7 Pitfalls to Avoid When Leading Remotely

The remote leadership lessons I learned the hard way (so you don't have to)

Are you leading a team remotely? These challenges might sound familiar:

1. My team is lacking in building trust and connections

2. Maintaining visibility and engagement is hard

3. I’m not able to create a collaborative environment, everybody is working in silos

Post pandemic our tech industry saw a boom in remote work culture. Beyond people deciding to work in hybrid or fully remote models, a lot of companies expanded their footprint globally. When I started at Google right before the lockdown, we were building out our team. Our team was distributed across 5 different countries, 4 time zones. Fast forward to today, at Apple, I’m a leader supporting an organization spread across 3 time zones in the US.

If you’re facing problems building a strong culture being a remote leader, you’re not alone. I have had the same problems. Today, I am going to share how we went from one to an Engineering Excellence Award winning team at Google in less than 3 years.

Remote leadership can be tough. Let's discuss the pitfalls and how I solved it.

🥱📣 1. "One size fits all" communication approach

I used to blast out updates the same way to everyone. I was stuck in my email comfort zone. Back when everyone was in the office, communication was simpler. Part of it was due to the team's colocation. But with everybody working on a flexible schedule, communications often get lost. Moreover, some individuals might prefer quick video chat over emails.

Now, I ask people how they prefer to receive information to make sure it lands. As a leader, it’s very important to deliver updates the right way. I learned to offer multiple channels. Provide a mix of options –  async updates, group chats, and 1:1s.

👻👀 2. The "invisible team" syndrome

With our team spread across 5 countries, I often found myself dropping things on the floor. Out of sight, out of mind leads to trouble. I used to think check-ins were just for project updates, leaving my team feeling like ghosts on a screen. Now, I make time for informal chats, and celebrate wins publicly. Another big booster of collaboration is “Pair programming”. It's amazing how much more connected and visible my team felt after making these changes.

Collaboration is the key (Imahe by Freepik)

I started keeping a running log of todos with expiry to ensure nobody feels ignored, even mistakenly.

😴💤 3. Virtual meetings = wasted time

During the early lockdown periods, I saw a bunch of meetings crowding my calendar. My instinctive reaction was to classify them as wasted time. This was a very big mistake. Making the right balance between meetings and focus work is important. But, remote teams severely lack a culture of togetherness that was implicit before. Absence of casual chats limits a team’s ability to deliver larger projects.

I learned structuring these chats can have exponential benefits. When we started running book clubs, fun activities in a close group, the team started acting as a unit.

🤖🤝 4. Skipping the "human touch"

Staying at home, we started losing the human touch. I used to often have conversations with the team about some work agenda. Remote work easily turns into all work and no play. We missed those spontaneous lunch breaks and hallway chats that build connections. As we focused only on work, I noticed a drop in team motivation. It’s a recipe for burnout.

As I speak with friends and colleagues, a lot of teams are still struggling with this. We solved it with async check-ins, discussions on common interests etc. Replicating a real hallway conversation is hard. We need to create open spaces for a remote team.

😬💬 5. Mistaking silence for agreement

I used to assume that if nobody spoke up in meetings, they agreed with my plans. Big mistake! Silence can mean confusion, fear of speaking up, or just needing more time to process. This problem isn’t new, but in a remote team it’s harder. I used to post an update on team chat and wait for people to post their opinions. It doesn’t work for everyone.

Now, I actively invite feedback, ask open-ended questions, and even use 1:1s to make sure everyone's voice is heard. I have experienced that posing a question gets more inputs than simply providing updates.

🕯️🌙 6. Fostering a culture of overwork

Remote work blurs boundaries. Personally I struggled with establishing a healthy boundary. This problem gets larger when your team is globally distributed. I used to think availability anytime meant higher productivity. Wrong! It can lead to a burnt-out team. Flexible work hours doesn’t mean working all day. I fell into this trap myself. The problem is, it created a cascading effect. As people started sending code reviews in the middle of the night, peer pressure arose. People started feeling pressured into replying to pings, reviewing code.

I established a norm with a simple email footer that looked like:

“I support flexible work hours. I am sending you this email now because it is within my work hours today. I don’t expect you to reply immediately.”

A simple, explicit callout helped establish a culture of respect for each other within the team.

😶📉 7. Letting feedback go MIA

Before, I could give quick feedback in passing by turning my chair. Remotely, it's easy for those small things to slip through the cracks. As they creep up, feedback can seem abrupt. I realized how demotivating this was for my team.

I started making time for casually dropping in conversation to deliver feedback in smaller chunks. One thing to look out for, don’t make all your chats about feedback. Setting the expectation and the tone is crucial. Make sure people feel heard and supported, no matter the distance.

💌📌 Conclusion

Remote leadership brings unique challenges. It's easy to fall into these pitfalls without even realizing it. I made a lot of mistakes because I overlooked the need. By implementing these changes, we were able to build a high-performing team during pandemic. But to be honest, I make new mistakes. Please share what you’d add to the list.

By staying aware, valuing connection, and respecting your team's time and energy, you can avoid these common mistakes. Remember, successful remote teams aren't built by accident –  they're built with intention and care.

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