When working remote it is important to formalize informal communication. Explicitly plan time to create, build, and maintain social connections and trust. In our handbook we list 15 methods about.gitlab.com/company/cultur… which I'll summarize in this thread.
1. Speedy meetings of 25 minutes instead of 30 not only give you time to recover between calls but also allow people to join before meetings start for some banter.
2. Lead with empathy: each work-related call should begin with an earnest, genuine "How are you?," or a similar and appropriate introduction. It's important to remember that everyone is facing a battle that you know nothing about and in a remote setting you should actively listen
3. Welcome interruptions in calls: when pets, children, or partners interrupt a call this is an opportunity to bound instead of an interruption that should be prevented. Take a few minutes to talk to the person if they are open to it or have the team member tell about their pet.
4. Using emojis to convey emotion: The results show that proper use of emoticons, emoji, and stickers, especially positive emoticons, is conducive to both relationship formation and cognitive understanding. They help participants express emotions and manage interrelations.
5. Talent shows: they are relatively easy to organize. Simply add a calendar invite 2 weeks in advance, affix a Google Doc agenda to the invite for team members to sign up to showcase a talent, arrange a panel of 3-5 judges, and have a list of prizes ready to go.
6. Coffee chats: have a name for 25 minutes calls between 2 people without an agenda. This empowers people to have these important conversations. There is no agenda and you can talk about work or not. Make doing them part of onboarding and use @Donut to have them happen regularly
7. Mixer calls aim to help team members meet more folks from other groups or functions that they might not otherwise get to spend a lot of time working or interfacing with. Two team-members set up a single Zoom line and each of those team members invites someone else to join.
8. Juice Box Chats are a chance for GitLab team members and their children, grandchildren, or other members of their family to get to know one another as well. These chats can be informal or can focus on a specific topic, Legos, SuperHeroes, camping, and video games are all great
9. Team Social Calls are informal social calls on a regular basis in order to build camaraderie. The data team has them every Tuesday. Team members and managers are encouraged to create these calls as a medium for informal, agenda-free interaction between team members.
10. AMA (Ask Me Anything) serve as an opportunity to ask funny and far-fetched questions that enable a more personal connection. It's particularly important to consider ongoing AMAs with executives. AMAs humanize leaders and remind teams that we are all more alike than unlike.
11. Celebrations are important. For example the kickoff of a new (fiscal) year or a major revenue milestone. We've had calls with over 400 team members. Get a great MC to pump up the enthusiasm like @emilieschario does for us.
12. Holiday parties will be virtual during the pandemic. Think about ways to dress up for the occasion. For example an ugly sweater competition.
13. Global pizza parties are where teams arrange shared meals around the world. Global pizza parties, for example, are possible to document and enjoy in a shared setting (Zoom or Slack), though one may wish to consider a breakfast pizza depending on time zone.
14. Coworking calls are scheduled working sessions on Zoom where team members can work through challenging tasks with a coworker, or simply hang out while each person works on their own tasks. Want to try advanced mode? Screen share as you work together.
How do you organize informal communication at your organization? Please share examples so others can benefit.
