It’s tough to establish a real corporate culture when your crew is dispersed. People start to feel alienated and communication can really slow down without those ‘casual office moments’. The feeling of shared purpose goes down, morale might go down. If you don’t pay “attention,” it can go away rapidly. Are your remote workers feeling like they’re part of a team and motivated?
In this article, we are going to discuss some of the most important ways to establish a great corporate culture even when you are not there in person. With solutions such as the best employee monitoring software, you will learn more about how to help your team, show them just how much you appreciate their work, and keep them interested.
Keeping a positive company culture while working from home is difficult.
It can be challenging to have a robust and positive business culture when you have a remote crew. Following are some of the toughest things you may experience:
Communication Gaps: When you rely only on digital technologies, misunderstandings are bound to come out fast. This may leave people bewildered, angry, and even mistrusting. Unless clear communication is done regularly, teamwork can suffer a lot.
Recognition issues: Without time to speak face-to-face, successes can easily be forgotten, and not giving due credit is a common mistake. If no appreciation is received, people may feel unincluded and detached from the greater goals of the team.
How to Build a Positive Remote Culture That Works
Working from home has its good and bad aspects; however, there are many ways to establish a good culture that keeps your staff connected and motivated. Here are a few things you can try:
Encourage regular communication
It takes real work to keep a remote workforce connected. It’s not only about setting up meetings. It’s about making real interactions possible. Structure is provided by weekly check-ins and daily stand-ups, but it’s those virtual coffee breaks and game sessions that allow people to really get to know one another. When employees feel they’re part of a team-more often than not-they are more willing to engage and be productive. This is even more important when having a remote team since people cannot just talk with each other at work. During meetings, have your team give shoutouts to each other and be candid. People feel better knowing they’re seen and appreciated.
Honor Contributions and Celebrate Wins to Raise Morale
Acknowledging and celebrating wins, no matter the size, in addition to creating a culture of gratitude, keeps morale high. Create a different channel in your team’s communication tool dedicated to shout-outs and wins only. It will give them a clear and positive space where they can be recognized. You can also hold a quick “kudos” session at the beginning or end of every team meeting. This gives them an opportunity to regularly thank one another for their hard work. Shoot off a quick, personalized message to thank somebody for all of their hard work. This method makes the appreciation seem direct and important.
Trust each other by talking openly with one another.
You may very well miss messages if you are not speaking with someone in person. This makes things unclear and weakens trust. Setting clear rules, such as how quickly you should respond, what channels you should use, and when you should check in with each other, helps everyone stay on the same page. A research by McKinsey found that clear communication might make people work up to 25% more. Think about setting up regular “open office” hours where team members can ask questions or give comments.
