Wide Teams

Wide Links #19

Mar 18, 11 • In Links

The latest and greatest news and resources for remote workers, from all around the web. Set Up Remote Colleagues With the Apps They Need Using Ninite: Online Collaboration « Ninite has a selection of many of the most commonly used apps, including browsers, IM clients, media players, office apps, Flash, PDF readers, security tools, utilities and even some of WWD’s favorite tools, like Dropbox, Evernote and KeePass. The installer installs the most up-to-date version of the apps; running the installer again will update the apps to the latest version. iPad 2: The Best Tablet for Distributed Teams Just Got Better: Online Collaboration « I’ve talked about the importance of a “comms appliance” for remote workers; the iPad 2may just be the best device yet for that role. tags: communication videoconferencing ipad People who think

Wide Links #18

Feb 25, 11 • In Links

Been a while since I did one of these… here’s a fresh helping of remote-work related links from all around the web. What to Do When An Employee Asks to Telecommute: Online Collaboration « A telecommuting trial run isn’t a bad idea, as long as it’s not biased against success from the start. tags: wideteams Telecommuting is becoming more common in organizations of every size. It makes it possible to work with the best people for your projects, no matter where they are based. It can be an opportunity to keep your team happy and it’s a privilege you may be able to provide without a lot of work or expense on your part. Even if telecommuting doesn’t wind up working for all of your team and on all of the projects you work on,

Wide Links #17

Dec 10, 10 • In Links

Some of my favorite reading on dispersed teams from the last week. In this edition: investing in your home office; staying in touch with your team; agile software practices for distributed teams; giving a presentation over the internet, and much more. Where to Invest for the Biggest Productivity Gains You can save a lot of money by working remotely, but that doesn’t mean you should skimp on the tools that really matter. A few strategically chosen expenditures can dramatically increase your productivity and connectivity. tags: wideteams Remote workers can’t escape talking on the phone, or its modern day equivalents. I personally have a fairly expensive handset hooked up to my landline, which I use when it’s important to have great call quality and a connection I can depend upon. You might not consider a landline

Wide Links #16: Meeting, Coaching, Bridging, Chatting

Dec 3, 10 • In Links

A heaping helping of links for remote workers today! In this edition, why work often doesn’t happen at work; an open thread on managing remote workers; advice for improving communication between the main office and remote workers – and much, much more. Making a long-distance relationship work: When feds go remote – Tom Fox tags: wideteams Don’t forget the small talk.When separated by distance, it’s even more important to make small talk about the little things in life to build rapport. Don’t forget to establish a sort of virtual water cooler for your folks by talking with them about their lives, the big game or whatever you can find to make a personal connection. Consider having your team virtually share their favorite recipes or books each week to help them stay connected while telecommuting. Jason

Wide Links #15: Management, Busyness, Satisfaction

Nov 19, 10 • In Links

The week’s best articles on remote teams from all around the web. In this edition, pointers for managing a distributed team, tips for communicating how busy you are to people who can’t see you, a report that says teleworkers are happier than people who work in offices, and more! How to Manage Telecommuters: Tips from Project Managers – Annotated Four managers chime in with tips on leading remote teams. tags: wideteams “For complicated tasks, employees are asked to paraphrase tasks given. The manager reviews and sees if they are both in sync and if any extra input is required. This is more important for employees who are new to the job. Seasoned employees can read between the lines and have the experience required to understand any given task.” Ideas for a Distributed Team &#

Wide Links #14

Nov 12, 10 • In Links

Another fresh serving of articles and presentations about remote work and distributed teams, from all around the web. In this edition: building trust, collaborating on visual design while distributed, keeping a team together during dry spells, and much more! Creative Remote Collaboration » IQ Blog – Annotated tags: wideteams Remote collaboration is important for any line of work where people are divided by time and space, but the need is expanded in a creative industry where there is an increased requirement of collaboration, communication, and execution of ideas. When you work for a creative agency with colleagues and clients around the country (and developers around the world), how can you improve and streamline the creative collaboration process? Building Trust Within Virtual Teams – Small Steps Add Up – Annotated One of the ideas

Wide Links #13: Delivery, Definitions, Data

Oct 29, 10 • In Links

Distributed insights for distributed teams. The week’s best posts about dispersed teams and remote work, from around the web. In this edition: seminars from successful distributed team leaders, an article that makes a thought-provoking distinction between being on a dispersed team and being a remote worker, some tips on convincing a manager to let you go remote, and much more. Holla, An Open-source Group Chat App – Annotated tags: wideteams Holla is a simple group chat application that Developer Alex MacCraw describes as being a little like an open-source version of Campfire, 37Signals’ collaboration tool. Holla doesn’t have all of the advanced features that Campfire has, like built-in conference calling. However, it does support file sharing, and it’s free and runs on your own server, so you get to retain a degree of control that

Wide Links #12: Agility, Attitude, Independence

Oct 22, 10 • In Links

A sampling of the week’s best articles about distributed teams and remote work, from around the web. This week, notes on distributed agile software development; an article that says changing mindset is a bigger barrier to remote work than adopting new tools; a post about how working remotely helps workers become more independent and self-directed; and much, much more. Distributed Agile: Cultural Differences/Expectation disconnect – Annotated Some notes on distributed software teams from a ThoughtWorks developer working in India. tags: wideteams As I mentioned in my first post about distributed agile a couple of months ago I’ve found that it’s much easier to build the wrong thing when working in a different time zone to the product owner but I wouldn’t say the ability to write maintainable code is much different. 6 rules for

Wide Links #11: Trust, Balance, Camping

Oct 15, 10 • In Links

For your reading enjoyment, a fresh batch of links from around the web! In this installment: building trust on distributed teams, maintaining balance at home when home IS work, and working remotely while camping across Europe. Trust Matters – Annotated An article about building trust in distributed teams. tags: wideteams When someone starts a call with: “So, how was everyone’s weekend?” really share something: “We had so much fun; my 5 year old daughter is playing T-ball and the girls were hilarious whacking at the ball and running around the bases.” We trust those who are willing to take the small risk of revealing something about themselves; encourage it, especially by role-modeling it. The Future of Web Working: Management – Annotated A quick guide to getting started managing a virtual team. tags: wideteams How do people

Wide Links #10: Left coast edition

Oct 8, 10 • In Links

I’m in LA this week, meeting up with one of my dispersed software teams in person for the first time. As a result I don’t have a lot of time to write, but here’s a fresh hot selection of links from the world of distributed teams. Enjoy! Remote Pairing with Vim and TMux – Annotated A wonderfully detailed set of notes on one possible remote pair-programming solution. tags: wideteams development vim tmux Collaborative Editing: the fundament of pairing, both people need to be able to type into the same editor. Access to the Local Server: it’s pretty hard to develop an app you can’t see. Ease of Communication: we need to be able to hear each other, preferably seeing each other as well (there’s a lot of nonverbal communication when pairing). Light Weight: the internet