Remote Employee Culture: Habits, Interactions, Face Time

In part one of this two-part blog series, we went over some of the simplest ways to improve company culture for those who work remotely. While culture is often a close consideration for in-person employees, there are some situations where it tends to fall by the wayside when it comes to remote workers — but there are ways to combat this for your business.

At WTA Inc., we’re proud to offer a wide range of HR services, including everything from recruitment and hiring to payroll, worker’s compensation and more. What are some other simple ways you can promote strong culture, not just for your in-person employees but for remote ones as well? Here’s a basic primer.

remote employee culture interactions

Promote Habits and Team “Rituals”

When it comes to company culture, there’s a lot to be said for consistency and daily routines. If you’ve ever been a part of team or project where everyone was constantly on the go without much time to connect, you know how important it can be to have some sort of stability.

For remote employees, this is doubly important as they might not have many (or any) in-person interaction with their co-workers. As such, it’s beneficial to come up with some rituals or daily habits that everyone on the team can do, even if they’re not all in the same place.

This could be something as simple as having a brief check-in at the start of each day via chat or video call, or it could be setting aside a specific day each week for team bonding and fun. Whatever you choose, the important thing is that it’s something everyone can do regardless of location.

Encourage Social Interaction

Just because your employees aren’t in the same place doesn’t mean they can’t socialize with one another. In fact, it’s important to encourage social interaction among remote employees as it can help build camaraderie and improve communication.

There are a few ways you can go about this. First, you can create dedicated social channels on your company’s chat or collaboration platform for employees to connect with one another outside of work-related matters. Alternatively, you can set up regular social calls or video chats where employees can catch up with one another in a more informal setting.

You could also consider holding remote team-building exercises or events on a semi-regular basis. These don’t have to be anything fancy — even something as simple as hosting a virtual happy hour or playing online games together can go a long way.

Set Up Some Face Time

Finally, in situations where it’s feasible from a logistical standpoint, it can be helpful to set up some regular face time between remote employees and their in-person counterparts. This could be something as simple as having a weekly or monthly video call where everyone can catch up, or it could involve bringing remote employees into the office for an occasional meeting or team-building exercise.

This isn’t always possible, of course, but if you have remote employees spread out across different time zones it can be a great way to help everyone feel more connected.

For more on how to promote a strong culture for employees who don’t work in the office, or to learn about any of our human resource services, speak to the team at WTA, Inc. today.