Tips for Improving Remote Team Performance at Your Digital Marketing Agency
The rise of remote work has brought about a new set of challenges for digital marketing agencies. With the lack of face-to-face interaction and the over-reliance on communication tools like Slack, it can be difficult to build team cohesion and ensure effective communication. However, there are ways to overcome these challenges and improve remote team performance.
One tool that can greatly benefit remote agency teams is CliftonStrengths, formerly known as Clifton StrengthsFinder. Developed by the Gallup organization, this assessment helps individuals discover their natural strengths and how they lead. By identifying individual strengths, agencies can foster better communication, enhance team cohesion, and build an understanding between teams and clients.
The assessment categorizes strengths into four themes: Influence, Strategic Thinking, Execution, and Relationship Building. Those who lead with Influence thrive when working through others, while those who lead through Relationship Building excel at fostering deep connections. By understanding each team member’s strengths, managers gain insight into why people behave the way they do and can delegate projects and tasks accordingly.
Building a balanced team is crucial for success, especially when collaborating with clients. The assessment helps identify where individuals naturally gravitate and how they fit into the team. In leadership positions, having a blend of colors in the top 5 strengths is ideal, with orange being particularly desirable for natural-born leaders. Command, the rarest strength, is highly valuable in leadership roles.
To build a more effective agency team with CliftonStrengths, it’s important to openly share each person’s results. No strength is “better” than others; it’s about understanding how everyone is oriented and organizing teams for success. By knowing what makes each person tick, managers can better manage their team, whether in a matrixed organization or direct reports.
When it comes to remote agency teams, non-verbal communication is often lost through video calls, leaving behind vocal tone and making it easy to misinterpret comments. StrengthsFinder helps bridge this gap by allowing team members to see what their teammates are best at and fostering trust more quickly. It also helps deepen client communication by allowing individuals to pick up on cues and tailor conversations and meeting agendas accordingly.
While CliftonStrengths is a popular tool, there are alternatives like the Enneagram Test and the Hermann Brain Dominance Index (HBDI) that can provide similar results. The Enneagram Test focuses on motivations and core beliefs, while the HBDI identifies the type of thinking that shapes personality and behavior.
In conclusion, remote work presents challenges for digital marketing agencies, but tools like CliftonStrengths can greatly improve team performance. By understanding individual strengths, fostering better communication, and building rapport with clients, agencies can overcome the obstacles of remote work and achieve success.
