⚙️ Ops Playbook #62

Hey Operators ⚙️ 

If you think managing an international remote team is like herding a local office crew, you’re in for a major shock. It’s more than just mastering Slack lingo, so this time it’s all about techniques to make online team management easier.

Here’s what we have this week:

• Building teams in different time zones → Getting everyone on the same page (or calendar, rather).

• How To Handle Conflicts In Virtual Teams → Bridging rifts between team members, even when they’re a world apart.

• Follow-The-Sun Model For 24/7 Support And Service → For a business that never sleeps.

Ready? Let’s dive in 👇

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What’s Inside:

It’s free. It’s simple. I just want to know if this actually helps. If it makes things clearer for you, maybe I’ll make more of these courses. And if it doesn’t—no biggie, honestly. I just don’t want others to struggle through this the hard way like I did.

If you’re interested, click yes on the poll below.

I. Building teams in different time zones

Insight from ScrumMastered.

Okay, let’s face it: managing a team spread across different time zones can feel like trying to solve a Rubik's Cube while blindfolded. It's confusing, and a bit frustrating, and if you’re not careful, you’re going to make things worse than when you first started.

The best way to handle time zone differences is to create teams based on location. Now, when forming teams, you’re going to look for several criteria—skills, relationships, level of seniority, etc. 

But if you’re building a remote team, it’s time to add time zones to that growing list. It doesn’t matter if each of your new international hires is a rockstar at what they do.

If they can’t communicate and collaborate effectively with one another, your operations are going to suffer tremendously. 

If you’re from the US, and are looking to hire based on time zones, here are a few regions to consider:

• Eastern Europe: Countries like Poland and Hungary can align well with both Western Europe and parts of the USA. Plus, they have some pretty skilled professionals!

• Latin America: Places like Colombia and Argentina can fit nicely into U.S. time zones, making them great for collaboration without a major lag.

• South East Asia: Look at hiring from countries like the Philippines or Vietnam if you need to align with Australia or the Pacific time zones. Just remember, they might be starting their day when you’re wrapping yours!

• Western Europe: If you’re based in the U.S. but want to connect with Europe, consider Portugal or Spain. They’re in the same time zone as the UK and can overlap well with Eastern U.S. time zones.

This goes above and beyond the hiring process too. If you already have a team working for you, you can create subteams.

Each subteam can have its sync-ups, making coordination smoother. Regular check-ins among subteams can help keep everyone aligned without the headache of scheduling a massive meeting where half the team is snoozing.

Here are a few other things to consider when it comes to time management.

• Availability. Set a standard for when everyone should be online (e.g., 10 AM to 3 PM EST is prime time for meetings). Try to hold this at least once or twice a week. One for actual work updates to keep everyone on the same page. Make the other happy hour to keep team morale high.

• Create time-synced shared calendars. It’s very easy to create a shared calendar with similar time zones. My favorite tool for this is Google Calendar. It’s easy-to-use, but most importantly, it’s FREE! Use this to schedule important meetings and deadlines, so no one else has to worry about time zone conversion.

• Map out overlapping work hours. Identify overlapping work hours. Ideally, aim for at least five to six hours where team members can work simultaneously. This way, they can ask questions, have productive meetings, and avoid the dreaded “Did you get my email?” saga.

Now, I’m not saying that you should make time zone and location a major part of your hiring criteria. 

But when 20% of remote workers cite time zone differences as a major hurdle to teamwork, then it might be time to update your job listings.

II. How to handle conflicts in virtual teams

Insight from Chad Littlefield.

Running a virtual team is all fun and games—until someone starts a 20-email rant on Slack. Then you’re knee-deep in digital drama, wondering if remote work was such a great idea after all. Fear not, operations managers! 

With the “Ask Powerful Questions” pyramid approach, you can turn potential team meltdowns into actual productive conversations. Here’s how to handle conflict like a pro, without needing to turn off your notifications and hide.

Level 1: Embrace the Drama – Encourage Conflict, Not Combat

Believe it or not, a little disagreement is a good thing. Conflict is where all the fun ideas come from. Combat, though? That’s the stuff of long, awkward Zoom calls and email chains that could sink a battleship.

So here’s the deal: encourage your team to disagree with each other—but keep it respectful. No personal digs, no “gotcha” moments. Think of it as hosting a debate club, not a WWE smackdown. 

Start a meeting by asking, “What’s the difference between conflict and combat to you?” (Bonus points if you use the WWE metaphor.) It sets the tone for respectful disagreements where ideas clash, not egos.

Level 2: Build Rapport – “I See You” (Yes, Even Through the Screen)

Here’s your new mantra: “Never continue angry.” You know how little things, like “that one snarky email,” can snowball into “full-blown feud over a typo”? Yeah, let’s avoid that.

When tensions rise, shift from “I already know they’re out to get me” mode to “Maybe I should find out what’s going on.” Encourage curiosity. 

And hey, it’s easy to fixate on proving your point (we’ve all been there), but try focusing on understanding theirs first. It’s a conflict diffuser and, frankly, a lot faster than typing your fifth follow-up email.

