Managing remote and hybrid teams: a course for managers

For managers and team leads of remote and hybrid staff: set clear expectations, manage fairly across locations and avoid the wage-and-hour, accommodation and expense mistakes that remote work invites.

For: Managers, team leaders and supervisors of remote and hybrid staff in any US industry, including new managers and experienced leaders adapting to distributed teams

  • 2 contact hours
  • 6 modules
  • 8 interactives
  • 4 job aids
  • Updated October 11, 2026

What you will be able to do

  • Distinguish federal law, agency guidance, state law and employer policy that apply to remote and hybrid teams, and identify which questions to route to HR, payroll or legal.
  • Set outcome-based expectations, a written team agreement and a communication cadence that work across locations and time zones.
  • Apply fair, evidence-based performance and recognition practices that counter proximity bias.
  • Apply FLSA hours-worked, break, meal-period and lactation rules to remote nonexempt employees, including after-hours messages.
  • Respond to telework accommodation requests and signs of isolation or burnout in line with the ADA, EEOC guidance and company policy.
  • Plan remote onboarding, reinforce data security basics, and recognize state expense-reimbursement and work-location issues that need HR or payroll.

Learn how to lead a team you don't see every day. You will set outcome-based expectations and a written team agreement, build a communication rhythm that works across time zones, run fair one-on-ones and reviews, and plan remote onboarding that gets new hires productive fast.

Built for managers, team leads and supervisors with remote, hybrid or mixed teams. Each module follows a realistic US manager, Renata, through the problems remote teams actually hit: after-hours chat, a parent who needs pumping breaks, a home-office expense question from California, a telework accommodation request and a promotion shaped by who sits near the boss.

Most management courses stop at communication tips. This one also separates federal law, agency guidance, state law and company policy, so you know which rules are binding under the Fair Labor Standards Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act, which change by state, and exactly when to hand a question to HR, payroll or legal.

What you’ll be able to do Monday morning

  1. Turn off after-hours chat notifications for nonexempt staff and start using scheduled send.
  2. Rewrite one role description as three to five measurable outcomes and share it with the employee.
  3. Draft a one-page team agreement on channels, response times and core hours for HR to review.
  4. Start an opportunity log to track who gets stretch assignments, by work location.
  5. Route any request that links a health condition to a work change to HR the same day.
  6. List each team member's work state and ask HR which expense and wage rules apply there.

Curriculum

6 modules · 24 lessons · about 2 contact hours

01What actually changes when your team works remotely or hybrid?Free preview14 min
  1. Which remote and hybrid model are you actually running?
  2. Law, guidance or policy: what kind of rule is this?
  3. What should you decide, and what should you route?
  4. How do you explain the company's remote-work policy to your team?
  • Sort activity: Law, guidance, state law or policy?

Diagram · In practice checklist · 2-question knowledge check

02How do you set expectations and team agreements that work across locations?14 min
  1. Why do outcomes beat hours and online status?
  2. What goes into a team agreement?
  3. How do you make office days worth the commute?
  4. How should communication cadence and async work run?
  • Spot the issue: Spot the problems in a draft team agreement

Diagram · In practice checklist · 2-question knowledge check

03How do you manage performance and fairness when you can't see people work?15 min
  1. What is proximity bias, and why does it matter legally?
  2. How do you run fair performance conversations remotely?
  3. Should you use monitoring software to build trust?
  4. How do you give recognition and development fairly?
  • Ethics dilemma: Filling the senior account role

Diagram · In practice checklist · 2-question knowledge check

04Which wage-and-hour and expense rules trip up remote managers?16 min
  1. Who is nonexempt, and what counts as hours worked at home?
  2. What are the rules for breaks, meal periods and lactation at home?
  3. Do you have to reimburse home-office expenses?
  4. What about FMLA, recordkeeping and after-hours messages?
  • State rules selector: Expense reimbursement rules by state
  • Decision tree: Must this remote time be recorded and paid?
  • Branching scenario: A week with the after-hours chat

Diagram · In practice checklist · 2-question knowledge check

05How do you handle accommodation requests, isolation and burnout?15 min
  1. When is a telework request an ADA accommodation request?
  2. How is the decision made, and what about essential functions?
  3. How do you notice isolation and burnout on a remote team?
  4. What about flexibility requests that are not about disability?
  • Self-assessment: Remote manager self-assessment

Diagram · In practice checklist · 2-question knowledge check

06How do you onboard remote hires and keep company data safe?14 min
  1. What does a strong remote onboarding plan include?
  2. What data security basics should remote managers reinforce?
  3. How do you put it all together in a remote-work routine?
  4. How do you build connection and belonging across locations?
  • Spot the issue: Spot the problems in a manager's email

Diagram · In practice checklist · 2-question knowledge check

Final assessment: 23 questions, 75% to pass, then your certificate

Try it now, no account needed

A week with the after-hours chat

A branching scenario from this course. Your choices are not saved.

