Positive workplace culture is important for a good employee experience. Strong company culture has the benefit of bringing people together, strengthening company values, increasing employee morale, and improving productivity. 

Employees who are engaged and feel dedicated to their culture are high-performers and great independent workers. They are also more likely to become champions of your business.

Even if our physical interactions are diminished, the company culture you have kindled in the office doesn’t have to be lost while working from home. Employers can still cultivate their core values and create work environments focused on employee well-being.

Here are some tips and tricks on how to nurture a positive company culture in the trying times of remote work.

Start With The First Interactions

Company culture is organic. Even when you recruit for remote teams, it’s essential to find the right people that will have better chances of fitting in with the more experienced employees. Searching for the best cultural fit should still be a part of your recruitment process. 

After you have found the perfect candidate, make culture part of your remote onboarding. Talk with the new hires about the core values of the business, tell them anecdotes, provide literature, videos, and visuals that will illustrate the workplace culture at its best.

Have A “Break Room” Virtual Space

Bring back workplace banter and fun breaks with a designated online space. Whether you are using Slack, Microsoft Teams, Facebook Workplace Groups, or other similar tools, create a virtual room just for fun discussions.

In each office, certain routines are developed. People have specific break activities, preferred hangout spots, favorite eating places, and so on. These habits are part of your company culture. If possible, try to integrate some of them into your virtual break room.

For example, you can name the chat room after everyone’s favorite coffee place. If the original break room had a picture on the wall, maybe use it as the cover photo.

Organize Internal Contests

Healthy competition can boost employee morale and increase teamwork. It’s also a great way to keep employees involved in company-wide activities. With engaging challenges, you can shine a spotlight on certain events, celebrations, and topics relating to current business. Choose a theme appropriate for your corporate culture to promote your values.

Ideas for internal competitions:

• Best cupcake picture
• Sport challenges
• Short story contest
• Art contest
• Name a new product
• Quote of the week
• Meme contest

Have the people vote on each other’s work or randomly choose the winner with a random name generator. 

Recognize Achievements

Since people spend less time chatting, good news might not travel. Accomplishments can be easily overlooked when everyone spends most of the time in their own bubble. 

When customers provide positive feedback, someone accomplishes a task remarkably, or a project successfully reaches an important milestone, make sure you promote the achievements. Public kudos award high-performing employees and encourage their colleagues to fill their roles to the best of their ability. Their work is seen and appreciated.

Keep Team Buildings Alive

Even if going to an adventure park or taking a trip with your team is no longer possible for the time being, you can still plan a team-building online. Memorable experiences build trust among team members and help them get to know each other, which improves their collaboration. 

Let’s take a look at some fun virtual team activities:

• Yoga and meditation classes
• Morning coffee meetings
• Virtual game night (you can play games like bingo, Settlers of Catan, Monopoly, Among Us, Dungeons & Dragons, etc)
• Netflix watch party
• Book club
• Morning coffee meetings
• Events such as holiday celebrations and parties

Continue Your Learning and Development Programs

Learning opportunities are key components for a positive corporate culture. Development opportunities such as online workshops, training sessions, and conferences, encourage learning and growth. Through such programs, you can help your employees increase their potential and invest in their skills.

This type of initiative improves employee experience and reduces turnover, which reflects positively on the business. 

Consistently Check In

Being apart makes it difficult to keep the channels of communication open. You might’ve mentioned that people can write an email, open a message, or schedule a meeting anytime. But not all of our worries fit into what we think it’s acceptable to express in the workplace. Some employees might be reserved and hesitant to open certain topics.

To touch base with your employees and encourage them to speak up, hold open meetings in which they can discuss their concerns, express wishes, and make suggestions. Forums, AMA’s, and free discussions can create a support system that contributes to the well-being of your organization. Sometimes just knowing that someone else is going through something similar can be helpful. 

To encourage a strong company culture, offer transparency, ask for feedback, be kind, and use empathy in your communication.

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