With the understanding that global talent can offer the same dedication, trust, and productivity as domestic hires, US companies are becoming more open to embracing global remote team culture. This system gives finance leaders access to worldwide talent pools, more extensive time zone coverage, and financial savings and benefits. Data even shows that organizations that allow workers to work remotely grow 1.7x faster than those that demand in-office time. But bringing together people from all over the world, with unique backgrounds and experiences, may start off janky. Building a remote finance team that operates like everyone is coming into an office in-person, is fully connected, and completely accountable requires purposeful structure, open communication, and intentional integration. Here’s how to do it.
Build Communication Rhythms That Create Connection
The distinction between a remote team that operates effectively and one that succeeds is cadence. Communication cannot be allowed to chance – it must be built with intention.
Daily or weekly team stand-ups can help align priorities and identify blockers early. Async tools like Loom, Slack, and Notion will open lines for connection and provide clarity. Standardized hand-off rituals can provide continuity to ensure that work can flow across geographies and timezones.
The objective is not more meetings, but better rituals with intent. Consistency builds trust. Trust builds culture. And culture is what makes the remote accounting team feel in-house.
A key requirement for MAVI talent is the ability to communicate effectively. Our talents are highly proficient in English, and are always encouraged to over-communicate with stakeholders for maximum transparency.
Make Culture Part of the Operating System
Remote teams dissolve when communication becomes strictly transactional. To cultivate a sense of belonging, you must create opportunities and share time together that is not organized around a task.
Have virtual huddles to review finance. Commemorate wins from month-end tasks. Share success updates, personal successes, and learning. When possible, utilize video for these communications since face time will always build familiarity better than an email thread.
Culture is not the perks an organization offers; it’s shared values, expectations, and wins. When remote professionals feel that they are seen, included, and valued, they perform better.
With MAVI’s embedded model, talent don’t work in isolation, they join your Slack, your rituals, your workflows, and your culture. They operate as real team members, not outsourced help. Our talent have experience working with fast-paced US teams, so they can easily adopt your culture (and we rigorously vet for that as well).
Use the Right Tools to Enable True Collaboration
A robust global finance team relies on technology that provides visibility, transparency, and speed. Leverage tools that can integrate, provide real-time updates, and assign clear accountability.
Cloud-based platforms provide the ability to collaborate regardless of where the team is located. Shared dashboards offer visibility to work in progress, deadlines, and bottlenecks. Documented standard operating procedures keep processes uniform as your team's size grows.
The idea is not about using every tool available but creating a cohesive, connected ecosystem where everyone can behave without a lack of clarity and autonomy. MAVI supports this through its VDI, which provides all the necessary tools your talent needs to work and stay connected, including Microsoft 365 apps, Whatsapp, and Zoom.
Build Trust Through Accountability and Support
A remote accounting team flourishes with leadership that is positive about balancing autonomy and support. Set your expectations, performance measures, and timelines, and then trust people to be accountable to you for the outcome.
Replace the habit of micromanaging your team by conducting check-ins, establishing success measurements, and implementing transparency as a feedback loop.
MAVI has your back – MAVI coordinates quality assurance and alignment in the background, so your environment is built on trust and accountability, without you having to wield a heavy hand managing remote talent.
Why Building Remote Finance Teams Are the Future
Remote work isn’t a trend anymore; it’s the new operating model for high-performing finance functions. It unlocks efficiency, talent diversity, time-zone leverage, and operational maturity. But the outcome shouldn’t be a scattered team – it should be a unified one.
When companies build a remote finance team with intention, structure, and culture, geography stops mattering. The finance team becomes an extension of the business, not an external support function.
MAVI enables this type of integration by weaving global finance and accounting talent directly into companies’ workflows, systems, and culture, enabling remote hires to function like full in-house team members working in-person and hand-in-hand from day one. Book a call to build a remote finance team that actually feels onsite today!
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you build a remote finance team that feels onsite?
You can build a remote financial team that feels like everyone is working onsite by clearly defining roles and responsibilities, creating communication routines and cadences, embedding talent into your culture, and using collaborative cloud-based technology. The key is intentional structure, regardless of the location of your team members. MAVI was built to help scaling companies create and nurture in-house teams through its network of deeply vetted, US-caliber accounting talent.
What tools are best for managing remote finance teams?
Cloud-based accounting platforms, workflow tools, and communication software such as Slack, Notion, and QuickBooks allow remote financial teams to work collaboratively without losing quality of work or communication and results. Choose technology that enhances visibility, documentation, and integration. MAVI can help you maximize remote-friendly tools through its secure VDI, which is designed for productivity and transparency.
Can a remote accounting team be as effective as an onsite team?
Yes! With the right onboarding structure, communication routines and rhythms, and structures of accountability, a remote team can work at the same – or even higher – levels of performance and alignment as an in-office team.
How does MAVI help companies manage remote finance teams?
MAVI embeds pre-vetted financial and accounting professionals into your existing systems and culture and provides ongoing oversight and performance management. This ensures that remote hires feel a part of the in-house, onsite team, are integrated, and are held accountable.
What are the challenges of managing remote finance teams?
The most common challenges with remote teams are miscommunication, lack of alignment, and cultural disconnect. These challenges can be avoided through clear ownership and accountability, structured routines and rhythms of communication, and intentional relationship-building.