Free sample activity

A week with the after-hours chat

You manage Kofi, a nonexempt support specialist working from home. His shift ends at 5 p.m. You notice he often replies in team chat late into the evening.

Inside the course

Practice activities

  • Sort activity1
  • Spot the issue2
  • Ethics dilemma1
  • State rules selector1
  • Decision tree1
  • Self-assessment1
  • Branching scenario1

Job aids you keep

  • Remote and Hybrid Team Manager ChecklistChecklist
  • Remote and Hybrid Work Policy StarterPolicy starter
  • Remote Team Scenario WorksheetWorksheet
  • State Quick-Reference for Remote TeamsReference sheet

Credit and approval status

Certificate of completion

This course awards a certificate of completion for 2 contact hours of instruction. It is not approved or accredited by any licensing board, state agency, professional certifying body or continuing education accreditor, and it does not award SHRM or HRCI recertification credit at this time. Your employer or professional body decides whether this course counts toward any training or development requirement. Check with them before relying on it.

Pathways we may pursue include SHRM professional development credits, HRCI recertification credits and IACET-aligned continuing education units. None of these approvals exists today; the course page will show an approval only after it is granted.

Our full approvals list

State notes

Remote and hybrid work brings state law into play wherever your employees actually work. Federal law (the FLSA, ADA and FMLA) sets the floor, and states add their own rules. Key areas to check with HR, payroll or employment counsel:

  • Expense reimbursement: California (Labor Code 2802), Illinois (820 ILCS 115/9.5), Iowa (Iowa Code 91A.3(6)), New Hampshire (RSA 275:57), Montana (MCA 39-2-701), North Dakota (NDCC 34-02-01) and South Dakota (SDCL 60-2-1) require reimbursement of necessary or authorized work expenses in some form. Other states have narrower rules or none beyond the federal minimum-wage floor.
  • Overtime, meal and rest breaks: several states, including California, require paid rest breaks and meal periods and some set daily overtime. Federal rules (29 CFR 785.18 and 785.19) apply everywhere.
  • Electronic monitoring notice: some states, including New York, Connecticut and Delaware, require notice before employers monitor employees electronically.
  • Payroll and tax: working in a new state can require payroll registration, state income tax withholding and unemployment insurance changes, and can create tax nexus for the employer.
  • Leave and accommodation: many states have paid sick leave, family leave, and disability or pregnancy accommodation laws that reach smaller employers than federal law.

This course does not provide a state edition. Your company's employment counsel should review state-specific practices, and you should confirm the rules for each state where your team works.

Questions about this course

Does this course give SHRM or HRCI credit?

Not at this time. The course awards a certificate of completion for 2 contact hours of instruction. It is not approved or accredited by SHRM, HRCI, IACET or any state agency. We may pursue those approvals in the future, and the course page will show any approval only after it is granted. Check with your employer or professional body whether they accept this certificate.

Who is this course for?

Managers, team leads and supervisors who lead remote, hybrid or mixed teams in any US industry. It suits new managers and experienced leaders adjusting to distributed work. HR generalists who coach managers will also find the legal sections and job aids useful.

Does it cover my state's laws?

It covers federal rules in depth and explains where state law commonly differs, including expense reimbursement, break rules, monitoring notice and payroll registration, with examples from states such as California and Illinois. It is not a state edition. Use the state quick-reference and confirm details with HR or employment counsel.

How long does it take?

About two hours, including six modules, interactive exercises, short knowledge checks and a final assessment of 23 questions. You can pause and resume at any time. You need 75 percent on the final assessment to earn the certificate, and you can review the modules before retaking it.

Is this legal advice?

No. The course explains how federal law, agency guidance, state law and company policy fit together so you can spot issues and route them correctly. It does not replace your company's policies or advice from HR, payroll or employment counsel, who should review state-specific practices.

What do I get at the end?

A certificate of completion showing the course title, 2 contact hours and your completion date, plus downloadable job aids: a manager checklist, a remote-work policy starter, a scenario worksheet and a state quick-reference. You will also receive three short follow-up questions over the next month to help the learning stick.

This course is general education and training awareness from CE Courses Hub on managing remote and hybrid teams. It is not legal or professional advice and does not replace your employer's policies or advice from HR, payroll or employment counsel. Completing it earns a certificate of completion for the stated contact hours; it is not approved or accredited by any licensing board, state agency or accreditor unless an approval is shown on the course page. Check with your employer or professional body whether this course meets your specific requirement.