Remote teams live and die by follow-through. It’s too easy for things to slip through the cracks when you’re not all in the same room. If you’re using Charma to manage action items, you’ve already got a decent head start—now let’s talk about how to actually make it work day to day.
This guide is for managers, team leads, or anyone who wants to stop chasing people for updates and start getting stuff done, minus the drama and confusion.
1. Get Clear on What an “Action Item” Actually Is
Not every note from a meeting should become an action item. If everything’s important, nothing is. In Charma, action items are meant to be clear, trackable tasks with a responsible owner and a due date.
What works: - Assign one owner per action item. If it’s “everyone’s job,” it’s no one’s job. - Write tasks so someone else could understand them a week later. “Send follow-up email to client X by Friday” beats “follow-up.” - Use due dates sparingly—only when it really matters. Otherwise, you’ll end up with a graveyard of overdue tasks.
What to skip: - Don’t use action items as a dumping ground for “nice to have” ideas. That’s what a backlog or parking lot is for. - Avoid assigning action items to groups. Charma lets you assign to people—use it.
Pro tip: If you can’t say who’s doing it and by when, it’s not an action item yet.
2. Assigning Action Items in Charma: Step-by-Step
Here’s how to actually assign tasks in Charma without making things harder than they need to be.
- During a meeting, write action items as you go. Don’t wait until the end—if something needs to get done, add it to Charma right then.
- Specify the owner. Every action item needs a name attached. No exceptions.
- Add a clear description. Enough detail so there’s no confusion later. “Draft Q2 roadmap slides by next Thursday” is good. “Slides” is not.
- Set a realistic deadline. Resist the urge to pick arbitrary dates. If timing’s unclear, leave it blank or set a follow-up to revisit.
- Tag or categorize if needed. But don’t overthink it—Charma’s filters are helpful, but you don’t need a tag for every little thing.
What works: Assign action items in the meeting, while everyone’s attention is on the task. This cuts down on post-meeting confusion.
What doesn’t: Waiting until the end of the week to “clean up” action items. You’ll forget details, and so will everyone else.
3. Tracking Progress Without Micromanaging
Remote teams hate feeling watched, but you also can’t afford to let things slide. Charma’s dashboard helps, but it’s only as good as you make it.
Best practices: - Review action items weekly as a team. No need to call people out—just run through what’s open, what’s done, and what’s stuck. - Use comments, not email, for updates. Charma lets you add notes or questions directly to the task. Keep the context in one place. - Close or archive finished items right away. Don’t let your list get clogged with old stuff.
What to ignore: Overly complex status labels or color coding. “Open,” “in progress,” and “done” are usually enough.
Pro tip: If you’re spending more time updating the tool than doing the work, you’ve gone off the rails.
4. Making Action Items Actually Stick
Even with the best intentions, action items get lost if nobody cares. Here’s how to keep them front and center:
- Start meetings by reviewing last week’s action items. Not as punishment, just as a habit. It keeps everyone honest.
- Celebrate knocking out big tasks. Doesn’t need to be cheesy—a quick “nice work” goes a long way.
- If something’s always overdue, ask why. Maybe it’s not important, or maybe it’s not clear. Either way, fix the process, not just the deadline.
- Keep the list short. If your Charma board is a mile long, nobody will pay attention.
What works: Building action item review into your team’s natural rhythm—weekly meetings, one-on-ones, whatever fits.
What doesn’t: Relying on notifications alone. People tune them out. Human reminders are still better.
5. Avoiding Common Pitfalls
There are a few traps that remote teams fall into, especially with new tools like Charma. Here’s how to dodge them:
- Don’t assign tasks to people not in the room. If someone’s not present, make sure they’re looped in right away—otherwise, it’s unfair.
- Don’t use Charma as a to-do list for personal admin. Keep it focused on team work.
- Don’t let action items pile up with no owner. If you see “unassigned” tasks, fix it or delete them.
- Don’t obsess over tool features. Integrations, automations, and fancy notifications are fine, but they won’t fix broken habits.
Pro tip: Hold a 10-minute team “spring cleaning” for action items once a month. Archive what’s done, clarify what’s unclear, delete what’s stale.
6. A Few Simple Workflows That Actually Work
You don’t need a fancy system. Here are a couple of setups that I’ve seen work well:
For Weekly Team Meetings
- Review open action items from last week (5 minutes)
- As discussion happens, add new action items in Charma and assign right away
- End meeting by confirming who owns what for next week
For One-on-Ones
- Use Charma to keep track of commitments between manager and direct report
- Check in on progress—don’t just ask “is this done?” but “any blockers?”
- Use completed action items as a record for performance reviews or feedback
For Project Sprints
- At sprint kickoff, use Charma for non-code tasks (e.g., “Draft comms plan”)
- Check in mid-sprint on outstanding action items
- Clean up and archive at sprint end
What works: Sticking to a rhythm. The less you have to remember to check, the more likely it is to happen.
7. Quick FAQ: What About Integrations and Automation?
Charma plays nice with some other tools, but don’t expect miracles. Integrations can help, but only if you’re already disciplined about tracking tasks.
- Should we connect Charma to Slack or email? Sure, if your team actually reads those channels. But don’t rely on it as your only reminder.
- Can we automate action item creation? Maybe, but be careful—automatic tasks often get ignored. People pay more attention to things they wrote themselves.
- Is Charma a replacement for project management tools? Not really. It’s best for meeting follow-up and team accountability, not for tracking huge projects.
Keep It Simple, Iterate, and Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff
Charma can help remote teams stay on track, but no tool will solve people problems. Start simple: assign clear tasks, check in weekly, and clean up often. If something’s not working, tweak your process—not just your software.
You’ll know you’ve got it right when nobody’s asking, “Wait, who was supposed to do that?” That’s when remote teamwork actually starts to feel smooth.