What is company culture?

Company culture is the shared values, behaviors and practices that shape how employees interact and work together. Business owners and leaders can shape company culture, but workers’ actions and beliefs also contribute to work culture.

Why is company culture important?

Company culture generally impacts your employees and the company’s success. Specific benefits may include:

• Effective, inclusive teams: A positive work culture may give your employees more satisfaction. They will have clear expectations and goals to direct their efforts and help achieve your company’s mission.
• Recruitment efforts: Targeting candidates based on how they add to your company culture can increase retention rates and potentially save onboarding and training costs.
• Public perception: Establishing a corporate identity is part of work culture. Your goals and leadership style can impact how your customers view your business. Some consumers choose companies that reflect their personal values, so having a unique corporate culture may help your business stand out.

6 methods of creating remote work culture

Whether you’re transitioning to a remote working culture or running a traditional company, the basics for creating your corporate culture are similar. Starting with these methods may lay a solid foundation that transfers to your remote employees.

Prioritize values

Traditional and remote cultures follow clear values that guide your company’s actions. Limiting your company values to short statements keeps them concise.

Think about your goals and how to reach them. After establishing core values for your company, it’s important to reinforce them with your actions and company operations.

Consider hosting virtual monthly meetings and presenting several ways your team has surpassed expectations. This may include met quotas, client reviews or examples of employees implementing company values.

Allow your team to contribute

When developing your workplace culture, your team is an important part of the process. Meet with your leadership team to discuss policy changes that align with your desired company culture.

Let team members provide feedback to better shape the culture. You might provide an open forum or schedule weekly one-on-one meetings for employees to share privately.

Create a rewards program

Employee recognition programs show appreciation for team efforts. Effective programs are sincere and may offer rewards to motivate the team. These programs can easily be managed through tracking software to create a more unbiased rewards system.

Create workplace culture goals

Decide how you want to shape your workplace culture, whether you employ in-person or remote workers. For example, you might create a more team-focused, inclusive environment by setting aside time for virtual gatherings.

Use training and team building to your advantage

Team-building exercises and training sessions may help employees communicate and collaborate. This collaboration can be important for remote workers whose interactions with colleagues may occur less than in an in-person workplace.

Recruit employees that add to your culture goals

Skills, education and work experience are all important factors to consider when hiring. However, adding cultural interview questions can help you find candidates to support your goals.

Building company culture for remote teams

You can make your remote staff feel connected if your team leads and managers emphasize your company’s core values and policies from the beginning. The following strategies can support building a remote company culture.

Improve remote onboarding practices

Onboarding in a virtual environment typically takes more preparation to streamline the process. Starting with reliable, easy-to-use onboarding software can make the process easier.

Support new employees’ needs from the first day. Let them know who to contact for problems so they can troubleshoot solutions quickly.

Create an onboarding plan that details what new hires are expected to do within the first several days, weeks and months. You might also plan how to introduce employees to their team members, management staff and IT.

Remote employees may need to be introduced to their role slowly. Begin with simple tasks and have team leads check in frequently.

If you want to build a sense of community among your remote staff, you might hire and onboard remote employees in groups. Fellow recruits may lean on each other as they learn, building camaraderie quickly.

Connecting newly hired teams with mentors can help them navigate their new roles and feel more connected with your company and its goals.

Use videoconferencing software as much as possible

Meetings via videoconferencing programs can allow employees to establish a personal connection similar to interactions in the office. Establish team meetings using videoconferencing software based on the team’s needs. You can use this time to review progress on projects, offer feedback and make sure each team member has what they need to complete their work.

Define the role clearly

Alternative work schedules and remote work have revolutionized the workplace, but each company defines remote work differently. Setting clear expectations for attendance, meeting frequency, work requirements and who to report to ensures your new hires understand their commitments.

Some remote positions require workers to log in remotely at the same time every day, while others allow employees to work freely as long as they meet deadlines. Make your policies clear, and don’t deviate from them.

Promote inclusion with remote workers

Promoting inclusion begins with managers and team leads, so consider communicating your expectations clearly and make sure your management team follows through.

You might promote inclusion by:

• Communicating with team members directly in one-on-one sessions to check on progress, give feedback, discuss challenges and provide clarity on projects and policies
• Providing supervisors with empathy training so they know how to ask the right questions about a worker’s learning style, personal factors that may interfere with productivity and how confident each worker feels in their role
• Bringing remote workers together in-person periodically for team-building exercises, retreats and training
• Encouraging workers to give feedback and ideas
• Recording meetings so those who can’t participate due to time zone differences or constraints can stay informed

Avoid unwritten rules and stick to established practices

Effective communication is needed to establish a remote work culture. Work toward documenting any unwritten rules so remote workers can access them in your corporate policy.

Promote positivity

Encouraging a positive atmosphere and approach to tasks may unite your remote team. Examples include recognizing good work, thanking employees for their contributions and offering support for mental health.

Frequently asked questions about building remote work culture

How can I maintain team cohesion in a remote setup?

Encourage regular virtual meetings, use collaboration tools, celebrate team achievements and create opportunities for informal connections, such as virtual coffee chats or team-building activities.

What can I do to foster employee engagement remotely?

Offer recognition for achievements, provide opportunities for professional development, seek feedback regularly and ensure employees feel connected to the company’s mission and goals.

How can I address feelings of isolation among remote workers?

Encourage regular check-ins, promote peer-to-peer interactions and provide access to mental health resources or virtual social events.

​​How do I measure the success of my remote work culture?

Use employee surveys, retention rates, engagement metrics and feedback during one-on-ones to assess satisfaction and identify areas for improvement.