From my virtual office to yours – Lessons learned on managing teams and running daily operations
By Fadi Aoun
Read Time: 10 min | June 2020
I have been managing the Consulting and Professional Services Team at Data Consult for years now. Just after Covid19 hit us we had to fully operate from home and I had to lead the teams and run all operations remotely. In this article, I am sharing the lessons I learned during that transformation.
To begin with, when rules changed, I needed a new plan and more coffee.
My home office was ready. I used to spend a lot of time reading and reflecting in this quiet room at home, with a few changes it has become my new office.
How did I pull it off? Read on….
Deploying a new operational strategy
All of a sudden, the day to day workforce management became a remote interaction and required immediate redesign. Since my team was geographically dispersed, I created groups and spaces for different entities to channel the communication and collaborate efficiently.
My main concern was to keep the delivery and customer services operations running smoothly while ensuring the team interacted promptly and professionally. Luckily we had already Teleworker solutions in place to facilitate all remote work. The Consulting Team had earlier figured out that, in addition to being secure , Meraki is the perfect solution for a quick implementation. Given our experience, the team was up and running in no time.
Intensifying internal/external communications
For me, the key factor for success starts with communication, trust, and empowerment . During WFH (work from home), the plan was to intensify communications with the team on all levels. I made sure everyone is updated on progress and tasks at hand. Equally important, management was also invested in the team’s activity and updated in real time on achievements.
Empowering the team and building trust
Encouraging and enabling the teams to engage everyone was definitely a must, thus the focus was on outputs rather than creating processes. During such periods you need to relay messages differently.
Most of my team members are young and dynamic. Given that, my approach was the question of “how to cross the river” rather than “how to build the bridge”. This attitude kept everyone motivated and encouraged to be more creative in approaching their work tasks. It was the best time to test people’s resolve and ability to be independent, reliable and trustworthy . I am very proud that they all came through successfully. In effect trust is key , and it is important in creating a positive corporate culture.
Enhancing workplace health
Luckily, with our expertise and dedication, we were able to transform to a WFH environment quickly and easily. However, there is no doubt that being at home can sometimes be emotionally and mentally difficult. This is why I personally think companies need to create innovative team rituals. For us, not only did we conduct end of day meetings or weekly review sessions, but we kept a happy and enthusiastic team spirit throughout.
Details matter, we did not forget the birthdays, newborns, professional achievements, the happy hours, the coffee …
Although this was all virtual, it definitely helped in raising the spirits.
Keeping the positive lasting impact
COVID19 definitely changed the norms, but it also gave us an opportunity to reflect, re-imagine, and bounce back quickly and at the same time going full force into innovation initiatives. What we built in this confinement will stay, knowing that it has made us much more efficient and dynamic.
On one hand,this period helped us create a series of new products and services that are adapted to a volatile economy. We started from new market needs and built solutions that will stand the test of time.
Further,this agile transformation ensured a mobile and adaptive professional services workforce that was able to sustain the market and support all customers anytime and under any circumstances.
In summary, this experience taught me that the best strategy to manage teams working remotely is to enable secure and user friendly teleworking tools, strengthen internal communication, empower the employees and boost their morale.
“We are Data Consult”, and we will always strive to ensure our customer experience is outstanding!
Share with us your WFH transformation experience by commenting and sharing!
Who is Fadi Aoun
Fadi is a seasoned expert, he has a solid technical background and extensive experience
with leading vendor technologies. His passion for his job, dedication and work ethics led him to be DC’s Consulting and Professional Services Manager leading a team of 25 engineers, supporting clients efficiently and passionately.
Fadi is a great team lead, he always brings out the best in his team, coaching and nurturing them while paying careful attention to every detail in their career development.
When not at work, you can find him reading a book or enjoying time with his family.