How can companies improve their culture?

Trust is key.

It is extremely important that companies create an atmosphere of trust. Higher management should always have a clear communication channel with their subordinates and must clearly list their expectations far ahead and then trust the employees to do a good job.

Although it is important to check in on how employees are progressing, micro managment can often be counterproductive and make employees feel unmotivated to work instead.

Trust works both ways, meaning that employees should be able to trust the company to help and be there for them when they need, and that companies should trust their employees to do an excellent job without them having to monitor them every step of the way.

Communication

Communication is crucial in building proper work culture. Companies must make sure their employees are aware of the company's vision and that everyone is on the same page.

This is also an excellent way to motivate employees. If they are constantly reminded of the company's goal, mission and values, they will be more motivated to work since they know what they're working towards.

Being clear with workplace policies.

Since remote work is very flexible and offers the people the possibility to work from basically anywhere they want, the lines between work and

personal life can become quite blurry.

This can lead to people feeling like they are 'living at work' as opposed to 'working from home' which is a really exhausting mindset to have and can quickly lead to burnout and dissatisfaction.

To fix this from a management perspective, companies should establish workplace boundaries early on and make sure all employees are aware of the policies.

Having face-to-face with employees.

It can be hard to create relationships and properly communicate and relate to people you've only interacted with online, and this is why face-to-face communication is important.

Of course, with remote working, it can be difficult to have physical interactions with people, but you can make the best out of remote tools and regularly schedule video calls and meetings to get to know colleagues better.

Another great practice for team managers is to have frequent 1:1 meetings with their team members to build trust, connections and give way to open communication. The point is to enable employees to feel comfortable reaching out to you about any issues they come across.

Encouraging communication outside of work

Companies can encourage their employees to spend some time in teams or individually with others to talk about things unrelated to work. This makes it more fun for them and allows them to build connections with their coworkers.

Organising team building activities

It is normal for employees to feel hesitant to reach out to each other to build relationships, especially during remote working. Therefore, management can take this opportunity to organise activities for team building and give employees space to bond.

References:

https://www.wishup.co/blog/the-importance-of-work-culture-in-a-remote-work-environment/