While many tech teams and companies have been working like this for years, the current situation has brought a temporary (or permanent) change upon many others: the swift change to remote work.
So, how do you make sure that your employees stay happy, motivated, and productive while also feeling like part of the team? How exactly do you instill company culture over a webcam?
Fear not, help is near! We’ve gathered some tips and tricks for you on how to get started and also a few pointers for you to share with your team.
Encourage collaboration and open communication
Remote work is for many a huge change of habit that impacts the way we work as well as the way we engage socially with our team. This means we need to establish new norms on how to communicate and collaborate with each other.
Establish team routines
Maintaining team feeling is important regardless of which task and activities you perform. That's why we encourage casual weekly meetings and gatherings or quick check-ins over a morning coffee.
Use the right digital tools
It goes without saying that hosting meetings and collaborating on projects etc. require the right tools. At Good Monday we gave all employees licenses to Zoom for video calls and meetings. For quick messaging, our go-to tool is Slack which we use to share information as well as for more informal chat - e.g. for employees to share pictures of their remote offices, as well as things completely unrelated to work. Slack can be integrated with so many other tools as well to ease your workflow, either directly or via Zapiers' easy-to-use integrations.
Create guidelines or a code of conduct
There are so many good tools out there, but rules are important in order to optimise usage and knowledge sharing without overcrowding any feed or video call - just like you wouldn't spam your companies @all mailing list. Here are some of our rules for Slack and video use:
- Clear descriptions of all channels (except for our random channel)
- Use threads to comment on posts in order to minimise notifications
- Respect the Slack status of your team members, e.g. in a meeting
- On video calls with multiple users, we mute microphones when not talking
Host town halls as webinars
If you host town halls or similar for your entire organisation, there is no need for cancellations. Simply move them online! Slido is an awesome tool for questions and sorting these and can also be integrated with Slack.
Company culture and fun stuff
We believe that engaged employees that feel they belong to a community perform better. When working remotely it's extra important to make sure that employees are still happy and feel they're part of a shared mission. This can be done with full transparency from management in tough situations, through daily rituals with coworkers and planning future events. Don't be afraid of overusing emojis and GIFs - these help interpret the tone that is otherwise difficult in digital convos 🤪
Tips to share with your coworkers
Remote work might come naturally for a lot of people, but as with all things, it can be a bit of a challenge for beginners, especially when it comes to separating work and private life. Here are a few tips to share with your coworkers on how to stay focused and productive while working remotely.
Create optimal working conditions
Where ever you may be make sure that you feel motivated by your environment and ready to tackle whatever comes your way.
Stick to a schedule
When the lines between work and home start to blur, it’s time to take a closer look at your working habits. Figure out a schedule that works for you, plan your day or week ahead of time (including meetings and appointments), and remember to take breaks when you run out of energy. Realistic expectations should be a common theme as you create your remote work schedule.
Try to get into the flow state, man
Lose yourself in work and lose track of time. Bundle the tasks most meaningful to you and the ones you're most experienced in. Doing tasks we're familiar with and enjoy increases the chances of getting lost in work and watching (or rather not watching) the time fly by.
Workout at home
Take advantage of the flexibility and independence that comes with working remotely by incorporating small exercises into your workday (planking, short walks, push-ups, squats, etc.)
The upsides
All joking aside, there are clear advantages to remote working. For one, trousers are optional. But we also listed some more below.
Customize your own Workspace
From desk to temperature you make your space YOURS!
Endless space
Unless you're sharing tabletops with a partner or roomie, you've got no need to run and find a quiet place to make calls. You've got all the space to yourself.
No distractions
There are no coworkers stopping by your desk asking if you caught the latest episode of whatever last night, and that means FOCUS. Disclaimer: We do recognise that partners and kids can be quite demanding coworkers.
No commute
No more travelling with 1,000s of people twice a day. You can now spend that precious time with friends, family, or Netflix instead.
At the end of the day, the truth is that these are unprecedented times and we'll all face our own challenges. In the coming weeks, we'll all gain amazing remote working skills while staying afloat. Because that's what we always do. We meet change, we adapt, and we overcome. Stay safe out there, we're in this together.
