Operating a company remotely

January 03, 2022

by a searcher from Georgetown University in Raleigh-Durham, Durham, North Carolina, USA

I'd welcome feedback from anyone who has acquired a company and successfully operated it remotely. I've found what I believe to be a great opportunity in a business that meets all of my search criteria, except that it is 2.5 hours from where I live (moving is not an option for our family).

I know the details matter in this scenario, so happy to share more specifics, but at a high level, would love to get owners' thoughts on this model based on their past experience--what worked, what didn't, what are the key elements to focus on in diligence in this scenario, etc?

Thank you!
Matt

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Reply by a searcher
from Stanford University in Sausalito, CA 94965, USA

Is the biz currently remote, or you are talking about running it remote while rest of biz in in person? The biz I bought is remote and had been that way fully for 5+ years, so happy to connect on the experience of stepping into a remote biz, building rapport remotely etc, but can't speak to the transition of taking in person to remote. For context, we're 25 EE in about 12 states. Biggest takeaway for me is you just have to accept it is going to feel different than an in person biz. It will be harder and take longer to build rapport and trust. You'll always have more wonder of how you are landing on your team - harder to read people over Zoom than in person etc etc. If you try to make the remote biz feel in person, I think that fails. People who want to work for remote companies are opting in - so we don't overschedule happy hours etc - we want to make sure we honor the flexibility people want in choosing to work for a remote biz. Feel free to reach out with more questions - redacted

Reply by an investor
from University of Nebraska in Austin, TX, USA

Really depends on the structure of the organization and what's needed for your business (Is there a COO/head of ops running day-to-day?). If you have an operational lead on the ground and you've implemented enough systems/processes, you absolutely could run remote. Look into entrepreneurial operating systems like OKR and EOS - these are frameworks that if implemented with your team can help you achieve this remote management capability you are looking for (but will take time and effort to get there). Most owners who've went from 'in the business' to managing the business remotely it usually cost them at least a senior headcount + at least a year to implement processes/tools (businesses in the $5-20M rev range).

We have more tools available to monitor/manage/execute than we've ever had before, find what you need and make it happen. So it's more than just possible...it's really a function of cost, time, and effectiveness in my opinion. Good luck!!

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