I’ve been working almost fully remote since 2020. Previous to that, we had 1-2 work from home days each week since 2018 or so and most people were local.
Here is where I’ll collect thoughts on the differences and what I like, and what my team and company does to promote good work/life balance and professional community.
Staying connected on a virtual team
As a virtual team with people all over the country my department actively tries to find ways to socialize. Nothing we do is required (and there is no pressure to attend) but it helps to give that point of connection for those who are available and have the desire to do a non-work thing with their coworkers after hours. We also foster community during work hours in other ways so no one misses out, this is just another option.
We often schedule virtual game nights (Jackbox, Code Names, Drawasaurus, Broken Picture Phone, etc.). When we were in-office we might have done game breaks during downtime or board games after work in a conference room (board game people always manage to find each other). When there are ‘all hands’ in-office type of events where the company brings in people from all over, we usually do happy hour at Board & Brew, a restaurant with cocktails and board games. Gaming is part of my work department’s social culture which is neat.
Similarly, art and creative expression has always found a thread in our social events. In the office we had multiple opportunities to create art and play with color together, “art & eat” or informal workshops from people who enjoyed making art as a creative hobby and wanted to share it. A former employee started “art & eat” which is just a lunchtime hour of coloring, drawing, whatever with only one rule: no work talk! She left for better horizons but we keep going with it.
We also have two optional in-office days on the schedule every month for those local to the office to get lunch together, so we can share in another activity we all enjoy: eating delicious foods.
We’ve had art & eat on the calendar once a month for years, but in 2025 we scheduled a recurring series for game nights so people could plan around it if they wanted to (or not), and so calendar management is a little easier.
This note idea came out of a month in review post (May 2025).