Globalisation and technological development have extended the possibilities of how teams can work together. Across the world, businesses can operate with fully remote teams who span different countries, time zones, departments, roles and responsibilities.
However, with these new team dynamics come fresh challenges. Navigating the logistics of working across different locations and time zones can be sufficiently challenging. There’s also the matter of juggling underlying elements that impact how a team functions, like communication, diversity, culture and inclusion. Despite the lack of physical proximity, remote teams require deliberate, and at times creative, measures to shape and sustain a positive, connected and inclusive culture.
The trap of thinking you don’t need culture
It’s easy to assume that because your team isn’t sharing an office, the usual rules of workplace culture don’t apply. This is a myth. Every workplace has a culture; team dynamics exist whether you’re online or in person. The tried-and-true elements of a strong workplace, like connection, trust and communication, don’t disappear when the office does. They just need a different approach.
Without effort, the same challenges and conflicts that plague in-person workplaces can still exist remotely. They may look a little different in remote form, which makes them harder to spot, but they can stack over time. Culture will develop whether you set out to build one or not, and once it takes root, it can be surprisingly hard to shift. That’s the double-edged sword of culture: it takes real effort to build, but once it’s there, it sticks. Consequently, you’ll want to be proactive and deliberate about the effort you put in, or you may not have a choice in the culture that emerges.
Why a strong culture still matters online
Miscommunication is easier at a distance. Ironically, while we’re more technically connected than ever, without face-to-face cues there’s more room for messages to be misread. A sound communication system helps close that gap.
Set up regular, dedicated catch-ups online with cameras on. Where possible, collaborating on a task should mimic traditional teamwork as closely as possible. A quick call to clarify a task can save ongoing back-and-forth, clearing up any confusion and ensuring all parties are on the same page.
Furthermore, set formal expectations for internal communication around timing, style and tone to reduce the potential for breakdowns. This way, people can comfortably discuss issues and give feedback, while overcoming the barrier of screens and messaging apps that can often be the culprit for miscommunication. Planning, encouraging and maintaining this kind of open, regular channel for communication can be the difference between a complete breakdown and barely noticing the distance.
Team bonding is still valuable. Communication also rides a lot on trust and relationships. Just because your people are online doesn’t mean they aren’t human. Relationships outside of day-to-day tasks strengthen how a team works together. Going remote shouldn’t mean going without connection with colleagues.
In fact, since remote work requires more effort to communicate and convey tone, it’s important that coworkers feel comfortable, able to talk freely, and able to trust each other. A small amount of team bonding outside of work tasks, however it looks remotely, goes a long way.
Buy-in, trust and engagement still need to be earned. Being remote doesn’t pause the need to keep people engaged in the business and each other. Without an office culture or environment, you must find new ways to keep employees unified. If you’re too hands-off, assuming everyone feels motivated and invested in the business, issues can build slowly. Since there’s no way to gauge morale or motivation through observation in the office, it’s important to find a way to check in remotely, e.g. regular pulse surveys or one-on-ones. When built into your organisation’s processes, these simple methods can catch small issues before they snowball.
An unset culture is still a culture. Left alone, workplace culture tends to settle into whatever patterns emerge first, which can be tough to undo once they’re established. Ensure you have a plan from the beginning: build strategies into onboarding, set expectations regularly, and follow through in practice.
Culture is set by management, but it’s also informally shaped, taught, and passed down by employees. If you assume you don’t need to worry about culture because you’re not all in the same room, you’d be mistaken. If you want something to be commonplace or to happen a certain way, you must take steps to set it and keep it that way.
Ideas to build culture despite the distance
Create a dedicated social channel. A space that’s purely for non-work chat gives people a low-pressure way to get to know each other, share updates and get comfortable talking outside formal contexts. It’s important to set expectations early for what’s appropriate, while also encouraging others to share regularly by leading the charge yourself. Leadership is about living the culture you’d like to see for your team. As we’ve already covered in this Boost blog article, a culture of open communication and valuing employees as whole people is key to cultivating a positive culture and retaining high-quality staff.
Send a regular newsletter. A weekly or monthly update on what’s happening across the business helps employees stay in the loop and gives the business a unified, collective feel. This can boost buy-in and engagement, giving employees more context on the business and a chance to see updates and wins celebrated collectively.
Get creative with team bonding. Traditional in-person activities won’t always translate, so look for formats built for remote or hybrid teams. You could introduce challenges throughout the year, run an online strategy day with remote team activities, or offer learning opportunities like speaker sessions or online upskilling.
Bring people together when you can. If feasible, try to bring people or teams together wherever possible. Conferences and development sessions are a good excuse to combine upskilling with face-to-face time.
Offer a good employee benefits programme. Adding deals and perks relevant to your people is a simple way to show you’re invested in them, even from afar. Boost Employee Benefits is just one example of a simple yet effective way to keep recognising and appreciating your team from a distance.
Keep recognition culture consistent. Not being able to shout someone a coffee or compliment them in person isn’t a reason to let recognition and appreciation slide. Find ways to make it formal and consistent instead, so it isn’t forgotten, whether that’s a voucher to celebrate a win or a simple word of kind feedback to recognise a big milestone.
If your team isn’t fully remote but you’re balancing a hybrid environment of both in-person and fully remote staff, see our six tips to keep remote employees connected. It has great tips to manage and close gaps that can emerge in culture and communication when you have a blend of remote and in-person employees.