When was the last time you traveled to your remote employees’ home countries? If it was a while ago, or you can’t remember the last time you went, now’s the time to plan a trip.

This is an easily justifiable business expense. That’s because when you travel to see your employees, you’re letting them get to know you. From a business standpoint, most people will work harder when they know and like their bosses.

One of the main challenges associated with hiring remote teams? Cross-cultural confusion and differences. It’s much easier for you to learn about these cultural differences when you’re actually on the ground and surrounded by people who are a different ethnicity and/or religion.

This gives you an excellent opportunity to interact with your employees outside of the office as well. This often comes naturally when your employees are in your home country- you might go down to the bar for beers after work, or create a company rugby team. But your remote employees often miss out on these types of experiences.

If you get the chance to visit, you can enjoy this out-of-work time with your remote team, and they can introduce you to their local attractions.

While I’m a big believer in daily communication with your remote team, nothing beats being on the ground, learning about their families, and socialising with them outside of work.

Another consideration? Bringing some of your team members to your home country. If you’ve been working with someone for a few years and they’ve never visited, this can be an excellent incentive. Not to mention, it allows them to meet your team at home, building relationships between your teams.

This travel is likely to cost less than you think, and the benefits make it well worth it. If you book far enough in advance and look out for sales, you can get some great deals.

What are your thoughts? Are you planning to budget for travel in 2019?