Remote working is here to stay for the foreseeable future. When companies started working remotely earlier in 2020, the focus was on the basics - connectivity, tools, access, ability to work from home with commitments and distractions like children and care giving - the focus was at the business continuity level. With this situation dragging out for a longer time organizations have to figure out how they create a thriving culture with their remote teams. Most companies are starting from square-one and relearning how to create their culture.

1. Creating a great culture for
Successful Remote Teams
Deepa Kartha

2. If a brand doesn't live on the inside it doesn't thrive on the outside
— libby sartain
Why is culture important now more than ever?
Remote working is here to stay for the foreseeable future. When companies started working remotely earlier in 2020, the focus was on the basics -
connectivity, tools, access, ability to work from home with commitments and distractions like children and care giving - the focus was at the business
continuity level. With this situation dragging out for a longer time organizations have to gure out how they create a thriving culture with their remote
teams. Most companies are starting from square one and relearning how to create their culture.

3. First- What is your organization's culture?
Before all this what was your culture? Check this video to see if you can determine what your culture was. And now what do you want your culture to be?
Checkout this HBR video and identify your organization's cultural style
HBR Video

4. Question to ask yourself - Does this culture still hold true or do you need to
change it?
This is a conversation to be had with the leadership team. You could also do a con dential engagement survey to see how your employees are engaged
with the company. If you have had a previous survey you could do a comparison between the two to understand variations.
Example : Fast engagement survey

5. Approaching culture building from the inside out
As organizations are looking to create a remote culture out of necessity, they need to take into account the following
Individual employees situation
Team Bonding and Productivity
Employees connection with the company

6. SELF
With all the imperfections of a workplace, going to work was an equalizer for most people where they what they needed to do their job. Work from home
during a pandemic also means that di erent people are at di erent levels of internalizing an working through the change, both physically and mentally.
Each individual is at various portions of the Satir curve.

7. Understanding what your employees are going through is essential for managers to be able to assess the productivity as well as support the employees as
they navigate through their WFH scenarios. Consider doing a weekly/biweekly con dential survey in the beginning and change to monthly as time goes
on to understand the situation and have the data to be able to make process changes as you need to.
Example : Confidential WFH survey
1. Understanding your employees current situation

8. Even if you might see the team all day on video conference, having 1-1 interactions with them is very important. These include
How are they doing, time to talk shop
More personal conversations, and share with them about what is going on with you as well.
make sure to provide them with feedback on speci c things and feed-forward which is about positives and ideas about
what to do the next time.
Timely recognition is very important!
2. Periodic 1-1's :
3. Social chats:
4. Feedback and Feed-forward :
5. Real time recognition in front of their peers:
2. One-on-Ones
Sample Manager's Toolkit for individual employee attention

9. TEAM / TRIBE
Teams have to reinvent themselves in the new remote world where they not only have to reinvent how they form, norm and perform. This means
6. Knowing each other better
7. Interacting and communicating di erently

10. Example: Fun team directory
Knowing each other better
It is important for the team to understand each other and their situations better so they can understand what to expect from each other and support each
other. In the absence of water cooler conversations and chats at work, this is critical for team success. Especially when you have new members in the
group, either new hired or newly formed project teams, the importance of getting to know each other virtually cannot be emphasized enough.

11. Example : WFH in the time of Corona Photo Gallery

12. Example of establishing rituals and processes
8. Working with each other more effectively
Communication on what is going on with the company directly from leaders is very important. The ability for employees to trust leadership at this critical
time will make a huge di erence in the long run.
De ning standard processes of team operation and the ability to each each other informed and aligned is a big part of being able to work together
e ectively remotely. If the teams don't have rituals, processes and documentation, this is a good time to start.

13. Example of virtual bonding - Fitness contest

14. Communication
Employees connection with the company includes a shared vision, mission and values, as well as living it every day. It includes being part of the internal
community, getting involved with the external community, being part of innovation, diversity and inclusion initiatives and business growth.
Communication at all levels especially directly from the leaders is a big part of what employees need to feel connected to the company goals.
9. Frequent leader communications
10. The ability for everyone to respond and react is a base need.
These are bonus if you have it for your teams.
11. Pulse the employees
12. Collect their ideas and feedback
13. Have the ability for them to con dentially ask questions
14. Con dentially complain about issues
15. Publicly recognize people
Employees connection with the company
Click for Journyz Demo

15. Example of Communications

16. The ability for employee to form virtual communities and pursue their passion is also very important in forming the employee connection to the
company. This includes
16. Community involvement
17. Enterprise Resource Groups
18. Shared passion and interest
19. Inviting employees to be ambassadors in social media, for hiring, in the community and more.
Example of community building
The ability for companies to engage the individual, create great teams and create a connection with the company
Community Building

17. Culture isn't one aspect of the game. It is the game. In the end an organization is nothing
more than the collective capacity of it's people to create value
— Lou Gerstner Jr. IBM
See Journyz in Action