💙 3 (more) Things I’ve Learned About Being an Effective Remote Manager

Hello and Happy Thursday!

Back in 2022, I recorded a podcast episode reflecting on what I’d learned from more than a decade of managing a remote team. It was one of our most popular episodes at the time. Probably because, like many of you, I was still figuring it out as I went.

I shared five lessons I had learned the hard way about what it takes to manage people well from a distance, and how surprisingly easy it is to fall short without even realizing it.

Three years later, those original lessons still hold true. But a lot has changed!

Want to Work There has grown significantly since then, and so has the team behind it. Today, I manage a network of incredible contractors including cohort facilitators, writers, operations coordinators, and community partners. As our work expands, so does the complexity of managing all the moving parts, and I’ve had to evolve my approach to keep up.

I’m sure many of you are feeling the need to continue evolving your management skills to keep up with today’s workforce.

The truth is, becoming an effective remote manager is never a one-and-done skill. It requires regular reflection, adjustment, and the willingness to question your own habits.

In this week’s newsletter, I’m revisiting the five lessons I originally shared and adding three more insights I’ve gained more recently. Whether you’re leading a small team or scaling a growing operation, I hope this gives you new ideas and a renewed sense of clarity about what it means to be an effective manager in today’s remote world.

Yours in learning as we go,
Jill

What Does “Being an Effective Remote Manager” Really Mean?

Before we jump into those original insights and share what I’ve been learning recently, I think it’s important to define what “effective remote management” means.

When I was building version one of our Training for the Modern Manager program, I came across Google’s Project Oxygen and their extensive research on what it takes to be a great manager.

Through two separate (and failed) experiments to remove managers from their workforce, Google realized just how important of a role managers play in not only accomplishing a team’s goals and projects, but creating an environment where employees want to work.

Between these two experiments, and extensive research afterwards, Project Oxygen found that managers who ranked highest with their teams demonstrated the following attributes:

1. Are a good coach

2. Empower their team and do not micromanage

3. Create an inclusive team environment, showing concern for success and well-being

4. Are productive and results-oriented

5. Are good communicators - listen and share information

6. Support career development and discusses performance

7. Have a clear vision/strategy for the team

8. Have key technical skills to help advise the team

9. Collaborate across the organization

10. Are strong decision makers

So when we talk about being an effective remote manager, we mean finding ways to demonstrate each of these attributes – while working across time zones and technology.

No one ever said being a remote manager is easy. But it can be done!

Now, let’s dive in to the original five ways to be an effective remote manager, plus three more I’ve been learning recently!

Ways to Be an Effective Remote Manager

1) Be explicit about your idea of remote work autonomy.

Many remote-first companies will promote “flexibility” in their job descriptions and during interviews. But what does that really mean?? Can employees run an errand during work hours or go on a half-day field trip with their kid and work on projects in the evening? Do they need to inform you if they’ll be offline during work hours? Whatever the expectations are, be explicit about what flexibility means within your organization and team.

If you don’t, everyone will reach their own conclusions around what flexibility means to them and pretty soon you’ll be managing very different expectations with each employee. Set clear expectations early and often!

2) Always set clear communication norms.

When the majority of corporate employees started working from home, a lot of people put great efforts into making sure their bosses knew they were working and not slacking off. Emails and Slack messages were responded to as soon as possible and that green “active” light was always on.

But does everything require an immediate response? Likely not, but what is the expectation for when employees should respond to emails and Slack messages then?

Set response time norms, such as replying to Slack messages within two hours and emails within 24 hours. This helps build trust and reduce anxiety for everyone involved.

I’ll be the first to admit that I’ve fallen back into the “Slack urgency” habit as my team has grown, so this reminder was one I really needed too.

3) Make sure the space is safe before you get serious.

You never know who might be in the room with your team members, even if their camera is on. A partner working from the same desk. A toddler watching Bluey nearby. A roommate walking past every few minutes.

Before diving into sensitive topics or difficult conversations, check in to make sure they’re in a space where they feel comfortable and can talk freely. They may need to move rooms, pop in earbuds, or reschedule to a quieter time. These small check-ins can go a long way in making conversations feel more supportive and thoughtful — not stressful or rushed.

