- Article - Teams and Culture
Working alongside remote teams requires a shift in mindset, process and flexibility. It is difficult to maintain a sense of singular purpose and team across remote boundaries, let alone across continents. Team culture should therefore be adapted accordingly. Here are 4 culture-orientated recommendations based on our experience of operating offshore delivery teams.
1. Build a one-team mindset
Fostering trust, inclusion, team-based accountability and cultural affinity should be a core focus for leaders in offshoring engagements that value high-performance. Leaders should model the mindset and behaviours of a unified team. This means demonstrating respect, fairness, and treating all participants involved in a delivery as a singular team, with shared goals and priorities.
Hold everyone to a common performance standard, and ensure that accountability is held at a team-level for the success or failure of goals and commitments. Eliminate favouritism, disrespectful behaviour, cultural biases, and ‘us and them’ attitudes. Involve both sides of the border in planning, estimations, decision making and social interactions where possible.
2. Assign team ambassadors
Make the one-team mindset somebody’s core responsibility, on both sides. Relationship building activities are the bedrock of trust, respect and a highly collaborative work environment.
This is a full-time job that requires two willing parties to own the following responsibilities: To own and manage the delivery and expectations on both sides. To act as ambassadors for their teams and people to the other side, to ensure that cross-border trust, alignment and affinity is cared for throughout the engagement.
3. Encourage many-to-many relationships
Make the one-team mindset somebody’s core responsibility, on both sides. Relationship building activities are the bedrock of trust, respect and a highly collaborative work environment.
This is a full-time job that requires two willing parties to own the following responsibilities: To own and manage the delivery and expectations on both sides. To act as ambassadors for their teams and people to the other side, to ensure that cross-border trust, alignment and affinity is cared for throughout the engagement.
4. Be explicit in your ways of working
Standards, processes and tools need to be discussed and agreed upon clearly by everyone using them. If this mindset is shared by your onshore and offshore teams, you generate buy-in, compliance, and eliminate misunderstanding.
A singular team, means a singular method of operation unless otherwise prescribed. At the start of a new offshoring engagement, expect to take a bit of pain to onboard a new delivery team into your ways of working. Spend time defining, sharing and campaigning for your ways of working on an ongoing basis. This can be driven by the team-ambassadors on both sides.
Indispensable value
While managing a team across borders and continents can be challenging, when addressed intentionally, your offshoring parter can provide indispensable talent, value and knowledge to your team.
