Top 5 tips to make your remote working entrepreneurial venture idea a possibility and success!
With every format of business changing - Airbnb, Zomato, Amazon and others leading the way - the need to rethink how we work and conduct business has become essential. Public Relations as an industry has now evolved to include holistic communications which includes press and non press activities. All this requires one to connect with stakeholders by going to meet them and come up with innovative and business specific communication ideas. Time is of essence and so is innovative thinking. In major parts of the world with maximum time spent in travel, the need to think of remote working for this industry has now become the need of the hour. Other sectors like digital marketing, content writing etc are also poised to go the remote working route.
Listed below are top 5 tips that can enable one to consider remote working as a commercially viable entrepreneurial option:
- Values: Every start-up has its own values and beliefs, but in a remote working set up its is imperative that values, integrity and what the firm stands for is clearly indicated to all the team members. There could be other companies that offer the same products or services that you offer. What will set you apart are the values you and your team bring to the table. Which customer wouldn't want to partner with an ethical organisation who puts honesty, integrity besides delivery at the core of whatever it does? Hence build the 'soul' of your remote work set up first.
- Processes: Once the core of why you are doing your business and how you plan to do it is in place, set up your processes. It’s imperative to have these processes as your overall strategy and goal will be easier to achieve once the ground rules are in place. Set up team and client reporting structures, accounts and admin, your website and email ids and other such aspects that could seem time consuming in the short term but are beneficial and time saving in the long term.
- Communicate: In a remote work set up, your team doesn’t sit down with you every day or even talk to you daily. How then do you ensure that they not only get the vision of the company but also get the operations down well? You communicate; in fact, you hyper communicate! Use whichever channel works best for your company; be it WhatsApp, Telegram, Slack or any other form of communication - use it well and effectively. Remember that important communication should always be captured on emails irrespective of your other channels of communication. Keep your internal and client groups separate and keep updating in your groups so everyone working remotely knows what is happening.
- Teams: Build teams that represent the values and culture of the organisation. Where the above three points will set the tone for your business, it is the teams that you build which will take the company on its growth route to the next level. Be mindful of who you recruit and cut dead weight as soon as you recognise it. Always offer constructive criticism and openly applaud good work. The focus at all times must on be building on teams that can take forward the work as you move on to the growth plans for the company. Have hungry team members who want to grow with you and nurture them. Stay honest, stay real.
- Time Management: Who doesn't want to have the time to do it all! And guess what, with effective time management it is possible, Working remotely means a lot of discipline of planning your work to the T and making time for your family, friends, your hobbies and yourself. All this is possible if you plan your work well. The critical and priority aspects must be addressed first. You must take time out to exercise and keep yourself in a good health so that you can take on the initial stress which is experienced with any new business and gradually as that eases out focus your energies on growing the business. Be conscious of your time, energy, collaborate and partner with those that share your work ethics and energy and yes build your own tribe.
Remote working helps you in saving a lot of time that would have otherwise be spent on travelling, long meetings, lunches and dinners and other such activities. Make the most of this saved time and work on offering the best of you, both professionally and personally.
By following the above and building on your core strengths one can create a viable business model that enables everyone to contribute effectively and build up a better and more effective way of working. All this has a direct impact not just on the elusive work life balance but enables an economy in multiple ways right from employment generation to being environmental friendly. Remote working is bound to catch up and change how we work collaboratively, successfully yet remotely.