How do I manage my team/juniors remotely during this sustained period of working from home?”

This month Clara has invited me, Vikki from Skylark, to answer a query from a junior partner in a law firm with the following concern at work, which we know many others are also apprehensive about:

This can seem a daunting situation, which is faced by us all in today’s climate. And particularly with the recent announcement to return to working from home, where possible.

However, if we change our mindset from one of ‘management’ to ‘leadership’ then we can invest our time in developing ourselves as leaders instead, which is – after all – what most modern law firms need in their senior teams.

By developing our mindset, equipping ourselves with a process and brushing up some key skills, the somewhat daunting task of leading our team remotely can suddenly seem within our reach.

Create a vision

A key starting point is to get clear on what your vision is. Ask yourself “Who do you want to be as a leader and want do you want your team to look like” ([LINK] see the full article for steps to help you do this).

You can then create steps towards achieving this, which can be broken down for each individual within your team.

Get explicit

Spend some time digging into your vision and think about what you really mean. Think about how you will clearly explain what is required from each team member so there is no ambiguity.

Keep on track

Brush up on some key skills:
Assertiveness: You will need to maintain your approachability whilst ensuring your team stay on track (which can often feel like you’re a broken record!).
Resilience: Consider how you’ll maintain your own resilience to build momentum and keep direction. You will face challenges and barriers so how will you deal with that yourself?
Feedback: Practice giving positive conditional and negative conditional feedback and, most importantly, the skill of receiving feedback!

Face to Face v Remote working

Once you’ve created your vision as outlined above and brushed up on your key skills, you’ll already have a clear understanding of what your team needs. This will already take into account the lessons learned from the last six months of remote working.

To really explore this further and for more guidance on actions to take, access the full question and detailed answer here.

If you have any questions you would like answered next month then drop me a line.