Level 3: Openness – Skip the “Why” Interrogations

A word of wisdom: in virtual land, “Why?” questions are like lit matches—one flick and you’re in hot water. Skip the “Why did you do that?” and go with “How” or “What” questions instead. 

You’re not an FBI agent trying to get a confession; you’re just trying to understand.

Take a page from companies like Buffer, who are pros at remote work culture. They set up “Watercooler Wednesdays” to get their team chatting about non-work stuff. 

Why? 

Because it helps folks build connections so that when conflict does pop up, people have the rapport to handle it calmly. Basically, it’s like friendship insurance for when things get tense.

Level 4: Listening – Up the Bandwidth, Folks

If you’re dealing with virtual conflict through text alone, congratulations! You’ve chosen the hardest possible way to handle it. Look, if things are spiraling on Slack, step it up a notch. Add emojis if you’re feeling wild, or better yet, switch to a call. 

If that’s not enough, jump on a video chat, and if that’s still not working, well… maybe it’s time to stand outside someone’s house and throw pebbles at the window.

The point is: when texts get tense, don’t keep arguing via keystrokes. Take the initiative to say, “Hey, let’s hop on a 15-minute call so we don’t end up in a never-ending Slack saga.” It’s faster, clearer, and honestly, a sanity-saver.

Level 5: Empathy – Merge Your Worlds (Even If It’s Just for a Zoom Call)

Finally, a big part of managing conflict remotely is realizing everyone’s living a different version of reality outside the camera frame. 

Just because you’re in the same Zoom call doesn’t mean you’re in the same mental space. Start your meetings with a “What’s behind your door?” question. It’s basically saying, “What’s your vibe today?”

You can take it as literally as you want (“There’s a toddler meltdown in progress just off-screen”) or go deeper (“I’m a bit out of it today because of a personal thing”). It’s a quick way to get everyone on the same wavelength, build empathy, and dodge misinterpretations.

Because nothing says “Let’s connect” like knowing you’re both being chased around by your respective dogs or dealing with dodgy Wi-Fi.

Virtual conflict management is all about channeling that energy from “someone’s definitely muting me on purpose” to “we’re actually figuring stuff out.” 

By building a culture that’s okay with conflict, not afraid to address it, and equipped with actual human empathy, you’ll find that disagreements turn into opportunities for growth—not memes about passive-aggressive email wars. 

III. Follow-The-Sun model for 24/7 support and service

Insight from Zendesk.

There are many advantages to building a team with people from around the world. One of my favorites is that it can help you operate round the clock with the Follow The Sun model.

While you’re shutting down your laptop at 5 PM, someone on the other side of the world is cracking their knuckles, ready to tackle the tickets that came in during your day. No downtime, no “sorry, we’re closed,” just round-the-clock, top-notch support. 

It’s a dream for customers and a powerful way for companies to stay competitive.

But how do you actually make it work without losing your mind—or worse, your team? Let’s get into some tips for executing this model effectively.

First things first—hire strategically. And I can’t stress enough how important this is. You can’t “follow the sun” if your team members are over 12 hours apart.

Think about key time zones that will allow you to pass off work seamlessly throughout the day. Typically, a solid Follow The Sun model involves people based in three key regions:

1. Americas: Covering the west to east coast, your American team can handle the first wave of the workday.

2. EMEA (Europe, Middle East, Africa): This region takes over from the Americas, ensuring that when one team sleeps, another takes over.

3. APAC (Asia-Pacific): Covering the other side of the clock, this team keeps the business running during U.S. nighttime hours.

As a rule of thumb, your APAC team can begin to pick up the slack in the afternoon hours of EMEA. Each team only needs to cover a standard workday, but when they pass the baton, it’s like hitting “refresh” on your operations.

When passing the baton to someone (which could be an unresolved customer issue or a mystery project update), you need to be strategic.

Every time a team “closes up shop” for the day, there should be a simple process for them to document key updates, priorities, and anything that still needs attention. Consider these things:

• Daily standups with recordings: If teams aren’t able to sync up live, have them record a daily wrap-up of completed tasks and what’s pending. These recordings can be reviewed by the incoming team.

• Standardized documentation: Keep notes in a clear, standard format so no one needs a decoder ring to understand them. You can use collaborative tools like Notion, Confluence, or good old Google Docs.

• Priority flags: Use priority flags for urgent tasks or bugs that the next team should tackle first thing.

Think of it as a “shift change” at a hospital (minus the coffee IV drip). The smoother this handoff, the less gets lost, and the happier your customers are.

The Follow The Sun model sounds amazing, but it’s only as good as the people behind it. This model can make it tempting to reach out to “off-duty” team members for little questions, but don’t fall into that trap. 

Stick to the model’s structure and respect their hours. Your team will appreciate it, and you’ll reduce burnout—a win-win.

Are you there? 👋

I know you’re there. Don’t be a stranger. I’d love to chat with you. Feel free to respond directly to this email with any questions, comments or funny stories you have.

Later,

Rameel from The Bottleneck

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