Approaches for Developing a Resilient Remote Culture

Remote work only works when people feel connected. That’s the hardest and most important part of being a remote manager. I was hired during the pandemic and have now spent four years managing a fully remote technical team. Last year, I brought my team to Muir Woods. We stepped away from screens, walked under redwoods that have stood for centuries, and just… talked. No slide decks. No Slack notifications. Just people, connecting. That day reminded me: 👉 Remote work only works when leaders build connection with intention. Here’s what I’ve learned managing remotely for four years: 🌲 Clarity or chaos. Without crystal-clear OKRs, people drift. 🌲 Hire adults. A senior team that can self-manage is non-negotiable. 🌲 Respect human rhythms. Some work at 6 AM, others at midnight. Flexibility builds trust. 🌲 Norms > assumptions. Define core hours and Slack expectations—or miscommunication will do it for you. 🌲 Meet IRL. Even once or twice a year. No Google Meet call replaces breaking bread or walking trails together. 🌲 1:1s are lifelines. Weekly conversations (and sometimes same-day check-ins) stop issues from festering. 🌲 Recognition matters. A quick shout-out in a virtual call or Slack message makes people feel seen, valued, and motivated. 🌲 Make progress visible. Jira epics, Kanban, monthly reviews. visibility = accountability. And right now, as remote jobs are being cut faster than in-office ones, two things matter more than ever: 💡 Show value. Invisible work too often looks like no work. 💡 Work loud. Share updates. Celebrate wins. Make your contributions known. Remote leadership isn’t easy. But when it’s done right, you don’t just manage a team—you build a resilient, independent group of people who can thrive anywhere.

A founder DMd me and asked: how can I ensure my remote team is doing as much work as they would if we were in office? I flipped the question back on him and asked: what are you doing to set your team up for success to be productive working from home?? WHY are we looking to remote employees to intrinsically know how to optimize their time and productivity, when we've never given them a roadmap or a playbook to learn how? Here are the 3 things we discussed that he's doing with his team now: 1️⃣ Establish a "not always available" standard. Encourage team members to time block Slack engagement. First hour of the day: Slack is muted and hidden, team members focus on email replies and their biggest work hurdles. *Bonus/up-level: His team works mostly across 4 American time zones, so now they're doing a 1-hour Slack Sprint in the morning and in the afternoon. Slack stays quieter outside of those hours, everyone "congregates" for cross-team questions and engagement during those windows. 2️⃣ Build a low-lift stack of efficiency tools and bake them into onboarding. For most remote employees, a good starting point is: - a Pomodoro plug-in tool - a text expander tool - a to-do list or task + note tool - a mental reset tool (I'm obsessed with Calm right now, the daily calms are a great midday reset) 3️⃣ Schedule a few team- or company-wide coworking sessions every week. This is called "body-doubling" and is a HUGE game changer. Here's how it works: Completely optional to attend, mics stay off, cameras are optional as well. Have a volunteer moderator kick off the hour with a simple prompt: What are you working on for this session? Everyone drops their "what" in the chat, then gets to work. 30 minutes in, moderator does a 5 minute check-in. Encourage a quick stretch, ask a fun question for a mini-conversation. Then back to silent coworking for 20 minutes. Wrap up with asking everyone to drop a simple end-of-session progress check in the chat. Could be as simple as "completed" or "half way there". These virtual coworking sessions have been known to 2-3x productivity when done for just an hour each day. That's it. 3 simple approaches. None of them have to cost a dime. All of them will increase productivity and improve efficiency. And if you're a remote employee or solopreneur, you can start doing these things tomorrow for yourself. I promise it will improve your quality of life. ------ Hi, I'm Jen. I've been working remotely since 2018 and have put sweat, tears, and countless hours into researching how to level up my work from home experience. I'm launching a community that is PACKED with tools, resources, and yes, coworking opportunities for remote workers, to help you make your remote work life your very best life. Doors open in September and I would love to see you there! You can add your name to the (simple but effective, because that's what we're all about) waitlist here: https://lnkd.in/e4B3XM4Y

I hear a lot about the need for resilience in organizations, but less so about how to create the conditions to help people to be so- at least in any concrete way. Because I am chronically online, I saw this post by Sharon McMahon, and it immediately resonated. Not knowing is uncomfortable and in our fixed mindset culture comes with a feeling that we're doing something wrong. We don't tend to reward it or create space for it. So is it really a wonder that many organizations bemoan that teams aren't resilient? In my experience leading through growth, change and crisis, I've learned a few tactics that reframe unknowing so that teams can tackle big challenges. A few to note: 💡 Create a culture of rigor and questioning- set your teams up to act like scientists. What is the actual problem we're solving? Where are the bright spots? Is everyone experiencing the same issue? Make this type of analysis how your team operates. And yes, make sure you turn that lens on yourself as well. 💡 Normalize error- In spaces where there isn't a clear path, normalize error. While your principles, values and ultimate goals should be clear, HOW we get there is up for debate. When something goes awry or right, what can we learn from it? Encourage mini-pilots and experiments (where appropriate-- obviously spaces where compliance is key is not up for grabs here) 💡 Create community- Part of what enhances anxiety during crisis and change is feeling alone, like the only one struggling. So creating communities where folks can rigorously problem solve and thought partner is essential. Reimagining team and 1:1 meetings can go a long way. 💡 Focus on inputs- If there are forces that make outcomes out of our control (because we're figuring something out!) emphasis process over product. We may not be able to control what happens, but we can control how rigorously we analyze the data or question our assumptions. (This doesn't mean abandon outcomes- that's where the culture of rigor comes in- but it does mean people are accountable for process). Like anything, the above are not a one and done solution and take time and attention to maintain. Folks say culture eats strategy for breakfast and that's true-- but you also need to have a game plan for creating and operationalizing that culture. What would you add? What's worked for you?