Remote teams need to have regular virtual meetings in order to stay on the same page. This allows for a more productive work culture and helps to make your team members feel valued as peers.
American firms sourcing remotely from Latin America can enjoy comparable time zones and skilled workers with a North American work ethic.
Workflows
Workflows are a set of steps that must be completed in a certain order to achieve a specific goal. They help teams manage their tasks effectively and ensure that everyone has an accurate understanding of the process. Moreover, they can help you identify areas that need improvement and provide a structure to measure performance.
The first step in creating a workflow is to determine what the business process needs to accomplish. This involves asking questions like: What are the exact jobs that need to be done? Who is responsible for those jobs? How much time will each job take?
Once you have a clear idea of what the workflow is, it’s important to keep it updated. This will save you a lot of time in the long run and prevent your team from getting overwhelmed with too many tasks. It’s also a good idea to make minor tweaks to your workflow to improve efficiency.
For example, you could create a separate workflow for each task that your remote Latin America team performs. This can help them focus on their zone of genius and ensure that they deliver quality results on time. You can also use tools like Kanban boards to visualize the workflow and streamline the process. These features help to reduce bottlenecks and track the progress of each task.
Schedules
A schedule is a set of goals and objectives that are planned to be accomplished over a specific period of time. It can be short-term, such as a daily or weekly schedule, or longer-term, such as a project timeline that may span several months or years. Schedules are used to communicate to team members when their tasks are due and to make sure all aspects of a project are progressing as expected.
Creating a structured schedule can help you maintain productivity and create an engaging remote working culture. It’s important to be responsive and available to your team members by scheduling regular communication check-ins via video conferencing or instant messaging apps. This will ensure that everyone has an open line of communication and feels supported by their team.
When working remotely, it’s also crucial to build personal relationships with your teammates. Organizing virtual coffee breaks or team-building activities can bring your team closer together and encourage collaboration. You can even try scheduling team-building activities that take place over the weekend. This will help your team feel connected and can boost morale.
Many American firms nearshore their software development operations to Latin America because of the region’s lower labor costs compared to the United States and Europe. However, it’s essential to remember that low labor costs don’t necessarily mean a lower quality of work. In fact, a remote team can be just as productive and effective as an on-site team.
Meetings
A key challenge in managing remote teams is effective communication. Regular virtual meetings help to keep the team on track and ensure that everyone is aware of what is happening. It’s important to schedule these meetings at a time that is convenient for all participants.
It’s also important to clarify the purpose of the meeting at the beginning of the call. This will help to promote focus and clarity in the event that the discussion starts to drift or the meeting is a little chaotic. Similarly, it’s important to appoint someone to lead the meeting. This can be the person who called the meeting or a different member of the team. It’s a good idea to rotate this role so that all members have the opportunity to lead the meeting.
Another key consideration when scheduling meetings is to ensure that they are short enough to be productive. If a meeting is too long, it can become a distraction and lead to employees feeling overwhelmed and disengaged.
Many American firms are nearshoring to Latin America to take advantage of lower labor costs. However, it’s worth remembering that almost all of Latin America has minimum wage provisions in their constitutions – so it is important to pay your employees well and above the local market rate to attract and retain them.
Collaboration
A remote Latin American team can be a valuable asset to your company’s technology development and product growth. With the right communication channels in place, your team can collaborate effectively and create a seamless experience for everyone involved.
Compared to sourcing from countries in Asia, where language and cultural barriers can complicate professional relationships, nearshoring from Latin America offers a more seamless working environment. In addition to a similar infrastructure, time zones, and cost structures, North American firms can appreciate that software engineers in Latin America share a similar work ethic and are more likely to be responsive to calls or emails.
With a solid understanding of the local market, Latin American developers are able to add cultural insights and industry knowledge to your remote tech teams, driving innovation and problem-solving approaches. Furthermore, their proficiency in English, the lingua franca of the tech industry, enables them to easily communicate with their colleagues across the globe.
As technology and communication evolve, many companies are shifting to remote work models. During the covid outbreak, for example, remote work skyrocketed in Latin America. In fact, in South America, where the tech industry accounts for 10% of all remote work, 57% of remote workers report feeling happy and productive at their jobs. This is a testament to the culture of collaboration and communication that exists within Latin America’s remote worker community.
Considering Hiring or Working With a Remote Talent in Latam?
Finding Remote Latin American Staff can be really hard if you don’t know where to start. Our recommendation is with Remote Talent Latam. They will find you the best talent, based on your business requirements. Contact them right away to book a quick and stress-free discovery call.