Distributed teams: Laying the foundation for Back Office Support

Looking to build a high-performance distributed team for software development and engineering? If so, there is an important groundwork to do. The company must offer a remote-friendly system. It’s not about signing up for the right apps – it’s about establishing mindset and processes. We’ve listed some self-evaluation questions to support you in laying the foundation for Back Office Support.

Is HR ready for remote collaboration?

If you’re looking to build and scale a team, you’ll inevitably go through HR. Yes, even if you are looking to have a third-party option, such as staffing firms or contractors. Reasons being:

(a) You want to steer clear of labor and fiscal liability; 

(b) Managing people is hard and you’ll need support;

(c) The distance can make team building and motivation more difficult. 

Let’s face it: at first, engineering leaders are, most likely, better at hard than soft skills. And seasoned experts understand no-one is excellent at everything. Either case, things are better when strong HR professionals have your back. However, the willingness in supporting people management may not suffice. 

To set up for remote collaboration, HR’s own processes must become distributed-first. Some examples:

• Recruiting can look beyond the local talent pool and carry out interviews online.
• Onboarding and training have to consider async communication as the norm.
• Team Building efforts should still encompass face-to-face get-togethers every now and again.
• Personnel processes become cloud-based to provide readily accessible information to employees.

Want to know the plus side? This usually means a more scalable and data-driven HR strategy. 

Are your systems and back-office processes ready for distributed teams?

Ok, we mentioned it already. But I can’t stress this enough: cloud-based systems and processes (hiring, payroll, etc.) are a must. There is a fair share of quality HRTech apps out there. 

Experiment and figure out the best combination for your tech team. At Ubiminds we use Zoho, Confluence, Slack, GSuite and Social Base, among other collaboration tools. Remote employees need access to HR support systems, payroll and benefits info, support channels, etc.

Do you take concierge services into account?

Contrary to the idiom, employees that are out of sight cannot be left out of mind. Some facilities services are necessary for engineers to perform to their full potential. Don’t underestimate support services and comfort measures.

So what concierge services should you be looking to offer to your distributed product team? Basics such as accommodation, transportation, tickets, and visas for on-site work are obvious ones. 

Consider having other benefits and perks in place, such as snack money, tickets, and coupons, too.  Positive experiences are a great way to boost talent retention. This brings us to the next question.

Are your benefits and perks compatible with distributed teams?

Maybe you’ve partnered up with local vendors and bars for employee discounts. The office has all the exciting games and distractions for break time. Workshops are offered to incentivize creativity and team building.

But what happens to those who are in other regions? Gift cards, cash refunds, and swag are all officeless options you can take into account. 

When it comes to laying the foundation for Back Office Support, keep in mind: distributed-first. You can check our post on How to prepare Mindset and Culture and get there faster. You’ll see things become more intuitive over time. 

Is your company ready to support distributed software engineers?

Don’t worry: Ubiminds has got you covered. We specialize in custom-curating digital product teams. We not only help you build and/or scale your team, but also make sure your administrative teams are ready to support product to thrive through distributed work. Drop us a line in the form below and we’ll gladly share our know-how and experience with you.

Paulo Ross

Paulo Ross, CEO at Ubiminds. Forever a software developer, entrepreneur, people-person, and devoted dad. Empowering teams to grow and deliver value.