Perhaps you, too, sense it through the vastness of the internet: our team has cultivated a special atmosphere that we are proud of and that holds significant importance for us. In this article, we will share the key components of our culture that enable us to work remotely from different corners of the planet while remaining closer to each other than most teams working together daily in a single office.
How did we achieve this and what contributed to the formation of such a culture? Read on below ;)
Hiring the Right People
The team is the most crucial aspect of EvoTalents. Thanks to each one of us, we move forward, find inspiration, and grow every day!
Therefore, at the company's inception, hiring the right employees is the most important task. If you make a mistake at this stage, the following points are unlikely to help you significantly in building the right culture.
For me, it was essential at the beginning to hire the right people who were 'on the same wavelength' as me. At the same time, I always looked at potential, how quickly a person was developing, and where they would be in six months to a year.
Hiring people into your team is a complex topic deserving of a new article :)
Create an Open and Friendly Atmosphere
The atmosphere in your team primarily depends on the owner. If you openly share information, show interest in the team's opinions, and build trust with each member, then everyone in the company will adopt these practices.
In such an atmosphere, people find it easy to be their true selves, take initiative, and share ideas. At some point, you'll realize that your team is like a separate, self-sustaining entity that propels the company forward at an incredible speed. And that's an indescribable feeling :)
Share Your Company's Vision with Employees
Share where you are heading, what your plans and ideas are with your team. Even better, conduct a joint strategic session where, together with the team, you can determine the direction, set common goals, and allow each person to understand what awaits them in the company's future, how they can contribute to the company's growth, and develop within it independently.
As a team, we held our first strategic session in the summer of 2017 with a professional coach, and it was very useful and cool! In October of this year, we plan to review what we have accomplished during this time and set new ambitious goals for ourselves.
Communicate Individually with Each Employee
Regular one-on-one meetings with each employee help you understand their mindset: whether they are satisfied, whether things are going well for them, or if they need assistance. It's essential, especially in a remote and/or distributed team setting. Since we are in different cities and cannot always grasp everyone's state of mind when we don't see each other in the office every day.
Help Everyone Grow and Achieve Their Goals
During individual meetings, you can also inquire about a person's goals and think about how you can assist them in achieving those goals. Of course, finding IT specialists is our forte, but we believe in well-rounded development, as it also helps in our work.
For example, if one employee wants to get involved in event organization, and another wants to improve their public speaking skills, why not organize a meetup? This way, your employees can showcase their talents and fulfill their goals.
Take Breaks Together
Our entire team works remotely, so it's particularly important for us to occasionally meet up and spend time together. This could involve activities such as bowling, a yacht trip, various workshops, or something else entirely.
If your team lives in the same city, try to work together in a coworking space once a week, where you can also chat, share ideas, and simply be together.
Our atmospheric yacht trip on the Dnipro River :)
Come Up with Your Own Traditions
These can be unique rituals or traditions that are specific to your team. For example, here are a couple of ours:
- We created our own character, Eva (who embodies the qualities of each of us), and her cat, Offer (who attracts accepted job offers).
- Our team created two additional Telegram chats: whine_EvoTalents and blablabla_EvoTalnts. The first one is for venting and when you need a shoulder to lean on; you can share your troubles and receive support from the team. As for the second one... well, you get the idea ;)
- At one point, we had Friday appreciations - we would write about the good things that happened during the week and what we were grateful for. It was a fantastic ritual that brought us closer together, but it eventually faded away. Perhaps it's a good idea to do such things from time to time to bond the team.
- And, of course, the Telegram stickers that Lyuda created in one go until 2 a.m. to surprise us in the morning.
It's these little things that build the atmosphere and relationships within a team ;)
If you want to learn more about how we organized remote work, you might be interested in reading the article 'How to Increase Efficiency while Working Remotely?'
And most importantly, remember that you are the creator of your company, and you can come up with and implement how you want your company to work. The atmosphere in the team largely depends on you ;)
