How Do You Manage Your Remote Developers?

Introduction

Robust remote work culture has become a necessity for organizations today. Almost all modern-day employers prioritize it by constantly responding to the changes that happened due to the global pandemic. Even though a few may fail to see the need to operate fully remote, research has shown that most businesses will retain a substantial part of the remote work structure in the upcoming years.

Are your employees working from home? If yes, keep them focused, inspired, and productive. The following write-up will allow you to manage your remote developers seamlessly. It also provides information that makes the recruitment procedure easy. So, without any further delay, please start reading.

Hiring Remote Developers

Before you learn to manage a remote developer, you must acquaint yourself with the steps to hiring them.

Remote hiring is effective only if you are thinking long-term. Do you want your newly hired developers to stick around for a year or two? If yes, remote hiring provides one big advantage - no commuting. Commuting escalates job satisfaction to a great extent. Many employees said they would change jobs if they could find similar positions with a better commute. And the best commute is from your bedroom to your home office, right?

Carrying out remote interviews should be painless and efficient for all parties. When appointing a remote developer, there is no need to refurbish the wheel. Check out this guide to learn more. Being considerate and strategic goes a long way. Follow the pointers below to make intelligent remote hiring decisions.

• Have a distinct picture of what and who you need for a particular position. Evaluate similar jobs from your industry on LinkedIn or Monster to look for specifics you have not included, such as certain websites or tools, experience, etc. This is the best way to narrow the talent pool and speed up recruitment.

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• Look for talented individuals in correct places. For example, do you want to appoint an independent contractor? If yes, use LinkedIn to find potential employees by primary languages, profile keywords, and experience level. Also, list jobs on sites such as Upwork.com and Toptal.com.

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• Create a strategy for interviews. Note down questions that cover an employee’s skillset, background, and personality. When hiring remote developers, it is essential to take into account if they are in the same time zone as your clients. This is important specifically if you are planning social media events where hosting and community management are needed.

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• Respect a prospective candidate’s time. The most common problems job seekers encounter with remote interviews are inconvenient meeting timings, interviewers running too late, and forcing the applicant to lead all conversations.

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Candidates can decrease this stress by entering the Zoom room at least five minutes early and having a meeting outline prepared. Do not ask questions you can view on a candidate’s application, LinkedIn profile, or resume.

Managing Remote Developers

Do you know the biggest concern of a software development manager? It goes along the lines of ‘how are we supposed to make a remote team function optimally?’

We know things can become challenging even when everyone is in the same room. So, the vision of developers sitting in different parts of the world and contributing to the critical elements of a project might be uncomfortable.

But collaborating with remote developers does not have to be stressful, unpredictable, or complex. All you require is goodwill and proper business planning. Below are a couple of tips you must implement when managing remote developers.

Prepare A Game Plan

Have you considered hiring a remote developer to manage software development project? Well, then, make sure to have a game plan prepared.

You need to know what you need for a project or how long a project will take to avoid finding yourself in an awful position. Remember, no one can read your mind. If you plan on ‘going with the flow,’ you will waste your developer’s time, spend excessive money, and frustrate everyone involved.

So, please do the homework. Think of multiple outcomes that can accomplish your client’s goal within the stipulated budget and in a short period.

Check In Often And Provide Constructive Feedback

While you may miss the opportunity to catch up daily, frequent check-ins with remote developers are essential. They help manage common expectations accordingly. If you have any doubts or queries regarding a project, please speak to your developer immediately.

Successful delivery of projects is a two-way road. Interacting with your developers, even for five minutes at the end of each week, can make a huge difference. Finding out what went wrong paves the way for improvement.

Let your remote developers know that you appreciate your contributions. However, please do not beat around the bush if they are not performing well. Constructive feedback can save projects as well as the relationship you have with your developer.

Be flexible. If something would not impact a final product’s functionality, try not to make it a huge deal. The developers will prefer your flexibility and exhibit patience when something changes on your end.

