Remote working has snowballed across most industries. In 2023, around 12.7% of full-time employees work from home while 28.2% have adapted to a hybrid work model. In the United States, an estimated 32.6 million Americans will be working remotely by 2025.
The COVID-19 pandemic pushed the popularity of remote and hybrid working conditions and many companies opted to stay within those frameworks. This has also led to many businesses branching out and expanding their teams across the globe through the convenience of remote work setups.
However, a major obstacle for many remote teams is managing the different time zones. While your workforce can remain productive across geographical locations, time zone differences can cause heavy delays in communication, deadlines, and connection. In this blog article, we explore the challenges of remote work in different time zones and how companies can overcome them effectively.
Managing a team spread across different time zones comes with a unique set of hurdles. Your workforce needs to be in sync and feel valued to produce quality work. For copywriters, time zone differences can mean a lot tighter deadlines for specific clients and may also place an unfair burden on specific members. Some of the main challenges of time zone differences in a remote working environment include:
Now, for many companies, these issues can be resolved with the right initiative and inclination. Remote teams often have to manage themselves and can figure out what works best for their clients and work ethic. Time zones can throw a spanner in the works, however, and it’s important to address these challenges ahead of time to ensure maximum productivity, team cohesion, and a happier workforce. Here are some of the top ways to keep your time zone-scattered remote team working most efficiently.
A major element of maintaining a balanced remote team is to understand and track the time zones in which each member operates. Try to chart the exact locations for each team member so you know what their working hours should be like and how to hand out tasks.
Every spaced-out remote team will have a few hours of prime overlap time in which all their working hours align and everyone can be available and online. This is a crucial time for team exercises, meetings, and brainstorming sessions. Ensure that all your team members can find this space of time to create valuable team building.
Being in a remote team comes with the understanding that your work schedule will be a lot more flexible. However, time zone differences can make working hours more complicated. Try to avoid using an “always on” mindset when it comes to workloads and give your team a healthy amount of work-life balance. While availability is a strong draw for many remote companies, your team can suffer burnout when asked to always be online.
For most remote teams, disruptions will be a common issue. Without a physical office space, your team is often left to circumstances outside their control to stay connected and online. Mistakes will happen and obstacles will arise due to different time zones and the nature of remote working. Instead of getting frustrated, you need to be lenient and understanding with your team to encourage a better response in the future.
Time zone differences can lead to delays in communication and submissions. Your remote team needs to ensure that messages are properly received, acknowledged, and understood. Try to explain things simply and allow your team to contact you for further elaboration where they might need clarity. Members should also try to communicate as early as possible if they might be experiencing connectivity issues, personal problems, or anything that might hinder their ability to do work.
A remote working team needs to use the right tools to manage varying time zones, schedules, and locations. Do some research about remote working platforms that can help to coordinate and simplify the process for your team.
Timezone.io is a great example of an online tool that allows you to visualize which cities your team members are currently in and see the local time in those cities in chronological order. This can help with specific work hours, deadlines, and task management. Shared calendars can also help with collaboration across the team and reminders about birthdays or special events.
Project management and collaboration tools like Asana or Trello can also help with coordinating and setting up deadlines, tracking updates, and managing the team’s progress – all while adjusting automatically to each user’s local time.
While you would want all members present for meetings ideally, that can be difficult with different time zones. Most video conferencing office tools allow you to record your meetings and calls. This means that meeting recordings can be shared with those who couldn’t attend, be rewatched for clarity on issues discussed, or be archived for auditing purposes. Remember to ask for consent from all members before recording team meetings.
Time zones can be a difficult issue to navigate for most remote companies, however, it doesn’t need to be. With the right tools, skills, and commitment, your remote team can be as effective and well-balanced as necessary regardless of where they might be.
Remote working can be challenging, but it also presents a host of benefits – especially for clients. This is why TMG Global is the right choice for all your copywriting needs. We are a group of talented and dedicated writers eager to amplify your brand’s voice. Contact TMG Global today for a free content audit or to learn more about how we can help your business reach new heights.
