When I was really (really!) young and got my first job (in 2004), I had no idea what organisational values were. Actually, in my first role as an broadcast assistant for a Romanian radio station, the values that guided me were simple: be on time, do your job right, don’t make mistakes and learn fast. So organisational values were actually personal values.&nbsp;Once I moved into the IT world, working for an international company, things started to get a little more complex. In our customer support team, there were talks about values that we are looking for in the people we work with, about how to bring the right people on board or how to work together better by all adhering to the same principles and having the same work ethic. Organisational values were basically team values. I even remember that my welcome email included the following:The most important rule is the rule of common sense. -&gt; common sense1. Whatever you need, you ask for and your colleagues will help you. -&gt; helpful2. Whatever problem you encounter, you communicate it. -&gt; communicative3. If you have an idea, you share it and – if possible – we will make it happen. -&gt; resourceful4. Anything else you think you can handle, you let us know. -&gt; proactiveIt was probably my first encounter with having values inside a team and – although at that moment I did not realise it – these values guided me throughout my entire time within the company. Things moved fast from there on and I found myself 10 years later, working for the same company, leading the exercise in which we were defining the company values. I had come full circle.&nbsp;A lot has changed since, but the importance of organisational values only grew stronger. Fate should have it that I am leading the same values exercise in Pluria right now – but with a lot more experience – and so this topic is really close to my heart. And here are the reasons why I think having these values from the start matter.&nbsp;<h3>It’s about your behaviour, it’s not about you</h3>This is a hard lesson to learn, especially if you are Eastern European (like me). We have been raised with the narrative that we are our behaviour and that if we do something bad, we are bad and if we do something good, we are good and there are no grey areas in which you could be just a child, learning, making mistakes, acting both good and bad, basically… being human.&nbsp;I feel like this mindset can be easily changed for such cultures, when we introduce values and explain to people how these may reflect in your behaviour, but not necessarily define you as a person. The values we share as a group aim to address all those nuances and doubts that we bring with us from our childhood or our national culture. By clearly stating what are the things that we all appreciate, we focus on what behaviours and actions we want to encourage and help reframe some of the biases and prejudices around them that we grew up with.&nbsp;Speaking up, being bold, failing fast, experimenting or learning from mistakes are all great ways of encouraging people to unlearn what they were taught in their school years and how these actions might have sounded disrespectful or wrong to their parents and teachers, but are perfectly acceptable, even celebrated in a professional environment.<img src="https://pluriastrapistorage.blob.core.windows.net/strapi/assets/happy_woman_sitting_sofa_using_laptop_home_1024x683_a87bb5aef3.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="683"><h3>Breaking some of the (invisible) barriers</h3>Depending on where your company is born, you can use a values exercise to address some of the issues that you anticipate you might be having with national culture. The Culture Map is a great resource for understanding how the people in your company might react to criticism, like to communicate or make decisions. So if you anticipate you might be having issues making fast decisions because everybody wants to come to an agreement before anything is done, having FAST as a value might be a great way to tackle that.&nbsp;For example, being BOLD is not something that is appreciated in a lot of countries. Having the courage to speak up, stand up for yourself, try new things or challenge your superiors is received with a lot of scepticism and pushback. Introducing this as a company value can be a great way of showing the team that you are looking to build a company where people feel safe to act like this, without being apprehended about it.&nbsp;The flip-side of this is that if your team is already pretty bold, you might need to explain to them what behaviours that might look bold, but are actually inconsiderate and are not accepted inside the company. The reality is that if you do not explain these behaviours to people, they will act to the best of their ability to embody the values and sometimes, they might cross a line. So to break these barriers, you need to be as clear and as honest as possible about what works and what does not. And give people time to practice and adjust.