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_20210102
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_20201112
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_20200910
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_20200708
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_20200506
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_20200304
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_20200102
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_20191112
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_20190910
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_20190708
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_20190506
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_20190304
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_20190102
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_20181112
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_20180910
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_20180708
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_20180506
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_20180304
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_20180102
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_20171112
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_20170910
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_20170708
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_20170506
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_20170304
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_20171112_se
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_20161112
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2016fall
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2016summer
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2016sales
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2016spring
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2016winter
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2015outsourcing
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2015fall
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2015summer
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2015leadership
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2015spring
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2015winter
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2014fall
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2014summer
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2014spring
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2014winter
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2013fall
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2013summer
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2013spring
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2013winter
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2012fall
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2012summer
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2012spring
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2012winter
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2011fall
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2011summer
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2011spring
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2011winter
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2010fall
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2010summer
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2010spring
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2010winter
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2009fall
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2009summer
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2009spring
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2009winter
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2008fall
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2008summer
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/trainingindustry/tiq_2008spring
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