Fostering Company Culture in a Remote Setting
Company culture has been a hot topic in the business world. A common misconception surrounding company culture is that it’s about ping pong tables and Friday afternoon happy hours, but the prevalence of remote work in 2020 has smashed that idea. Although it’s realistic to create an ideal company culture virtually, it’s not as simple as it might have been in the office. Here are three ways to help you create and foster culture with your remote team:
Discuss the business’s vision and values often.
You likely show new hires your company mission statement, but how often do your employees hear about the visions and values after they’ve been around a while? When discussing and delegating new projects and tasks, try explaining how they help contribute to the company’s mission. Your employees will feel closer to the vision and values since they can connect them to tangible work.
Start having remote team building activities.
Interpersonal relationships have a huge impact on teamwork and culture, and working remotely can put a strain on those relationships. You’ll likely need to go the extra mile to negate the isolation of remote work. Consider hosting activities that encourage interaction among your employees. These activities could be simple, such as icebreakers, trivia competitions, happy hours, remote escape games, etc.
Offer the ability to provide anonymous suggestions.
Especially if you hadn’t allowed much, if any, remote work before 2020, you likely have room for improvement, and it will probably be easier for your employees to notice than it will be for you. As a result, offer your employees a way to submit anonymous suggestions, and then communicate changes (or why you’re not implementing a suggestion) to your team. Doing so will help employees feel as though their voices matter, fostering a collaborative culture.
Fostering company culture remotely is challenging but not impossible by any means. These three ideas will help get you on the right path, and if you need to find great employees to fit into your culture, visit atwork.com/locations to find an office near you!
