Realistic expectations for remote ownership

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by a searcher from The University of Chicago - Booth School of Business
in California, USA

1yr ago

Realistic expectations for remote ownership

I am considering options where I might manage a business that are not located in my geo. I get that this definitely won't work for some businesses (say local plumbing) and definitely would work for a fully remote operation (say ecommerce) but this is somewhere in between

The current business I am looking develops and sells (DTC) a tech product, and is very closely aligned to my background. Maybe 70% of the team works out of the office, with increasing remote employees post COVID. Most of the work could be done anywhere (exception being fulfillmentredactedMost of my unique value will be in sales, marketing, and product management, which do not need to be in the office, though of course I realize the critical value of in-person relationships, culture development, and leadership. There are established managers, and most of them are in the office.

My current thought is that i would spend one week a month onsite for the first year and then taper down. That would help me learn the business, build relationships, and initiate any initial changes. I might hire a local office manager to ensure there is someone to be boots on the ground overall (beyond function leaders)

Does anyone have experience working a model like this? Is this a reasonable plan or am I being naive?

Thanks!

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reply by a searcher 1yr ago
from Boston College in Maine, USA

More time will be needed onsite for the first 6-12 months until you get a better understanding of how the business operates, build trust with your team, etc. Identifying an internal candidate to eventually promote to a GM-role will be critical in allowing you to work remotely with infrequent visits to the office.

reply by a searcher 1yr ago
from The University of Chicago in Santiago de Chile, Región Metropolitana, Chile

I would encourage you to go onsite at least 3 days a week every week for the first year, if during that year you feel you can skip a week or two is a different story, but if you cannot commit to the first year I think it might not be the best deal for you.