Quaine said that for AvidXchange, that happy medium has been to focus on employee performance, rather than location. Employees who are performing at a high level have more leniency in choosing their work location than others.
Work Culture in a Virtual World
Most companies want (or need) to be flexible in order to recruit talent. But many managers say they struggle to build and promote company culture in a remote environment, and that can impact employee retention. So how can companies promote a workplace culture when the workplace isn’t a single location?
Marr said there is no one-size-fits-all solution, and the size of an organization should also be a factor in determining remote vs. in-office policy. He said at start-ups such as Fintag Holdings, the small-team, collaborative work environment may lend itself more to in-person settings than at large corporations.
“Culture is so important for any organization, but particularly for a start-up or emerging company,” Marr said. “It becomes more difficult to foster that if everybody is remote. We need diverse thought processes, but now, everybody is remote. So how do we effectively do that? That is another piece of the equation that businesses are going to need to get their arms around.”
But even within hybrid and highly remote work settings, Quaine said there is still much companies can do to promote unity and a common workplace culture.
For example, she recommends having a weekly team gathering of both in-office and remote team members to discuss topics of general concern. Her team uses a software tool called MURAL, which allows team members to collaborate and put ideas in a shared space.
“Video is one solution that may help,” Kerrins said. “If you can see everyone, you can see their faces and identify whether they’ve been on mute for 10 minutes trying to speak.” The panelists noted that the pandemic brought about a rapid improvement in tools used for video conferencing and remote meetings.
But for Moschandreas and many others, even the best video conferences aren’t a substitute for in-person conversations.
“I do feel like it is exhausting to be on virtual calls all day, and it’s also very easy to multi-task on virtual calls,” he said. “It seems more socially acceptable to not pay attention when someone is talking. It is a tool that could become a crutch.”
Finding Solutions in a Tight Tech Labor Market
While the workplace debate is likely to continue among employers, two things nearly all tech companies can agree on is that the current job market is difficult and that they have to work harder than ever to recruit and retain the right talent.
One solution, Quaine said, is promoting from within. She said 30 percent of her team members have developed additional skills and been promoted to higher positions within the company.
“We’re advocates of understanding people’s skillsets and allowing them to grow. We are developing our own talent. We are intentional about bringing those teammates up—it’s one of our core values,” she said.
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