Flexible working patterns have long been a feature of working in the arts, but arts organisations could still do more to help professionals make a success of working remotely, argues Pam Henderson.
The Government estimates that two million people work remotely, and it certainly seems that remote working has become a real possibility for many organisations with the past decade?s rapid developments in technology. Yet, is managing people who are working remotely really that new? There is a case to be made that managing people you don?t see every day has been going on for years: touring companies where the actors have little contact with the Artistic Director; box office staff who only see their manager once a week because of the way the rota works; galleries operating across two or more sites; senior managers who feel fortunate if they see the chief executive weekly.
However, a shift towards flexible working patterns, combined with technological advances, means that many people who previously would have had a high level of face-to-face contact with their line manager are now either seeking to, or being asked to, work remotely ? be that from home or from multiple locations. This article proposes that while the core skills required to manage well are the same whatever the context, the organisation?s culture needs to be conducive to remote working and IT systems must also be appropriate.
Tomorrow?s worker
Earlier this year, the Future Work Forum at Henley Management College set up a research project funded by Microsoft and the Department for Work and Pensions. The project used quantitative and qualitative research to investigate the hypothesis that people managing flexible and remote workers require different competencies from those managing more traditionally.
The key findings of the research were as follows:
? Work will continue to become more remote and flexible, and good managers will adapt to this
? Organisations will need good management processes and competent managers in order to succeed in this new working environment
? Weak management is more likely to have a negative impact and may be less likely to be detected
? The processes and competencies needed to manage remote teams are not radically different from managing co-located teams
? Communications are critical, and organisations should review how their managers are communicating with employees and identify areas for improvement
? The less tangible aspects of communications, such as social contact, make a major contribution towards good teamwork, and motivation must also be addressed.
So what does any of that mean for cultural organisations seeking to get more people working remotely? Well, the research is showing that virtual, remote and flexible working will only succeed if managers are competent and committed. Equally, remote working is not going to be successful if the organisation?s culture is one of ?command and control? rather than ?trust and empowerment?.
Conducive culture
Introducing new technologies to support flexible and remote working will achieve very little unless the culture of the organisation and the style and skills of its managers are appropriate. A virtual organisation called Flexible recommends the following ten principles as a guide towards replacing control with trust:
? Vision: all staff should be aware of and identify with the vision, mission and strategy of the organisation at all levels
? Responsibility: the individual has the responsibility to acquire the skills, access to information, support and tools necessary to do the job
? Support: the organisation provides the necessary infrastructure and services to support the individual
? Information: access to information is constrained only by the competence of the individual and genuine security considerations, rather than outdated concepts such as ?need to know?
? Consultation: it is accepted that the best ideas do not necessarily come from the most senior people
? Openness: open debate and constructive criticism are encouraged, without fear of management reprisal
? Learning: all staff, even those at the top, are committed to acquiring new knowledge and understanding, and learning new skills
? Recognition: skills, abilities and learning achievements are recognised meaningfully
? Caring: the organisation cares about the lives, careers, interests and well-being of its employees
? Improvement: the organisation is itself committed to continuous improvement in its structure, processes and working methods, including learning from its staff.
Key processes
The core job of any manager is to make people productive. Effective managers do this by agreeing goals, providing the right tools and support, and offering feedback. When managing remotely, there is a particular importance in effective, two-way communication. This needs to be in person as well as over the phone and via email. To mitigate potential feelings of isolation and not being valued, these exchanges need to extend beyond the purely work-related to include personal and social exchanges.
The effective remote manager will have excellent listening and interpretive skills that will come into their own in telephone conversations ? where body language clues are difficult to detect. Work out the meaning of silence, tone, energy levels and interactions, and use them to inform how you relate to and cultivate performance from the staff member in question. Be aware of email overload. While a high volume of emails may suggest a bustling workplace, it can also indicate an organisation in which knowledge management is weak, work is poorly organised, and people are scared to take personal responsibility for their work ? and therefore copy everyone in to everything.
Email overload can also be an indicator of ineffectual IT systems, where documents are emailed rather than stored on the shared system, and collaborative online tools are not exploited effectively. The successful remote manager will have seamless IT systems in place. Ben Whitlock, director of MapleBlue and creator of bespoke IT solutions for a number of arts organisations, says, ?It is essential to get the right IT systems set up for remote working to be effective. While it takes thought and careful planning in the first place, it doesn?t have to be too costly to set up and maintain.?
Deciding to introduce or extend the way in which your staff work remotely is an opportunity for the organisation to reflect on and assess its culture, style, systems and processes, with a view to making appropriate changes. Done well, remote management enhances productivity and increases staff retention. Done badly, and staff become resentful and unhappy. So, does absence make the heart grow fonder? Well, as with most things ? it depends how you manage it.
Pam Henderson is a Director of the Henderson Aplin Partnership and an accredited coach working with organisations to improve performance through better management and leadership. e: pam@hapartnership.com
For websites with more information about managing remotely, visit:
http://www.workplaceforum.com
http://www.henleymc.ac.uk/henleyres03.nsf/pages/fwf
http://www.new-ways-of-working.co.uk/index.htm
http://www.flexibility.co.uk
Several companies offer IT solutions to organisations seeking to develop remote working. Some examples include: http://www.hop.co.uk and http://www.mapleblue.com