About This Episode

If there’s one thing that’s been put to the test in the last year, it’s company culture. As a majority of companies throughout the United States and beyond have moved to remote work, maintaining that company culture has become a challenge.

It’s hard to recreate the office culture when you’re sitting behind a webcam in your living room, or having to navigate internet connectivity issues. 

So how do you maintain that culture? The thing that makes your company special? After all, culture is one of the reasons that people come to work for you, and it’s one of the main reasons people stay. Or leave. 

On this episode of the Sales Engagement podcast, we chat with Donald McKenna. Donald is the Vice President of Sales at Global Industrial, and had quite a bit to say about maintaining a thriving, healthy culture, even through a global pandemic. 

Communication is Crucial

No matter where your workforce is located, communication is crucial. 

Keeping some sense of the daily rhythms that you had before moving to a remote is the thing that is going to make or break your company culture. It doesn’t mean you have to have daily meetings, but it does mean you’re going to have to be more intentional about meeting. 

What used to be impromptu meetings, touchbases, or quick chats, now have to be scheduled. And the value that came from those quick meetings can’t be overstated. 

Nobody really has any idea how this pandemic has impacted employees long term when it comes to culture. How it’s affected morale, mood, and overall employee happiness. 

But the point remains, as a company you’re going to have to remain vigilant and intentional about those meetings, for however long this pandemic lasts. 

Zoom Fatigue is Real

With intentionality around meetings comes a very real problem. 

Zoom fatigue. 

We all know it’s a thing. There’s something mentally different about sitting in front of Zoom all day long as opposed to sitting in an office in meetings all day long. 

Your brain processes that information differently. And it impacts you in a different way. 

And while you may not be able to completely do away with Zoom meetings, because they’re here to stay, you can take some very real steps to combat that fatigue. 

For starters, keep meetings shorter. 

However long you THINK you need the meeting to be, shorten it by 15 minutes. Instead of an hour, make it 45 minutes and let people break their days up a bit. 

Use the meetings to highlight wins, successes, and what’s WORKING. If every meeting is based on what’s not working, don’t be surprised if employees stop wanting to come to the meetings. And if they do come, don’t expect them to want to participate. 

And lastly, bring some fun into the meetings. Mix up the agenda. Play some games. Play some music. Do team trivia. Have an arsenal of icebreaker games so that employees know the meetings are JUST about business. 

Solicit Input from EVERYBODY

When employees feel like they’re being listened to, they’re far more likely to offer their opinions and suggestions.

Even if those suggestions don’t end up being implemented, the mere act of soliciting that feedback and input from employees is critical. Because they feel like they’re being allowed to speak into key strategic decisions, and more than that, they feel an ownership in the success of the organization. 

A thriving, healthy company culture is one where everybody feels like they’re valued, listened to, and appreciated. 

So make sure you’re being respectful of your employees’ time, mix up the meetings a bit, and make sure you solicit feedback and opinions from everybody.