&nbsp;<h3>A sense of belonging</h3>Of course, one of the main reasons why values matter is because they give us a sense of belonging. It is one of our most basic needs – as humans – to belong to a group. I am convinced that a business can function without mission, vision or values, but would never thrive or have great success. At least not in these times. I have been part of all types of companies from startups to corporations and I could clearly see the difference between having these, even if they were informal, and not having them at all.&nbsp;Still, our sense of belonging is not just about some words we’ve seen on our company’s website or were asked to remember on day one of onboarding, it’s more than that. Usually, when we have our company values clear from the beginning, all of the recruitment, promotions or changes inside the teams are done based on that. So the sense of belonging is built step by step, because people can see and feel that the values they appreciate and they were attracted to are actually embodied by everybody in the company.&nbsp;<h3>Setting the direction and the pace</h3>One of the most important aspects of business life is strategy. However, there is a saying that culture eats strategy for breakfast, meaning no matter how well-designed your strategic plan is, it will fall flat unless your team shares the appropriate culture. So I feel that having a vision, a mission and values addresses both these major components of a company’s success. The first two define generic aspects of your strategy, but the third one clarifies in what ways and through what behaviours you will get there.&nbsp;For example, in a technological company, having INNOVATION as a core value sets a different pace than if you choose SAFETY. Both can co-exist, of course, but the speed with which innovation is done is very different when it is coupled with a value such as keeping customers safe.&nbsp;&nbsp;<h3>That one value that steals the show</h3>Sometimes, one of the values might be the one that has the most impact on people. One of the values that really took me by surprise in one of my previous roles was HUMBLE. Normally, the values that companies choose are related to doing your best work, succeeding as a team or offering a great customer experience. But this was such a basic human quality and seemed so contradictory to the company’s mission and some of the other values it had. Whilst my desire to be and act with humbleness was so strong, I was having a hard time understanding how to do so without appearing submissive or unassertive or even worse, displaying behaviours that seemed to be the opposite of what being humble means.&nbsp;I can definitely say that this was one of the most complicated journeys of discovery for me. I had to learn how to best embody a value in a way that is both representative of my personality, but also of what the company was aiming to achieve and became wiser in the process. And even if Merriam-Webster’s definition of HUMBLE is still a little far from my interpretation, I managed to find my own way of being humble: by listening to others and making sure they feel heard, by being curious and never thinking I have the best answers and by always offering sincere apologies and admitting quickly when I was wrong, no matter how painful that might have been.&nbsp;<h3>Cultures are local, but values are universal</h3>Finally, I think the best contribution that values bring to a company culture is that you manage to create your own culture inside your team, that will tower over everything you do. We all come from such different backgrounds and cultures, that it is almost impossible to create a perfectly functioning team by just giving people something to do. I feel that when we choose our values and officially share them with the team and state their importance, we give everybody the tools they need to communicate better, resolve conflict or figure out solutions.&nbsp;If we want to have autonomous, responsible and proactive people, we need to set up the context in which they will make their decisions and give them the tools they need in order to make them fast and not worry whether their choices, style or personality are liked or not. Values allow us to be authentically ourselves, while at the same time co-existing, working and even succeeding with a group that, even if diverse, will still understand our behaviour.&nbsp;I guess what I am trying to say is values are crucial to building a great company. If you are a founder, an executive or working in human resources, I strongly recommend that you go through this exercise and immerse yourself fully in it. I can guarantee that when you do it, you will also discover what are the anti-values that you never want to promote inside the company and sometimes that is just as powerful as finding your values. I would say that we should all probably share both sides of the story with the team: what we want and what we don’t want our company to stand for, because both are just as important.&nbsp;And while it may not be immediately obvious, having your values clear from the beginning will make your life so much easier. It will give you the clarity you need to overcome obstacles, make hard decisions or have the patience to implement them whilst everyone else might be questioning your ways of thinking. And making things easier in such a complicated and competitive world is a value that we should all embrace.&nbsp;

