How To Manage A Remote App Development Team?

An efficient & productive team is the backbone of any company, and the same rule applies to IT companies. Building a team of dedicated developers is the main ingredient of a software company. Whether a small or an established company, every brand demands superiorly skilled developers who deliver their best and help them expand. 

The demand for mobile apps grew with time; however, Covid-19 made it challenging to hire highly skilled developers from all around the world. This is how remote developers came into the picture. With the increasing demand for mobile apps and talented pool, Covid-19 has created a remote app, development teams.

More & more businesses from around the globe are demanding remote work to their benefit by recruiting app developers from worldwide. Tech companies embrace a more remote working model in their business, and they have even learned to hire & manage developers to enhance their productivity.

Giants such as Amazon, Adobe, and Facebook have also adopted a remote-working model to date. And the sole reason is not Covid-19 but also the opportunity to hire talents from across the globe.

However, as much as it is easy to hire remote software developers, it can be not easy to manage them as well if you don’t follow some practices. To succeed in this area, you must be prepared for change & innovation.

Moreover, the remote-work style is a different model and challenging for tech companies without experience in this work model. It can be expensive and time-consuming for those who have no expertise in this. And the market has tons of remote developers, so making the right decision and choosing the right team can be overwhelming. Therefore, if you select the right team but don’t know how to manage them, this article is precisely what you need to guide you through.

Introduction to Remote App Developers

An agency hires a remote developer just the same way as an on-site developer. An off-site developer has the same duties and responsibilities as the on-site developer, the only difference being the distance. Remote employees work remotely while on-site developers work physically in the office; both have fixed hours and persons to report to.

Off-site developers use virtual communication techniques such as phone, email, or video conferences to understand the workflow, unlike on-site developers who can be guided face-to-face.

Hiring freelancers is another option you can opt for, but yet several tech companies choose to hire remote app developers. But why? Let’s understand that in the next section!

Why Hire Remote App Developers for Your Agency?

The best reason to recruit remote app developers is to acquire the best talent for your mobile app project from across the globe. Your app development should not pause due to a shortage of team or restricted availability. Below are the few advantages of hiring a remote developer for your mobile app development company.

1. Improved Efficiency & Constant Development

The app developers who work from home seem to be more productive indeed than on-site developers. As per sources, employees working remotely are happier and more efficient than those working in a conventional office setup.
Moreover, some sources claim that around 13.5% of remote employees are more efficient in comparison to on-site employees. Also, they are 9% more engrossed in their work and 50% unlikely to quit their jobs.

2. Reduces the Infrastructure Expense

Hiring remote software developers can also eliminate infrastructure expenses as you do not need to invest in expanding your workspace or desktop setup. You can dodge all costs related to in-house training and other facilities such as internet, meals, electricity, refreshments, etc.

3. Flexible Work Hours

Flexible working hours contribute a lot when it comes to improving employee productivity. To achieve the utmost efficiency level and quality, off-site workers follow a particular schedule or meet targets according to their flexibility resulting in the best outcome.

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4. 24*7 Availability

When you hire remote software developers from a different country with different time zones, then you can make the work happen all the time. This kind of setup can encourage productivity and timely delivery of the project.

5. Access Talent Worldwide

Distance should not be a barrier to hiring skilled and affordable developers. If you wish to hire full-time employees that are the best fit for your company, you can even opt for remote developers. Nowadays, it has become more accessible to look for a talented pool globally, so several tech firms prefer to do so.

6. Better Transparency & Fluid Communication

If you manage your remote developers seamlessly, it can undoubtedly help you establish your company’s work culture. This helps you achieve transparency and clear communication, which is the foundation of your company’s future.

7. Innovation & Creativity

Off-site developers have worked with many clients worldwide, giving them vast exposure to offer innovative ideas as they are enthusiastic and motivated about their work.

Challenges of Managing A Remote App Development Team

While there are several benefits, it can also be challenging to manage a remote app development team that you should be aware of.

1. Focus on Work

Focusing on work can become difficult due to several distractions, especially for a developer with kids in-home and other members who might constantly interrupt them while reducing their efficiency levels. Hence, it becomes the developers’ duty to motivate themselves and avoid any distractions.

2. Connect with Teammates

Working within office premises can lead to establishing a great bond with other employees. It can even result in building trust among your workers who will work to accomplish a common goal in your organization. But, the same becomes difficult while working remotely.

3. Receiving feedback

Remote working developers usually do not get reviews or feedback. Getting reviews can help them know their weaknesses and strengths, which indirectly benefits the company. And without it, they might not even know where they are going wrong and where they need to improve. This can hamper their future performance as well, which is also linked with the company’s performance.

4. Different Time Zone

This is one of the most common problems with remote app developers. For instance, you are in a country where your day has just begun, while your remote developer’s day has come to an end, so you cannot discuss any new project or revisions due to this issue. A few hours difference might not be a deal, but suppose you are in India and the other person is in Canada; it’s a 12-hour gap.

Practices to Effectively Manage A Remote Development Team

The acceptance of remote working is gaining popularity through mobile app development companies. It would be one of the best decisions to perform by recruiting an offshore team. But hiring alone is not enough. You have to keep in mind how to manage a remote team efficiently. Therefore, below are some essential tips that can help you cope with your offshore app development team.

1. Better Communication

This is one of the most critical issues and the root of all the problems. It can be challenging to conduct a meeting, especially when your team is from different time zones. Ensure you have a tight schedule, structured workflow, and agile team in place

You can also establish personal connections with all the team members, such as asking them about their interests, lifestyle, and other such things you may have in common. You can display your genuine care for them to make them want to work with you even more.

Building a relationship at a personal level will boost your team’s morale, establish trust, and enrich the team bond.

Moreover, you can also arrange one-day trips and gather all your team members on-site and off-site to get to know each other. This will indeed help them feel a sense of belonging towards your firm.

2. Leverage Tools

Technology has simplified our lives, along with rendering excellent tools to make the developer’s life easy. Leveraging the right tools can help you organize your workflow.

An experienced offshore development team usually has several tools, project management software, video conferencing, file sharing abilities, an email service, and much more. To design a mobile app for your client, you must ensure that your remote team possesses all the necessary equipment.

Below are some of those tools that you can use

  • Zoom
  • Trello
  • Github
  • Google Drive
  • Slack

3. Explain App Development Process

A dedicated team works together to achieve a common goal. Hence, it is essential to explain your work style and methodology to the offshore team in a way that can help them blend in with your on-site team. You should build a mobile app guide and share it with your remote team to ensure they understand the workflow, leading to higher productivity.

4. Giving Feedback

This plays a vital role in the app development process. On-site developers get better and more consistent feedback than offshore developers, which can hamper their progress and confidence. Thus, providing constant feedback reduces the chances of late responses and better work in the future. The feedback approach can get you great results.

5. Provide Constructive Criticisms & Compliments

As a mobile app development agency, you should ensure your employees achieve the highest satisfaction while working for your company. Your company’s team leader has to ensure to provide constructive criticisms to the developers so that they can improvise in a specific area and praise them whenever required. Also, offering them bonuses and incentives for their great work can boost their morale and improve their productivity.

Final Thoughts

Remote working is booming, and more employees will opt for work-from-home facilities compared to conventional on-site working. Hence, your tech company must understand how to manage your remote working team in the best possible ways to avoid any conflicts in the future.

 

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Betina Isted

Expert business analyst

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