Building a Strong Culture Remotely

Laura-Marie Linholm , Remote Work & People Analytics Manager

December 13th, 2024

Through that, each company has its unique culture that sets it apart from others and influences everything from morale to productivity. 

When we look at the traditional office-based setting, culture is often built in shared spaces, whether it be coffee chats in the kitchen, spontaneous water cooler moments, team lunches, or sharing a meeting space. In the Remote Work environment, these organic moments don’t happen naturally. Instead, building a strong remote culture requires intention, creativity, and commitment from everyone involved. 

A strong culture holds the team together by shared values and a common purpose. It creates an environment of trust, fosters collaboration, and keeps motivation high. And that can happen regardless of whether people are together in a shared office space, or individually in their homes across the globe, as is the case with Testlio. 

Remote work brings a unique set of responsibilities and requirements to be more intentional in culture building, like avoiding miscommunication, combating isolation, and making sure everyone feels included. The good news? Remote Work doesn’t have to mean a disconnected team. Even though it may require more effort, it’s certainly possible to build a strong company culture, which also supports the remote work experience. 

The Role of Values in Shaping Culture

At Testlio, our culture is built on a set of six values. They act as a foundation for everything we do – the recruitment process, onboarding, internal experiences, and communications, to name a few. We think of our values in two groups: Aspirational Values (Challenge Things, Give a Damn, Make an Impact) and Human Values (Team is Everything, Foster Inclusion, Be Kind). Our Aspirational Values help us deliver on our vision and purpose, while the Human Values guide our experiences that are connected to our purpose. There is a brief overview of each value on our Culture page. 

For us, these aren’t just words on paper, they are reflected in our actions, decisions, and interactions. They serve as a compass, making sure we stay aligned. This alignment is crucial in Remote Work, where they help bridge distances, foster connection and create a shared sense of purpose. Our values are a glue that holds us together, ensuring that no matter where we are, we remain united. 

Creating meaningful connections

While remote work offers flexibility and other benefits, it’s the meaningful connections that keep us thriving as a team. One big change with remote work is that those engagements become more intentional. It’s something you carve out time for. 

At Testlio, we recognize that building connections requires effort. We need to make a conscious choice to bond with each other. As a company, we can provide the benefits, virtual events, and all those great things, but without participation from the team, there is no relationship building. This is why building a great culture is a team effort. 

We enable meaningful connections through initiatives like Donuts, which are monthly randomized meetings where you have a chance to get to know someone across the company and in our case, across the globe. Our Cup of Kindness initiative encourages people to go out and buy someone else a cup of coffee, shaking up the daily routine and giving them time to socialize. 

There are also a variety of Slack channels dedicated to shared hobbies, from cooking to collecting watches to fitness, giving all TestLions the space to do and share what they love outside of work. And a monthly Content Club, where discussions about books, documentaries, or podcast episodes blend a mix of opinions, and keep us inspired for a while longer. 

We also invest in helping TestLions build more impactful connections with their colleagues, the biggest of which is our annual company event, LionFest. It’s one week of the year when we all gather together from across the world and spend time Fostering Meaningful Connections. In 2024, we celebrated our first year as a Fully Remote company in Barcelona. Throughout the week, you could feel the energy of being together in person. LionFest is a big part of our culture and helps us return to our remote work routines, feeling reenergized, aligned, and united. 

Empowering our people

Empowerment is a big part of our culture at Testlio. We believe that when our people are supported to achieve their best and continue growing, everyone benefits. One way we do this is through initiatives like the Learning Cookie, an annual budget that enables every team member to invest in their personal and professional development. This year, we went a step further by introducing an additional Learning Scholarship, designed to support growth opportunities that not only enhance individual skills but also contribute to the impact of their work. 

Recognition is another vital aspect of empowerment. We celebrate one another in meaningful ways, whether it’s through Praise on Leapsome, work anniversaries and birthdays on Slack, or nominating someone for a Spot Bonus. A Spot Bonus allows team members to recognize outstanding contributions by gifting an experience or a gift card, fostering a culture of appreciation and gratitude. 

And that’s not all! Every November, to celebrate Testlio’s birthday (November 11th), our people from across the globe participate in our annual Secret TestLion initiative, our very own version of Secret Santa. 

Measure what matters

Transparency is equally important in creating an empowered team. During our monthly All Hands meetings, we share key performance indicators (KPIs) with the entire company. This open communication ensures that everyone is aligned, informed, and engaged with the direction we’re headed, reinforcing trust and collective accountability.

Before you can build or strengthen culture, you need to understand where you stand. For us, it’s our engagement survey, done twice a year, once on a smaller scale, and closer to the end of the year as a more comprehensive survey. It’s an important part of our culture building, as we take people’s feedback and data and make it actionable. We encourage an open conversation and make sure our people feel a part of it. The Action plan and commitments set goals for the upcoming year and help us make improvements necessary to strengthen our culture. We also have monthly Pulse Surveys, to address anything ongoing and ensure people have a platform to share their opinions and feedback throughout the year. 

Leading with inclusion

At Testlio, inclusiveness and belonging are at the heart of our culture, as stated by our Value Foster Inclusion. We believe that everyone should feel valued, respected, and empowered to do their best work. Our commitment to diversity, inclusion, and belonging is woven into everything we do, from dedicated training that builds awareness and skills to celebrating different cultures around the world. We offer our people National Days off that are celebrated in their country. In addition, we have established TRGs (TestLion Resource Groups), people-led communities that are built around shared identities and experiences. 

The Continuous Journey of Culture Building

Building a strong company culture remotely is not a one-time effort, but a continuous journey that requires dedication. It requires effort, not only from leadership but from everybody in the company. Being intentional about how we foster connections, celebrate our achievements, and help our people flourish, ensures that everyone at Testlio feels valued and included. Whether it’s meaningful conversations, collaborative efforts, or celebrating moments together, every action contributes to the culture we share. 

Remote Work has made us rethink how we look at culture and how we build relationships. But it has also given us a unique opportunity to create a culture that not only keeps us all aligned, but is also flexible, inclusive, and deeply meaningful. Together we have the chance to create a culture that empowers us, not only as individuals, but as a team. In Remote Work, culture becomes a shared responsibility, something that everyone works on and can be proud of. 

Join the Testlion Pride! Explore our open opportunities here.