Remote Working Culture — S(no)w Problem!
Anybody based in Ireland has spent the last week with weather on the brain: worrying about it, being cooked up inside by it, and are currently wading through the great melt caused by it. We thought we’d share a bit further on how we still managed to move a bit closer to our public release through our fairly simple remote work policy.
Pillars of our Remote Working Team
Planning
What are you trying to achieve? Determined focus on meaningful milestones is crucial. We’re on course to release a beta. Plan SMART.
- We have product roadmaps
- We have dedicated build deadlines
- We have accountability markers to ensure we are delivering
Agreed Communication
Critical to any team communications is to set boundaries and expectations from the outset. For us that boils down to a few key house rules:
- Slack/IM/email/phone calls is for quick one on one feedback. It’s not a tamagotchi — do not feed the beast!
- Planned meetings: a daily sync and a kickoff on Monday morning
- Block out time for work. Less is more.
- If it’s important bring it up in meetingRoom for wider discussion
Reporting
We try to keep it simple — plan the release, break it down to weekly bitesize tasks and daily check-ins.
- We use tools such as Trello & GSuite for online and offline reporting
- We track progress on a daily basis with a live source of truth
Reflecting
Reflection and taking on board what you’re doing to achieve your goals is vital.
- In our early days, we spent far too much time trying to over-communicate — Wrong.
- We learnt early on there is no right way of doing it: organisations need to find the right way for their teams
- Nobody gets it right every time — that’s ok. Acknowledge, learn and move on.
Why we’re working day and night, through the storm and sludge, is to let other teams begin to realise amazing productivity in a unique new experience.
Originally published on Medium.