Building strong relationships in a remote team can be challenging. There are, however, some ways to make it easier to accomplish.

1) Take time to write back and forth through messages
Send more than just short text replies (e.g., “yes,” “no,” “later”). Communicate an opinion, tell them about your day, or ask for their opinion on a topic. You won’t always need words to connect with someone and it is considered best practice to send more text messages than fewer text messages.

2) Show that you care
Don’t just stop after responding to an email or chat message. Send a follow-up email or chat message that speaks to the content of the first one. This way, you show that you are listening and care about what they are saying.

3) Show your appreciation
Thank people for the time and efforts that they put into a project or conversation with you. Whether it is through an email, chat message, or in-person meeting, showing your appreciation to someone will make them feel good and more inclined to work with you in the future.

4) Go beyond your computer screen
It’s important to see and speak to people as often as possible if you work in a remote team. Take advantage of any opportunities to meet up with your teammates, whether that’s through a video conferencing system or a simple group chat. When meeting up face to face, keep it short and focused on what was accomplished.

5) Put in the time
Don’t try to rush things or expect your online or virtual team building in Singapore members to respond right away. It has been shown that people who are available during typical business hours will get a faster response than those who work different hours. Meeting up with them over video conferencing or simply talking on the phone can also help to get in touch with them better.

6) Follow up
Don’t leave things hanging after a conversation or meeting. Notify people of decisions that you have made and make sure they are aware of other details that have been discussed. This will show that you care about their input and are good about keeping them up-to-date.

7) Set a time
Be able to look at your calendar and see when you are available and for how long. Having this information will make it easier for people to know when they can talk with you without feeling rushed or that their message might go unnoticed. It also shows that you respect yourself and your time, which will make it easier to respect the time of others.

8) Recognize individual strengths
A good way to get to know people is by learning what they are particularly skilled at. When you notice these talents in action, be sure to compliment them on a job well done. This will encourage them to continue doing that thing.

9) Give credit where it’s due
When a great job is done, be sure to give recognition to the people who worked on it. This can be done through a blog post or project summary. People want to feel like they are being noticed and this is one way to do that.

10) Be patient
Even the best teams have times when they are behind or things aren’t going as planned. This is a good time to take some time and reflect on what has been done so far and how it can be improved. Let people know that you understand there is an issue, but that you also want to resolve it together.

11) Be flexible
Flexibility is an important thing to have as a manager. Be accommodating with your team’s schedule and let them know that they can speak with you at any time of the day. This will help to keep morale high as everyone feels like they are being heard.

12) Have fun
No one likes their job 24/7, so it is important to make time to play and have fun. This can be done through group chat games, going out for lunch or coffee together, or even custom team building events. Team members will enjoy working with you more if they feel like you are their friend as well as their manager.

13) Have a plan
It’s important to think of your online or virtual team building workshops in Singapore as a cohesive group of people that can work together to accomplish a goal. Set up your team with specific projects and tasks that they can each contribute to in their own way. Once a project is finished, be sure to celebrate it as if you were all in the same room.

14) Keep company culture alive
Even though everyone isn’t physically together, it’s important that they are all on the same page. Create or follow your company’s culture guide so that everyone has an understanding of what is expected of them. Also, make sure to update it every once in a while to keep it fresh and relevant.

15) Keep communication lines open
Use video conferencing, chat programs, and text messages as much as possible. People are more likely to get things done faster if they don’t have to wait a long time for information from you.