Organisational Values and Why they Matter

<h3>The world – as we used to know it – has changed.&nbsp;We have changed.</h3>This process that affected the entire world and was brought forth so abruptly by a microscopic creature has split work history into BC and AC (before and after COVID). We adapted so fast that we did not even have time to stop and think about what we were doing. It was necessary to continue working full-time, find solutions fast, and make them stick, all this while keeping productivity levels high.And in this process of looking for ways to adapt to our new work life, we are finding new versions of ourselves. For most of us, our remote work version is one of them.<h3>Communication and our remote jobs</h3>I feel like we are learning that our remote jobs do not automatically turn our real-life person into a similar work avatar. Haven’t you had amazing face-to-face conversations with people that – when using text messages – seemed to be a lot less spontaneous or communicative? Or the opposite?Of course, work life is not personal life, so we can get away with less. But it is a little frustrating feeling like you cannot bring your whole true self at work, especially in a virtual setup, and knowing that the small details of your personality get blurred out, just like your Zoom background.So how can we enhance company culture in a remote work setup? How do we handle remote teams in this new era of home office and work from anywhere? I’m sure I don’t have all the answers, but here are the things that I believe we should all start with. And the best thing about them is they can be applied to any company, irrespective of its culture.<h3>Start with trust</h3>In one of my previous roles, I came face to face with a situation that I had not encountered before: I could not find a communication channel and form a good relationship with my new direct supervisor. It was not my first job, actually, I already had 13+ years of work experience and had found my way in and out of all sorts of work predicaments.However, this situation was creating such a high level of stress that I was becoming incapable of performing in my new role, all the while knowing I was qualified to do it. It was making me feel unprepared and an impostor most of the time.In the few instances I was getting random feedback from my manager, it was either very appreciative or very critical, in different areas and for different reasons, an inconsistency that was only creating more setbacks to our already difficult relationship.Unfortunately for that relationship, I could not find a solution but rather found a new manager. The relationship crumbled and we did not stay in touch. And this situation really stayed with me for some time, until I found the answer in one of the Harvard Leadership programs that I attended as part of that – despite this experience – wonderful company.I learned that the first thing you need to do in any relationship, either face-to-face or remote, is to build trust.It may seem obvious now that you read this, but it really dawned on me that in order to be able to work well with someone, start giving feedback, fail together, learn from mistakes and grow, I needed to have already built a solid trust “account” between ourselves from which we can make periodic withdrawals.The more time and patience I invest in this initial period, the more I make space for getting to know the person, and listening to them in different scenarios means the more deposits we both make to this trust account that we can later rely on.Trust is not just something that is nice to have on the company values board, this is the backbone of getting anything to work and endure in any company. In fact, I would go as far as saying trust should not even be a value in the company deck. Because putting it out there as a forced feeling may create a fake impression that we have actually achieved it.In a traditional office, where we get to experience the office space to the fullest, we get to see all of our colleagues from day one. Without even having a conversation, we can quickly realize who is the funny one, the activist, the hipster, the one who loves art, and the one who loves dogs.We make quick connections and assumptions that become stronger or weaker with each second we spend with our colleagues, sometimes without even having conversations with people, just by observing them. So our trust is built not just based on our own relationships with them, but also on the relationship we see them forming with others. And this aspect is essential for getting to know, trust and form our own connection with that person. So in order to be able to really build one-to-one trust, we also need a lot of group gatherings.When done remotely, employees work from home or from wherever they feel most comfortable. In this particular case, employers work harder to build it. It means making space for talking to each other, listening to each other, and understanding how our colleagues’ minds and hearts work.We talk a lot about how to be better humans, but somehow at work, we’re still looking at ways to be better robots. Because being productive to the point of no failure is still a requirement in most companies, although not a very humane thing to aspire to.So instead of investing in ways to become efficient work machines, the first thing to do when dealing with virtual teams is to make time for free chat and find ways to get people together in smaller groups and have them talk, listen and enjoy each other’s company.And I know that for some of you, this might sound like losing time, money, and the respect of those who sign their emails with the quote “This meeting could have been an email.” And you’re probably questioning whether having more meetings isn’t really the wrong way of approaching our newfound free time that we just got when we stopped commuting. But I am not talking about setting up 1-hour meetings when you could have done it in 15 minutes.What I recommend is creating actual opportunities and situations where people can discuss general topics, share their views and contribute to conversations, such as cultural differences, learning from failures, or work-life balance. Or anything that gives people a chance to show their whole selves in the workplace.