How to work effectively across time zones

Between different time zones, dentist appointments, and vacations, people within your team will need to play catch up using your instant messaging platform every day, making it an important tool to use wisely. When you can’t hop on a video meeting and need to send something to a coworker in a different timezone, your first instinct might be to use email or an instant messaging tool to share your question or request with them. If the issue is complex or there are dependencies involved, you might find yourself drafting a paragraph (or two) and editing your message for clarity and tone that can get lost in translation. Having a remote first work culture means you have access to a wider pool of talent and skillsets. This means that the company is in a better position to acquire a diverse workforce that is tailor-made for the organization and also has employees with vast experience.

Other cultures avoid direct eye contact during a discussion, while some insist on using formal language. Deliver remote and hybrid skills training at scale with our Workplaceless Unlimited program. These are only a few ways to develop a more trusting workplace, but incorporating them into your work culture will help unify your team and strengthen confidence between team members.

How to Work Across Multiple Time Zones Efficiently as a Remote Team

Asynchronous communication is important to be inclusive across time zones and schedules, to make sure we hear from introverts, too, and to make sure everyone gets time to focus. There are more time zone tools at TimeandDate.com, too, so be sure to check it out if you want to find local times around the world for your event, convert times for any location, and more. That might not be enough to schedule meetings across a number of time zones, but it’s a quick way to figure out if working remotely in a different time zone you’re ok to call your boss at 6 p.m. If you travel the world frequently, knowing which a time zone you’re in relative to GMT is crucial—and it’s also important if you’re working with a distributed team. Knowing the difference between Eastern, Central, Mountain, and Pacific time alone isn’t enough anymore. You’ll need to know which times of the day your colleague in London will be awake, and the times you’re most likely to get support tickets from your Australian customers.

• A key to communicating with colleagues is knowing precisely what time it is—for everyone involved.
• Our virtual leadership training builds the skills you need to lead effective and inclusive digital-first teams.
• But people who can’t say no to their bosses are at a higher risk of burnout, so it’s important to let your people set boundaries.
• Of course, differences in locations and backgrounds can also add another layer to the misunderstanding and distrust.

The following best practices will help SMB employers navigate these challenges and reap all the benefits of remote work. Working across different time zones with your team needs a special level of inclusion, empathy, and respect. Following the above tips and practices will help you develop a schedule and a working model that will keep everybody happy and included while valuing the personal needs of each team member. That could be fostered through social meetings thanks to video chat and conference calls.

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For example, if a manager detects an employee’s tone and body language have shifted negatively, they can politely and privately ask if the worker is okay and if there’s anything they can do to help. Nobody said that working in different time zones is effortless, painless, and does not need sacrifices. The reality is that, often, somebody will have to stay up late for a meeting. To be productive and efficient when working across time zones, you should be respectful, organized, and adaptable.

The company has to integrate a working system that is very clear to enable team members to understand what is required from them when it comes to collaborations, meet-ups, or any cross functional brainstorming sessions. It is therefore a good practice for a company to inform their employees prior to hiring that they will be required to work overlapping hours to ensure the company runs smoothly. It also prepares the team mentally and helps them to divide, manage their workload effectively knowing time overlap is a requirement to keep the company moving forward. Teams are expanding not only in size and demand, but also across geographic areas. Depending on how far apart team members are located, there could be several different time zones to consider when scheduling, planning, and meeting together. Successfully working across time zones requires leaning into async practices and remote collaboration tools, as well as building and nurturing relationships across different time zones.

How to Work Across Time Zones or Countries as a Remote Team or Company

“They worked the night shift while my team in Redmond worked days,” Berkun says. “If I planned well, we’d find magic in going to bed frustrated by a missing puzzle piece, and waking to find it in our inbox. It was like having a friend in the future.” Abi is one of the co-founders of Himalayas where he focuses on product and growth. In his spare time, he runs a YouTube channel, podcast, and blog focused on strategy and management. Many Heads of Remote will spend time in both worlds, improving the internal experience while advocating for remote-first beyond the organization. Start by culling synchronous communication like daily stand-ups and instead move toward written status updates.

• While you still want to be cognizant of others’ time zones, setting one official time zone for your company can help alleviate confusion.
• Not to mention that if all time zones are covered, then the company can serve its customers 24/7 without the need for late-night shifts.
• If it’s recurring and unavoidable (and it often will be), try to schedule meeting times so that the burden is shared across the team rather than by the same people each week.
• For those living in tiny apartments, working from bed couldn’t be a long-term option, so many people found themselves looking for a new place.
• It becomes easier to manage when course correction is required, and when team members go above and above to reinforce the culture, exemplifying those acts to the rest of the team becomes easier than ever.

Even reporters from The New York Times have found that Slack helps them stay connected to their newsroom while away on assignments. But even still, if you want to make a distributed team work, you need to accept a time shift. “I’ll take phone calls late in the evening from folks that don’t realize I’m on the east coast and consider that part of the job for someone working remotely in a different time zone,” Furbish says. Working across time zones brings unique challenges rarely encountered within the more traditional work models. As the rewards largely outweigh the drawbacks, it’s worth exploring the best team practices provided above to make working across time zones work. They will help you craft your perfect blend of flexibility, asynchronous work, and inclusive mindset to push your distributed team towards perpetual success.

And the vast majority of the studies came to the same conclusion – flexibility and freedom offered within the approach largely impact productivity in the virtual workplace. A 2020 Statista study shows 73% of respondents reported feeling more efficient working outside the office. A general lack of distractions, in addition to reduced commute time and the overall comfort of the home or other chosen work environment, have made the significant productivity boost possible.