The first step is to clearly chalk out a “communication plan” that acts as a steady stream of valuable information and addresses key areas such as: short- and long-term goals, individual/team job roles and work breakdown structure, performance areas, management expectations, and constructive assessment. While this may sound like a lot of work, it’s worth the effort. It doesn’t really matter if you are a million dollar company or a small enterprise – structure is essential to any kind of communication, especially remote project communication. So our suggestion? Follow a simple three-step process to reap the real benefits of communicating effectively:

First off, decide what makes sense, how much makes sense, and choose your dose/work load.

Then, opt your preferred execution model – be it Agile or Waterfall – and move onto identifying gates where communication is needed.

Finally, define the communication frequency, assign ownership, and make sure to follow through.

Say you’re talking to a German employee and narrating the story about “gifting” something to a colleague. Later you come to know that “gift” in German actually translates to “poison.” One can only imagine the kind of misunderstanding that will ensue. Let’s take another example. You write mails to your Japanese colleague without adding the word “San.” Later, you earn yourself the reputation of being rude. Confused? It’s possibly because “San” in the Japanese culture is customarily added after people’s names as a mark of respect.

Let’s look at an example from the context of Indian work culture. We all know that Indian employees typically have a hard time saying “no” for anything – especially when it comes to work. Blame it on the Asian work ethic (that’s revered all over the world). The result? Employees end up agreeing to a meeting at inconvenient times – and often at the cost of personal expense. But this does not necessarily have to be so. A slight cultural sensitivity in terms of thinking can lead to a work culture that’s considerate and empathetic. In short, the best of both worlds if you ask us.

The point we’re driving here? Simple: It’s is extremely important to understand your team’s subtle ethnic nuances and work with a sense of cultural sensitivity or you’ll find yourself jumping at the deep end – with dire consequences, of course!