4) Treat your 1:1s like the most important meeting on your calendar.

Early on as a manager, I had a bad habit of canceling 1:1s with my most independent, high-performing team members — the folks I assumed “didn’t need much.” But over time, I realized what I was actually communicating: You’re not important enough for my time.

Yikes.

Now I see 1:1s as one of the most powerful ways to invest in your people. They’re not just status check-ins — they’re your chance to build trust, coach, unblock, and align. So protect them. Don’t move them unless you truly have to. And don’t let them become stale. Use that time well.

5) Don’t just tell them what matters — show them.

I’ll never forget hearing the following story from a leader who experienced what a truly powerful impact “seeing over hearing” has when it came to leadership directives.

The company had recently introduced core hours of 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. where employees across time zones were expected to be available. Outside that time, they were free to work on the schedule that was best for them.

One afternoon outside of those hours, this c-suite leader attended his daughter’s swim meet. At one point, another employee(whom he’d never personally met) came up and told him how much it meant to see him taking advantage of that new policy. She had been feeling guilty about being there herself until she saw him doing the same.

When it comes to setting culture, modeling goes further than memos.

Three New Lessons I’ve Learned Recently

Those first five lessons are still part of my everyday practice — and I keep relearning them, too. But I’ve picked up a few more along the way that I wish I’d known earlier.

6) Documentation isn’t just helpful — it’s essential.

Remote teams can’t rely on hallway chats or shoulder taps. We need a system of record. That means clear, shared documentation: processes, how-tos, expectations, and even what “done” looks like.

This doesn’t mean micromanaging — it means setting people up to succeed.

A few tips that help:

• Write things down before they’re needed. Async work falls apart when everyone is flying by the seat of their pants.

• Define success clearly. Be explicit about deliverables, timelines, and quality standards.

• Make it findable. Tools like Notion or Google Docs only help if people know where to look.

If this resonates, you’re not alone. Our most-read newsletter of 2025 was all about this very topic and is packed with practical ways to create a culture of documentation.

(And real talk: As someone with ADHD, this is a daily discipline I have to work on. It takes prep, intention, and sometimes sticky notes everywhere.)

7) You don’t always need to be on camera.

This is probably the most shocking thing for me to add to this list, because I’m a HUGE advocate of having cameras on. I love reading body language and seeing reactions in real time. But I’ve come to realize that being on camera all day can be draining and sometimes, it’s okay to turn it off.

Here’s a simple guide I use to set expectations:

Bonus tip: If a video meeting feels stale or unnecessary, maybe it doesn’t need to be a meeting at all. (We talk about this in our meeting podcast episode.)

8) Creating space for inspiration and deep work is essential.

Remote work often turns into “always on” work. Slack pings, email dings, calendar overload. But research shows that multitasking doesn’t work. It’s not actually possible for our brains to focus on more than one thing at a time. But what do we do all day in remote workplaces? Multi-task. (It’s not just me, right??)

Here’s what helps:

• Normalize slow responses. Those green Slack dots? They don’t mean someone’s available right now.

• Build in quiet time. Protect a few hours a week (or even per day) where people can work without meetings or notifications.

• Be intentional about urgency. If everything’s urgent, nothing really is.

Giving your team space to think, not just react, is one of the best ways to get great work done.

Things We’re Loving Right Now

Deloitte’s 2025 Global Human Capital Trends - This report provides insight on hot HR strategy topics, from building stability for employees to creating an AI-friendly employee value proposition, plus an article titled “Is there still value in the role of managers?” 👀

ready or not Newsletter - You may have seen Alejandra Ramirez’s recent guest newsletter here breaking down the 3H framework for internal communication, but did you know she has her own newsletter? For everyone wondering how to craft your next internal announcement, Alejandra’s insights are invaluable.

REMINDER: Free resources for job-seekers. Careerspan is offering their career-coaching, resume-enhancing, confidence-building tool free for job seekers this summer. This is an incredible resource for anyone who is feeling the exhaustion of a seemingly never-ending job search. Learn more here >>