Getting promoted in a remote job setting is not always easy. This is especially true when you are in a freelancer or contractual position where you are hired to perform specific tasks.
The skills necessary to perform well as a manager are very different from what is required in an analyst or junior positions. So, how does one go about getting hired as a manager in a remote job setting?
What employers look for in a remote manager
Great managers are fantastic at breaking big company goals into small, actionable steps. They keep their entire team on the same page with frequent feedback. You need to ensure nobody falls through the cracks. In addition, good managers also provide personal coaching to make every team member perform better every day.
You cannot survive as a remote business manager without building solid relationships. Good business managers are empathetic and supportive, especially in crises, where they open up personally to their team. They foster a healthy team culture where everyone’s contribution is considered important and worthy of recognition.
Finally, great managers always advocate for their team. They advocate nonstop for more resources, recognition, and less red tape.
When hiring a manager for a remote team, employers prioritize several key skills and qualities, some of them being:
Communication skills
You must keep your team engaged and on the same page, even when everyone works from different places. Building trust and creating a good overall vibe is a must.
As a manager, you are also the liaison between the team and the leadership. You must be good with creating PowerPoint presentations, and also presenting them to the management during your monthly and quarterly review meetings.
Task management
Managers should know who does what in their teams. This includes familiarity with the tools, processes, and best practices used in the industry. You’ll also need to be organized—managing projects, tasks, and deadlines across a distributed team isn’t always easy.
Adaptability is essential. You will have people with different personalities and work styles to manage. So, you’ll want to tweak your management style to fit these things accordingly.
Working asynchronously is a very critical skill in a remote job setting, and your comfort with using SaaS tools that enables this is important to showcase as well.
It is vital that roles are thoroughly defined so that the unavailability of specific team members does not serve as a bottleneck to meeting deadlines.
Lastly you should know to trust your team. Micromanaging every aspect of your team’s tasks – be it submitting proposals, or following up with customers should not need your persistent attention.
It’s something that needs to be learned to keep your team cohesive and independent.
Leadership and organization skills
Remote managers must effectively lead their teams through delegation and accountability. To be successful, they also need strong organizational skills. These are essential for keeping track of multiple tasks and deadlines.
Empathy and delegation
Understanding and supporting your team’s needs is crucial, especially when not in the same room.
And don’t forget about delegation! Trusting your team to work independently is essential. You should be comfortable with video conferencing for regular or one-on-one check-ins and proactive about communicating to provide clarity.
Finally, providing constructive feedback, coaching your team, and adapting to remote time zones is critical. As a manager, you should focus on tracking productivity and performance—areas where analytical skills should not be overlooked! When you learn to use your classic management skills remotely, your staff will feel supported and motivated.
Showcasing your managerial skills
Begin by tailoring your resume to the position you are applying for. You need to show them you are the right fit from the beginning. For this, consider the following:
Highlight your relevant experience
Highlight any previous experience in a leadership role – even if it was for a small project or in a non-remote setting.
Get into the details and emphasize the KPIs you were in charge of, the size of the team you handled, as well as the numbers that you helped move in your leadership stint.
Showcase your technical knowledge.
Recruiters need to justify their decision to hire you for a particular role. You can make life easy for them by signing up for courses and certifications that demonstrate your acumen.
Employers look for someone who possesses great technical acumen as well as leadership skills. A lot of doors open when you get certified by reputed institutions on both these aspects.
Highlight your communication skills.
In a remote setting, almost all communication happens over platforms like Zoom, Slack, or emails. Clear communication is absolutely essential to making sure that no information gets miscommunicated.
Also, as a manager, your personal relationship with each of your reporters is vital to getting the job done. As a remote manager working with people from other parts of the world, being multilingual can be an asset.
Highlight your language skills, as well as experience across the different virtual communication platforms. Also, it is vital that you proofread your cover letter and resume so that your written skills are showcased well.
Excelling in the Interview
Preparation is key. There is no better way to demonstrate a genuine interest in a company than doing lots of homework on its background and role. Practicing common interview questions and preparing specific examples will also help you feel more confident.
Next, your home-office setup matters. Make sure to test your tech in advance — check and recheck your internet connectivity and image/sound quality so you don’t experience hiccups. It’s perhaps a good idea to have a backup internet access point in case things don’t go as planned.
Ensure you find a well-lit and quiet corner of your home for a smooth video interview. A good manager opens up to his/her team members. Look them in the eye, and speak clearly. Be enthusiastic about the position and the company for which you will work. This matters!
Some other things to note:
Provide specific examples
You will likely be asked to give specific examples of how you have demonstrated leadership in the interview. Examples may include leading a successful project, mentoring a new junior team member, or resolving conflict within the team.
Also, highlight your comfort using various software applications in your domain. For example, if you are applying for a customer service manager position, mention the various customer support tools you have used. Showcase your technical acumen with industry-specific jargons and highlight the latest technical trends.
For example, you could say how you tested the organization’s customer support system prior to coming for the interview and found it missed IVR automation that helped your previous organization.
Recruiters love to hire someone who requires minimal onboarding.
Discuss your communication style
Explain how you would ensure everyone was on the same page. There are many different kinds of communication styles. Being assertive and communicating positively is vital for a healthy workplace environment. Share what you would do to keep remote team members motivated and engaged.
Demonstrate your organizational skills
Provide examples of keeping track of multiple tasks and deadlines. Talk about how you would keep up with the deadlines and ensure those projects are completed on time.
Be prepared with challenges you have faced
As a manager, you will be involved in a lot of firefighting. Be prepared with a list of challenges you have faced (even those that were performed in a non-managerial capacity), and how you tackled them.
For instance, if you are being hired for a marketing manager’s position, you could highlight instances where your email marketing campaigns were going to spam, and how you resolved this successfully.
The objective is to showcase your problem solving skills – both technical and leadership-wise.
Show your likeability
Employers hiring for technical skills believe that most, if not all, of their applicants should have the relevant abilities and background on paper.
Apart from the obvious, they look for someone who can assimilate well within their culture. In the interview, be friendly, engaging, and upbeat about the opportunity. Show them why you are an excellent fit for the job.
Wrapping up
As you prepare to apply for a remote managerial position, it’s important to understand the unique challenges and opportunities of leading a team in a virtual environment. You must remember that the most crucial point to being a good remote business manager is that success comes from being proactive, communicating well, and creating a positive work culture in your team.
You can effectively lead and manage your distributed staff with clear work guidelines, ongoing feedback, and celebrating success.