Prevent Time Zones From Obstructing The Workflow

Different time zones do not have to obstruct your life or project delivery. Even when there is a nine-hour difference, no one needs to wake up at four in the morning or stay up until midnight to accomplish goals.

A meeting at 3 am to discuss a project is not justifiable. Look for a time that’s reasonable for both parties. For example, 9 am developer’s time and 4 pm your time is workable. If the time difference is huge, please try compromising.

Handle Conflicts Confidently

Being proactive is the best way to handle project conflicts. Lack of communication is the foremost cause of such conflicts. Misunderstandings may happen, but try to eliminate adverse feelings by being specific about payment schedules, timeframes, and project scope.

It would help if you were honest about your agreement with the developers who manage software development projects. If an issue is about to be exacerbated, please do not panic. If you cannot come to terms with your developer at any cost, please involve someone trustworthy to solve the problem.

Team-Building Activities For Remote Developers

Virtual team-building activities trigger interaction and break the rut, allowing the employees working from home to concentrate and work better. Some of the activities you can persuade your remote developers to participate in are as follows –

LAN Games

Most of the developers are enthusiastic gamers. So, set up well-known LAN games such as Call of Duty, Warhammer, Counter-Strike, etc. on the internal server, and connect the developers to engage in friendly fire.

Cross-Training

Cross-training helps remote developers to learn different types of tech skills. Conduct a survey beforehand of what the developers would prefer to learn. Invite a professional to teach unique concepts and offer hands-on training. This will be a significant change of pace. Also, the developers will gain extra knowledge about various technologies.

Coding Battles

What can be more fascinating than a little professional competition? Organize coding battles or enroll the developers in ongoing online coding contests such as IOI, Google, and Halite. Code-offs are an excellent team-building activity for remote developers.

Wine Tasting

This is a great team-building activity for software developers if your company still operates remotely and spreads over several locations. Arrange happy hours or spice things up with an online wine-tasting party. Different wineries throughout the world provide kits. Sample their best Rose from the comfort of your home.

Preventing Burnout In Remote Developers

Incentivizing breaks may seem counterintuitive, but they lead to better outcomes.

Encourage your remote developers to take breaks and share experiences or pictures, whether a dynamic shot taken during a hike or a video recording of their kid’s recital. Value your developer as a person and not just the work they do.

The happiness and health of your employees directly reflect your organization. Undertaking measures to guarantee employee wellness is critical to maintaining your long-term success.

Remote Developers Is The Future

Remote developers are considered the future of application and software development. Adopting remote work culture enables modern-day companies to tap into a universal talent pool, decrease costs, and enhance employee satisfaction. However, it would be best to have proper communication protocols to manage remote teams efficiently. Read on to land a software engineer job.

Conclusion

Although remote work is generally fraught with challenges, there are plenty of simple and inexpensive measures managers can undertake to streamline the transition. From scheduling daily check-ins to making sure the new hires feel valued, managing a remote team requires attention, time, and consistency. But trust me, a little effort can benefit your employees and organization in ways unimaginable.

Frequently Asked Questions

A few questions people generally have about remote work are as follows –

How Companies Can Identify Reliable Remote Developers?

When hiring remote backend developers, please look for communication, organization, self-motivation, and time management skills. To assess these skills, consider how the prospective candidate communicates throughout the interview. In addition, ask about their experience and behavioral questions like ‘tell me if you have worked under tight deadline’ or ‘tell me if you ever solved a problem without any guidance.’

How To Motivate Remote Developers?

To motivate remote developers, you must set clear expectations from the beginning. Also, ensure autonomy and offer adequate recognition.

A sense of purpose has also proven to motivate employees. One study found that eight out of ten professionals would sacrifice approximately 25% of their earnings if work is meaningful. The best way to give remote developers a sense of meaning is by helping them see how their everyday tasks connect to the big picture or how their daily work affects the entire organization or team.

Why Are Remote Work Policies Changing?

Remote work policies are changing. If your organization had one policy at the start of the coronavirus, you must revise them. In addition, significant events like new positions that have been terminated or created will also impact the guidelines. Change your policy when it no longer specifies what your current team should know.

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