Being able to establish multiple business offices in different locations is a huge sign of progress and the dream of many small business owners. It increases business performance, draws you closer to more potential customers, and ultimately drives sales. However, it also comes with massive challenges. Opening several offices means needing more staff and resources, which shouldn’t be a problem if your business has solid finances. However, your ability to manage more than one workspace at the same time will be truly tested. You’ll need thoughtful leadership backed by effective strategies to ensure seamless collaboration, communication, and operations across the different offices. Here are some smart ways to manage multiple office locations.
- Restructure your team
Whenever you open a new office, the decision to restructure your team is worth considering. You want a team capable of getting operations off the ground as soon as possible, and that means making a few tweaks. What team management strategy to employ depends on the nature of your business operations. For example, if operations are relatively independent, you can create a separate team to handle each office. You can also choose a centralized office (probably the main office) to manage all the new ones if you want more control over the multiple branches. Another option is to create a hybrid management system, fusing the previously mentioned options. This option will be more effective if you want each office to have some degree of independence while you manage them from the central office.
Regardless of what option you choose, having a clear team management structure is important to making your business run more efficiently.
- Create a streamlined mode of communication
Effective communication is at the heart of any multi-location management, as it ensures effective collaboration and work coordination. A business with multiple offices creates a dispersed working environment, and your teams should be able to exchange information and share updates quickly to address work challenges on time. Creating a streamlined mode of communication will ensure that everyone is updated on time and receives accurate information. Information dissemination within the company should flow seamlessly and quickly, no matter how many remote offices are involved. Consider having one point of contact within each office, responsible for keeping important information flowing to ensure every team or office is kept in the loop.
- Document and standardize your operating procedures
Every aspect of your business operations is important enough to record. Whether it concerns planning work schedules, participating in community events, handling customer complaints, sorting out inventory, daily managing your employees, or office procedures, it’s important to codify or document everything. Of course, this sounds like a hectic task, but the information will be helpful for the workers you hire for any new office. The info will also help those who keep your business running day to day. Moreover, you can easily create an operational handbook from the documentation process to guide each new worker.
- Embrace new technology
Technology is already doing a lot for remote working, and you can bring its many benefits to your management process. The reason most people can now work from almost anywhere is because of the solid internet connections now available to the modern business world. Also, several helpful applications are available, allowing people to communicate effectively despite distance limitations. You can embrace technology similarly to how remote workers have, by equipping your distant staff members with all the online tools and applications they need. Digital courses, like the itil v4 foundation course for example, are a fantastic way to do this, as they offer cheaper courses and flexible learning processes. Foundation courses mean that learning is available even for less qualified employees, allowing you to quickly and effectively upskill your team.
Failing to embrace technology means creating more work for yourself as a manager and piling pressure on yourself. While some unique tech solutions are available, you can also invest in basic ones requiring little financial commitment and expertise. For example, you can find various project management tools and CRM tools usable by all team members regardless of their location.
- Establish stable network connectivity for all your remote offices or branches
Stable connectivity is the foundation for seamless communication between your branches. With the help of connectivity experts, you can establish a robust Wide Area Network (WAN). This will provide a direct communication mechanism between a satellite office and multiple branches. Unlike a Local Area Network (LAN), WAN is designed to bridge the gap between great distances ensuring exceptional communication.
You can also implement secure and reliable networking technologies like a Virtual Private Network (VPN) dedicated to a leased line to create a more private and secure connection between your main office and the remote branches. But remember to monitor and maintain your network connectivity to keep unplanned disruptions at the barest minimum.
You can also invest in tech solutions like a throw down converter to support remote connectivity. It can extend the reach of fiber optic connections, enabling reliable communication over longer distances.
- Create an effective way to manage company logistics, inventory, and assets
Dealing with logistics issues can be problematic when managing multiple offices, so take it into account before taking any step. Start by understanding or determining all your logistical expenses. For example, would you have to move your inventory to a new office or branch? How far away is that branch from the main office and how much will it cost you to move the inventory over that distance? Will workers in the new branches visit the main office, and how often? How much will their commute or transportation back and forth cost your business? You may also have to disperse company assets across the various offices, so determine an effective way to track them without visiting each office. Thankfully, several tracking software solutions can help you monitor your inventory, access damages and repair issues from the central office.
- Do your best to avoid micromanagement
Many employers believe micromanaging their teams is the best way to ensure their vision is executed with the highest accuracy. But micromanagement most often backfires, especially because it demoralizes your team and makes them feel incompetent or incapable of handling tasks without your direct input. In effect, your team will end up becoming less productive than they should. Even worse, micromanaging puts a bigger burden of responsibility on your shoulders as the manager. You’ll have little time to get important managerial tasks done as you’ll be busy trying to ‘helicopter’ over your workers, which is time-consuming, energy-draining, and stressful.
Instead of micromanaging, learn to trust your employees. After all, you hired them because you were convinced they could handle the tasks their job requires.
When you trust your employees enough to let them work you’ll create a culture of transparency hinging on mutual trust. That alone can motivate your workers to give their best. Also, operate with an open-door policy, encouraging your workers to come to you whenever they need assistance. If you don’t trust your team enough (especially those in the remote branches), it’s best you start reconsidering your hiring or recruitment process. But resisting the urge to micromanage does not mean you should always let your workers do as they please, which leads to the next point.
- Don’t be an absent manager
If you’re managing multiple offices, it’s important to put in extra effort to make your presence felt in all the locations. Admittedly, that’s easier said than done, particularly when you already have a lot on your managerial plate. But try to be more present in meetings, whether online or in person. Create a visiting schedule that allows you to pop up in the various offices once in a while. It’s even best if you visit unannounced, as that can keep your workers on their toes. Also, take a proactive approach to how you communicate with your workers. Since regular face-to-face meetings will be limited, do your best to reach out and create a formal structure to remain in contact.
- Establish a clear chain of command
The more workers you have to manage, the greater your need for an organizational structure. Fortunately, establishing a clear chain of command can help with streamlining decision-making across the various offices and enhance overall efficiency. Have a well-defined hierarchy in place, clearly stating what reporting structures your employees should follow. It goes without saying that you need competent people occupying the right positions in your chain of command. This way, not every decision-making process needs to come to you, as subordinates can handle them with your backing. That will quicken operations and prevent unnecessary delays.
Also, try not to create a long chain of command with too many authoritative or managerial positions, as that will only slow down work progress. Clarity is also crucial, as it prevents confusion and misunderstanding allowing workers to carry out orders swiftly and effectively. With a clear chain of command, information dissemination will be seamless, and you’ll be able to enforce accountability and minimize conflicts.
- Adopt cloud-based solutions
It helps to have a central or unified platform accessible from almost anywhere if you’re managing multiple office locations. This will ensure all your branches remain connected and up to date about relevant information and that data remains consistent across the board.
Several cloud-based software solutions are available, offering many advantages like operational flexibility, cost efficiency, and better scalability. You can easily tweak accessibility options whenever necessary. Moreover, most cloud-based software solutions come with automatic updates, so your system will remain up to date without any extra effort on your part.
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