Maltego's Ben April on Using Commander's Intent for Remote Team Success

When Ben April started managing remote teams in 2005, the concept was nearly unheard of. Now, as CTO of Maltego, he brings nearly two decades of distributed team leadership experience, which he shares with David in this episode of The Future of Threat Intelligence. From implementing Commander's Intent for clear direction to ensuring mental health support during the pandemic, Ben brings practical wisdom about building strong remote cultures that transcend time zones and technology challenges.

His unique perspective on hybrid versus fully remote environments reveals why seemingly simple choices about communication tools and meeting structures can make or break team cohesion. Drawing from experiences that span from the early days of remote work through the global pandemic and beyond, Ben has invaluable insights about preventing burnout, maintaining work-life boundaries, and fostering genuine connection in distributed teams.

Topics discussed:

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• Establishing effective communication protocols across multiple time zones while preventing isolation and maintaining team cohesion.
• Managing the unique challenges of hybrid work environments versus fully remote teams, including the risk of excluding remote team members.
• Developing strategies for monitoring and supporting remote employees' mental health.
• Building strong remote team cultures through regular video connections, virtual social activities, and periodic in-person gatherings.
• Adapting leadership methodologies to effectively manage distributed teams while maintaining clear lines of communication.
• Identifying key characteristics and qualities when hiring for remote positions, including self-motivation and adaptability.
• Leveraging follow-the-sun operations for enhanced productivity and continuous coverage across global time zones.
• Balancing the benefits of remote work flexibility with the need for face-to-face collaboration and team building.
• Creating dedicated workspaces and establishing clear work-life boundaries to prevent burnout in remote work settings.
• Implementing Commander's Intent leadership strategy to empower remote teams in making autonomous decisions aligned with organizational goals.

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Key Takeaways:

• Prioritize video communication to maintain human connection and monitor team wellbeing in remote environments.
• Focus on building inclusive communication practices that prevent hybrid environments from creating two-tier team structures.
• Schedule regular face-to-face meetings to strengthen team bonds and align on strategic objectives.
• Create opportunities for non-work social interaction to maintain team cohesion across remote environments.
• Look for self-motivated candidates with strong communication skills when hiring for remote positions.
• Leverage global time zones strategically for enhanced operational coverage and team handoffs.
• Establish dedicated workspaces and clear boundaries between work and personal life to prevent remote work burnout.
• Implement Commander's Intent to provide clear direction while allowing remote teams autonomy in decision-making.

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The other thing we talk a lot about in terms of tools and management process is that life balance. How do you set the expectations? How do you establish a life balance? As a leader, you gotta take time off. If your people are remote and they don't see you take time off, they see you, they have the same signal that everybody else has in terms of when you answer emails. And that's something as a remote employee, you start paying more attention to. If you're showing them that you don't take time off, they're not going to take time off.”