Agile Remote Teams vs. Presence Teams

Which is better: home office or presence? Entrepreneurs Grupp and Maschmeyer have recently been vocal in the media about their opinions. Whether remote or on-site: Both have different requirements. A sticking point with remote and hybrid solutions: If collaboration is to be digitized, a rethink has to take place. At the moment, we usually work with countless communication channels and isolated solutions. A mix of email, chat, meetings, documents, etc. In order to make collaboration more effective here, we need to take an individual approach and, above all, differentiate between: are we networking people or information?

“Transparency is the death of any unhappy dynamic. It leaves no room for politics - and that is the decisive factor!” - Rainer Borg

Rainer Borg has dedicated himself to Scaled Agile Collaboration and organizational development in software and product development after a decade in consulting and as CEO of a startup. With his expertise in Scaled Agile Enterprise architectures, he enables the application of agility principles in individual teams up to entire enterprise groups. His passion is to lead organizations through change processes by creating structures that both support management in coping with complexity and encourage active co-creation by employees.

Highlights of this episode:

• We discuss whether remote teams or co-located teams are more effective
• Rainer explains how digital collaboration can make teams more effective by connecting knowledge rather than people
• It is emphasized that transparency in digital collaboration is important to promote a positive work culture
• Rainer shares examples of how Jira can become a central platform for collaboration with certain plugins
• We talk about the role of middle management in the digital transformation of teams
• Rainer gives tips on how to start a movement towards more effective digital collaboration in your organization

Changing world of work: How remote teams can work more effectively

Today I’m talking to Rainer Borg about the effectiveness of agile remote teams compared to traditional on-site teams. With exciting insights and practical examples, we discuss how modern collaboration technologies can revolutionize the world of work.

The future of work

Today I spoke to Rainer Borg about a hot topic: the effectiveness of agile remote teams compared to on-site teams. Rainer makes a strong case that under the right conditions, remote teams can work more efficiently than their locally collaborating counterparts. This discussion couldn’t be more timely as the world continues to explore the benefits and challenges of remote working.

The controversy surrounding remote working

Rainer’s comments reflect how controversial the topic of remote working currently is. He mentions interesting perspectives from leaders such as Wolfgang Grupp and Carsten Maschmeyer, who have different views on the value of working from home. This discussion shows that opinions on the effectiveness of remote working vary widely and highlights the need for a deeper understanding of how virtual teams can best function.

Why remote can work better

The core idea behind Rainer’s argument is that traditional working methods may not be a good fit for the demands of remote collaboration. He explains that old habits, such as email communication and underutilization of collaboration tools, are inefficient when simply transferred to a digital format. Instead, Rainer emphasizes the need to reform the way we handle information and collaboration - a transformation that requires true digitalization.

Practical examples of effective remote collaboration

Part of our conversation was dedicated to specific examples of successful agile remote teams. Rainer describes how a productive working environment can be created through a targeted restructuring of information networking and the use of specialized tools such as Jira or IBM RTC. These tools enable teams to communicate on a topic-based rather than person-centered basis and to manage information efficiently.

The transformation of middle management

Another crucial aspect is the role of middle management in the new world of work. Rainer argues that this role needs to be transformed - away from being an information broker and towards being a real leader who encourages and supports their team. This change requires a mental shift for both managers and their teams and is a key component for the success of agile methods.

How to stimulate change

Finally, Rainer gave some practical tips on how to launch initiatives for more agility and better digital collaboration within a company. From keynote sessions to the formation of a ‘Leading Coalition’ - there are various ways to successfully start and carry out this transformation process.