Working remotely has been around for a long time, but it has become more common and essential than ever. The COVID-19 pandemic made many businesses adopt remote work in a hurry, and some of them have chosen to stay that way even after the situation improves. A study by Upwork shows that 36.2 million Americans will be working from home by 2025.

But remote work is not just a US phenomenon. It’s a global movement that offers many advantages for startups, such as reaching a bigger and more diverse workforce, saving money, increasing efficiency, and having more freedom. According to Statista, working from home was the most frequent perk offered by employers around the world in 2020. And according to Buffer’s State of Remote Work report, the main two perks of remote work for workers are having a flexible schedule and being able to work from anywhere.

However, remote work also comes with some challenges, especially when it comes to building a strong startup team across borders. How do you find the right people for your startup? How do you communicate and collaborate effectively with them? How do you create a culture of trust and engagement? How do you manage performance and feedback? These are some of the questions that many remote startup founders face every day.

In this blog post, we’ll share some tips and best practices on how to overcome these challenges and build a strong remote startup team that can help you achieve your goals.

Tip #1: Define your vision, values and goals

The first step to building a strong remote startup team is to define your vision, values and goals. These are the core elements that will guide your decisions, actions and behaviors as a team. They will also help you attract and retain the right people who share your vision and values.

Your vision is your long-term aspiration for your startup. It answers the question: what is the impact that you want to make in the world? Your vision should be clear, inspiring and ambitious. For example, Airbnb’s vision is “to create a world where anyone can belong anywhere”.

Your values are your principles and beliefs that shape your culture and behavior. They answer the question: how do you want to work together as a team? Your values should be authentic, meaningful and actionable.

Your goals are your short-term and long-term objectives that measure your progress towards your vision. They answer the question: what do you want to achieve as a team? Your goals should be specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound (SMART). For example, Spotify’s goals include “grow monthly active users”, “increase revenue per user”, and “improve user satisfaction”.

Once you have defined your vision, values and goals, you need to communicate them clearly and consistently to your team. You can use different tools and methods to do this, such as creating a one-page summary, making a video presentation, hosting a virtual town hall meeting, or sending regular updates via email or chat. The key is to make sure that everyone on your team understands and aligns with your vision, values and goals.

Tip #2: Hire for skills, fit and potential

The second step to building a strong remote startup team is to hire for skills, fit and potential. These are the three criteria that will help you find the best talent for your startup.

Skills are the abilities and knowledge that are required for performing specific tasks or roles. You need to hire people who have the skills that match your needs and expectations. You can assess skills by reviewing resumes, portfolios, references, or conducting tests or assignments.

Fit is the degree of alignment between the candidate’s values, personality and work style with your startup’s culture and vision. You need to hire people who fit well with your team and can thrive in a remote environment. You can assess fit by conducting interviews, asking behavioral questions, or using personality or culture fit tests.

Potential is the capacity and willingness of the candidate to learn new skills, take on new challenges, and grow with your startup. You need to hire people who have potential to adapt to changing situations, solve problems creatively, and contribute positively to your startup’s success. You can assess potential by asking about their goals, motivations and achievements.

To hire for skills, fit, and potential, you need to have a clear and consistent hiring process that involves multiple steps and stakeholders. You also need to use various tools and platforms to source, screen, and interview candidates from different locations and backgrounds. Some of the tools and platforms that you can use are LinkedIn, Wellfound (formerly AngelList), We Work Remotely, Zoom, Google Meet and Calendly.

Tip #3: Communicate and collaborate effectively

The third step to building a strong remote startup team is to communicate and collaborate effectively. These are the key skills that will enable your team to work together smoothly and efficiently, regardless of where they are.

Communication is the exchange of information, ideas, and feedback between team members. You need to communicate clearly, frequently, and respectfully with your team. You also need to use the right tools and channels for different types of communication. For example, you can use email for formal and asynchronous communication, chat for informal and synchronous communication, and video calls for meetings and presentations.

Collaboration is the act of working together towards a common goal or outcome. You need to collaborate actively, creatively, and productively with your team. You also need to use the right tools and methods for different types of collaboration. For example, you can use Google Docs for co-editing documents, Trello for managing tasks and projects, Slack for creating channels and threads, and Miro for brainstorming and ideating.

To communicate and collaborate effectively, you need to establish some ground rules and best practices for your team. For example, you can set expectations for response times, meeting agendas, feedback loops, and documentation. You can also create a communication matrix that defines the purpose, frequency, and tool for each type of communication. And you can use a collaboration framework that outlines the roles, responsibilities, and processes for each type of collaboration.

Tip #4: Create a culture of trust and engagement

The fourth step to building a strong remote startup team is to create a culture of trust and engagement. These are the emotional factors that will influence your team’s performance, satisfaction, and retention.

Trust is the belief that your team members are reliable, honest, and competent. You need to build trust with your team by being transparent, consistent, and supportive. You also need to show trust in your team by giving them autonomy, responsibility, and feedback. And you need to foster trust among your team by encouraging openness, collaboration, and recognition.

Engagement is the degree of involvement, enthusiasm, and commitment that your team members have towards their work and your startup. You need to increase engagement with your team by providing them with meaningful work, clear goals, and growth opportunities. You also need to enhance engagement in your team by creating a sense of belonging, purpose, and fun. And you need to measure engagement on your team by using surveys, polls, or metrics.

To create a culture of trust and engagement, you need to invest time and effort in building relationships with your team. You also need to organize regular and varied activities to connect and bond with your team. Some of the activities that you can do are virtual coffee breaks, team-building games, celebration events, and learning sessions.

Conclusion:

Building a strong remote startup team across borders is not an easy task, but it is definitely possible and rewarding. By investing in building relationships with your team, organizing regular activities to connect and bond with them, and following the tips outlined in this post, you can overcome the challenges of remote work and leverage its benefits. You can also create a competitive advantage for your startup in the global market.

We hope you found this blog post helpful and insightful. If you want to learn more about how Numberly can help you build financial models, pitch decks, and business plans for your early-stage venture, please visit our website or contact us today. We’d love to hear from you!