Working Remotely
140 companies answer 6 questions
Working remotely comes with unique day-to-day challenges. From the initial step of implementing remote policy to nurturing company culture while operating remotely, we ask leading remote companies to share how they approach running their distributed teams from an operational level.
How did you implement a remote work policy?
Initially our policies for managing our remote staff developed organically, then later we developed a more cohesive policy.
It grew organically and is still fairly organic at this point. The policies we have in place mainly deal with security protocols.
The idea came with the growth of our team. Once we decided to go remote, we implemented the formal processes. And we never looked back!
Can a remote-friendly company have a healthy culture?
Absolutely – if anything, it’s especially important for a remote company! It takes extra effort to prevent the remote work experience from feeling isolating, so…
Of course. I would argue that having a team that feels fulfilled in their work and personal life provides the best company culture. It also naturally…
Yes. Our company culture is based on shared values. We have a company full of independent people who love making the web a better place.…
How do you nurture your company’s culture in a remote work environment?
I think adopting Slack has been the biggest improvement to our remote culture. It’s a lot more informal than Asana which lets us have more…
(a) At the start of our weekly one-on-one calls, we take a few minutes to talk about something that we are enjoying being involved with…
Annual company retreats, weekly Google hangouts (non-work related), and gif battles on Slack.
What advice would you give to a team considering to go remote?
Every company has different needs, so it’s not one size fits all. If you are thinking that remote work could be good for your company,…
It’s not as hard as it sounds. There are definitely obstacles but if you have great, highly accountable and responsible people working for you, where…
First, make sure you have the type of people who can actually get work done at home (and thrive in that environment). It came naturally…
What challenges have you encountered building a remote team?
Dealing with adverse situations like COVID or a software outage can be difficult in a remote company because it’s harder to feel that close camaraderie…
Our company was built on its foundation as a remote organization since 2007, so it’s always been in our DNA to examine any challenges through…
Developing a high level of trust and collaboration with people who are half-around the world. It’s a challenge, but it’s possible, and as the various…
What are the most effective tools for remote team communication?
I think using tools in a smart way has helped our company a lot. For teams working asynchronously, Trello for project management and Slack for…
The most efficient ways are Mattermost channels for things that may need immediate attention, and daily and weekly meetings with the whole team; sometimes meetings…
We use Slack to communicate via chat throughout the day. Each team has its own channel in addition to company-wide channels. Every day we use…
What has changed about how your remote team operates?
We actually started as a fully remote team. So one change was having a “home” office and having some of the staff working together in…
We’ve only been around for about one year now. Our culture and operations are evolving.
We are using better tools, less email, thank god – less Skype. 🙂 We are a great running team, everyone knows how the other one…
How does your team address different time zone challenges?
First, establishing ahead of time when team members will be available. Second, hiring individuals who are willing to be flexible when necessary to coordinate with team members…
We have a 24/7 support team to handle communications around the clock. We also have specialized remote workers available to answer questions in the most…
We are very conscious of the times that different teammates work and ask them to include it in their Slack profile so that everyone can…
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