While CEO at Pixar, Steve Jobs believed in the power of unplanned meetings so strongly that he proposed altering the layout of the company’s headquarters to facilitate them.
The visionary co-founder of Apple took great lengths to realize his ambitions: At one point, Jobs suggested that there would only be one set of bathrooms in the office’s central atrium, and none in either of the building’s two wings.
Forcing everyone to cross paths on their way to the same area, he reasoned, would fuel creativity as a result of more interpersonal interactions.
These days, facilitating such encounters in a digital environment requires a similarly inventive way of thinking. With such a sizable chunk of the workforce stationed away from the office, industry leaders are adjusting their processes to simulate communal moments in a virtual space.
“We set up meetings with no agenda, which sounds counterintuitive, but it allows us to have a dedicated time for open conversations,” said Pierre-Alexandre Lacerte, a software engineer at the fintech company Upgrade.
While there’s no way to exactly replicate spontaneous hallway run-ins when working remotely, he said, there are still techniques business leaders can use to channel that same spirit and energy in the virtual realm.
As Built In San Francisco learned through conversations with Lacerte and other local tech leaders, solutions abound to ensure your teams adapt and thrive while working remotely.
When it comes to remote collaboration, what’s an important lesson your team has learned since first transitioning to remote work?
Getting information out across different communication channels is key in making sure all bases are covered. We send weekly updates on Slack and by email, but also discuss them during team meetings. Additionally, as remote work becomes the “new normal,” investing in quality hardware becomes more essential — smooth video and audio quality helps us feel like the team is in the same room and makes all the difference.
How are you collaborating differently today than you were a year and a half ago? What steps have you taken to finetune your approach?
We try new patterns in our workflow and see what suits us as a team, but also for ourselves individually. Since our teams are located in the United States, Canada and Argentina, we get creative. For example, we swapped our monthly planning session and two weekly scrums to a format that keeps us engaged: a planning session every Monday, a meeting on Wednesday and a one-hour coffee huddle on Friday to wrap up our week. Additionally, we aim to have one meeting-free day for deep work to maximize productivity.
Investing in quality hardware becomes more essential — smooth video and audio quality helps us feel like the team is in the same room and makes all the difference.”
Beyond tools like Slack and Zoom, what tech tools have been particularly helpful in making remote collaboration easier and more successful?
We use Google Suite to collaborate, comment on tech designs and brainstorm on our team roadmap. On the other hand, drawing and charting is still a challenge. We’ve tried different tools but haven’t found a solution that works for our team yet – but that's part of the process. And, of course, always have a Spotify and Apple Music playlist handy.
When it comes to remote collaboration, what's an important lesson your team has learned since first transitioning to remote work?
The importance of planning ahead is critical in a remote setting. One should not assume that something that is urgent for them is urgent for their co-workers as well. Since walking down the hallway and making a request from a team member is no longer an option, it is important to allow sufficient time for your item to be worked on. Clearly communicating when you are expecting a response is also helpful.
The importance of planning ahead is critical in a remote setting.”
How are you collaborating differently today than you were a year and a half ago? What steps have you taken to fine-tune your approach?
Messaging tools such as Slack are extremely useful. However, it is important to identify when a back and forth via chat is taking longer than it should — at some point a call should be made to jump on Zoom or to speak on the phone. I have found that this approach will result in time savings that add up in the long run. In some cases, it will also help avoid frustration among the team if the long exchange is not resulting in mutual understanding.
Beyond tools like Slack and Zoom, what tech tools have been particularly helpful in making remote collaboration easier and more successful?
We have a strong culture at Life360 around documentation — requirements for large-scale projects are captured in a “product requirements document.” Similarly, our engineering team tends to produce thorough “system requirement documents” before they start coding. Tools such as Confluence are leveraged for this purpose and help teams align on what we are building.
Also, tools such as Figma and LucidChart can be helpful during various parts of the development lifecycle. As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words.
When it comes to remote collaboration, what’s an important lesson your team has learned since first transitioning to remote work?
After several months of working remotely as a team, we learned that achievement will never be about a place — it is about having clear goals and focusing on what can be accomplished together and individually, while aligning personal and team’s goals with company strategy.
Achievement will never be about a place — it is about having clear goals and focusing on what can be accomplished together.”
How are you collaborating differently today than you were a year and a half ago? What steps have you taken to fine-tune your approach?
Proactive and constant communication, frequent meaningful conversations and tight feedback loops help keep team members engaged and accountable while understanding the rationale behind the decisions being made.
Beyond tools like Slack and Zoom, what tech tools have been particularly helpful in making remote collaboration easier and more successful?
We use Google Docs — or any type of online shared document that allows sharing thoughts and feedback.
