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?
We were 100% remote for the first 7 or 8 years of the company. How we work remotely has changed considerably as we’ve grown from…
Our culture dictates people’s remote work within the company. It’s not a formal process, but I think people catch-on pretty quickly.
Organically.
Can a remote-friendly company have a healthy culture?
Absolutely. Culture is something that we are constantly working on. For us, it started with a globally connected workstyle, an independent lifestyle, and pride in…
Yes, definitely it can. A healthy company culture involves good communication and mutual respect among members. It also needs people who are happy and healthy…
Absolutely! The most important thing is for the leadership to actively discuss and decide what the company values are up front, and then act upon…
How do you nurture your company’s culture in a remote work environment?
(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…
Retreats are a huge thing. We have an annual all company retreat, but we also have more focused retreats pretty regularly for smaller teams within…
Constant communication with all team members. We also use Slack for sharing “water cooler” discussions. Another important aspect of our culture is our Corporate Social…
What advice would you give to a team considering to go remote?
The danger is that your remote staff might feel like they’re second-class employees. Focus all of your efforts on avoiding that. At Balsamiq, we say…
Do it. Whether you’re a small company or a large organization, embracing remote workers allows you to find talent outside of a geographic location, increase…
Building a successful remote workforce doesn’t happen 100% naturally. It takes intentional effort.
What challenges have you encountered building a remote team?
One of the biggest challenges of running a remote company for me personally has been to remember to have a life outside of work. I…
Some people are really happier in an office setting. There are now shared offices and places like the HUB for this kind of person to…
The early phase of adaptation can definitely be challenging. Finding talent that can enjoy being a part of a distributed team was somewhat of a…
What are the most effective tools for remote team communication?
Skype, Video Conference, Basecamp/Asana, and of course Email. We also use tools like Tinypulse for soliciting consistent feedback and sending “cheers” to team members.
Everyone’s on Slack, and we have a lot of channels set up, both work-related and just for fun. There’s a channel for just about everything,…
We utilize many different communication tools, such as Slack, Skype for Business, Sococo, and of course conference line/email. We also have conference rooms in all…
What has changed about how your remote team operates?
As the Internet has changed, we have opened more and more channels for communication with our teachers and between teachers. As we expand globally, our…
We’ve definitely made communication a bigger focus. It’s not necessarily going to happen organically, so it needs to be somebody’s job to ensure that communication…
We developed a concept of core hours and started to avoid hiring from locations where the core hours are during the nighttime. We did this…
How does your team address different time zone challenges?
Mostly that’s a challenge for our teachers. Class schedules have to revolve around Chinese kids’ lives. In New York time, class slots are open starting…
We work in EST/CST business hours for the most part. Certain roles that are not client facing have more flexibility, but we still require at…
Time zone differences can cause confusion within a remote team. Luckily, while the overall workflow has to be coordinated, the specific tasks for providing our…
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