How do you effectively manage people you rarely see? This is the essential question of distance management. Managers and leaders are increasingly responsible for ensuring the success of widely distributed teams. 

There are many common challenges for distance managers:

• Keeping team members connected to each other and larger organizational goals
  
• Building strong and resilient relationships with staff and peers
  
• Communicating across time zones and cultures
  
• Monitoring work progress without instituting cumbersome administrative systems
  
• Increasing the visibility of remote team accomplishments
  
• Maximizing managerial effectiveness in a distributed environment
  

Consider a few examples:

• Your company recently purchased a small software developer in the UK. As a part of the acquisition, you now have a team of six programmers in England reporting to you.
  
• Your company's headquarters is in California and there are offices located throughout the country. You have people from 10 locations and four time zones reporting to you.
  
• Your government agency is responsible for monitoring grants in 18 different states. You rarely can travel to those locations because of restrictions on travel budgets. Therefore, you administer the process from afar.
  
  

Integrated Work Strategies supports distance managers in a number of ways:

• Customized training for groups and individuals
• One-on-one coaching for management effectiveness
  
• Consulting and planning to establish remote working relationships that are set up for success
  
• Referral to a network of specialists in cross-cultural communications
  
• Team building for distributed groups
  
• Dialogue with other remote managers to exchange strategies and best practices

Please contact us to discuss your training or coaching options for distance (virtual) management.