<h3>Continue with safety, especially in a remote work setup</h3>The second most important aspect when dealing with remote workers is safety. No matter what is your company culture, everybody should feel safe. Safe to voice their opinions, share their views and discuss any work topic openly. This feeling of being seen, heard, and appreciated for who you are is also a great way of enhancing the company’s values.But how do you create safety in a remote environment?The good news about working remotely (no matter if you work from home, from a coffee shop, or a coworking space) is that the opportunity for gossip and unfounded rumours is so diminished, that you save a lot of wasted time, unnecessary stress, and concerns.The flip side is that a different type of uncertainty creeps in: the unknown. Not all people are anxious in this situation and some have no need to be kept in the loop about everything that is going on. So here are three simple steps that are critical for any employer that wants to build a safe environment remotely.Talk numbers. Yes, numbers do wonders. It does not have to be complicated or look pretty, but on a frequent basis, every person in the company should know how their department/group/division/you name it is doing and how the company is handling money.Make 1to1s mandatory for anybody with a manager (meaning everybody). There is no way for people to share their concerns if all they have is team meetings, status reports, QBRs, all hands, week closures, etc. As a manager, you might think you are giving away a lot of your time to your people, but what they need is 1to1. They can choose not to use it, but they should always have it.Have C-level engage in the conversations. The daily ones. There is nothing worse than having no visibility, feedback, or input from the company’s management in regard to what is happening every day. If the C-level input is a perfectly crafted monologue, then chances are people are not feeling seen, heard, or trusted, therefore not feeling safe.<img src="https://pluriastrapistorage.blob.core.windows.net/strapi/assets/hands_uniting_1024x683_d4449819d1.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="683"><h3>Seal with feedback and see what the future holds</h3>Feedback is the spider web that holds everything together because it is at the same time so thin that it could break (a relationship) at any point, but so strong that it holds so many things together at the same time.The level of feedback that each person gives and gets inside the company really shows the amount of trust that has been built and how much people can rely on each other and are confident in their work relationships.And although it may never be an actual company value, how you offer and handle feedback will contribute immensely to your company culture. Especially in a remote work environment.While most companies treat feedback as a part of the performance management process or create elaborate steps that – by the time you’re done with them – you don’t really remember what the feedback you wanted to give, the actual process of having a culture of feedback is an organic thing that is driven by the leadership of the company.There are a lot of books, ideas, tools, and apps out there that want to teach you how to give better feedback, but the basics of it are still simple: if our leaders build trust and safety and deliver timely and actionable feedback all the time, pretty sure the rest of us will follow promptly.So instead of investing money and time into making a tool do the job for you, invest time in building better leaders that understand <a href="https://pluria.co/blog/3-abilities-leader-of-a-remote/">what means to lead teams remotely</a> and use feedback as a steering tool.Most likely, everything I said you’ve already seen somewhere else, like in Forbes article. For that, I apologize. My intention was to keep it really simple and get personal. And if you’ve made it this far – my guess is that you are interested in this topic and you are trying to figure out how to approach it. And – while my thoughts aren’t new or magical or controversial – they are absolutely critical for being able to navigate remote work times.There are many tools and ideas out there that promise you that once you start using them, all your problems with the remote workforce will disappear. And it is easy to believe in that because we are always looking for that quick fix, right? In reality, for many of us, this is the beginning of a major shift and we would be naive to think we’re experts after three years.However, if we start putting in the work now and begin laying the right foundation, in a couple of years’ time, we will find ourselves not just better equipped and ready to face whatever other work challenges are being thrown at us.A great company is capable to preserve and enhance its culture when we all take the time to get to know and trust each other only to create a safe environment in which everybody can speak up and feel valued.In the greater scheme of things, if we do these simple (but extremely essential) things, people will have a stronger connection with the company and will remain loyal.

How To Enhance The Company Culture In A Remote Work Setup

I have always been passionate about the business world. The process of bringing together people that have never met before to give birth to an idea and grow it to become a global phenomenon is nothing short of a miracle. I always want to be close to those who have the courage, determination and vision to do it.&nbsp;In almost 20 years of work, I never stopped learning. I started with customer care and continued with program and project management, loved to work in business operations and did plenty of people management in all these roles. So I learned a lot about people: what motivates us, how work shapes our lives, what is good leadership, how we create teams that thrive and communities that endure. I realized that no matter how ambitious our goals are, at the end of the day, what is most important is being part of a company that we enjoy working for. And I decided that, wherever I find myself, I want to contribute to this feeling. So here I am, writing about it, hoping to make a difference in how we work.

Andreea Băloi

Former bank officer for 12 years, I am currently testing entrepreneurial remote work and a self-taught way of life which combines different hobbies.

Cristiana Tănase

It is said that a journey of a thousand miles starts with a simple step and mine started a few summers ago when I wanted to do something for myself, so I enrolled in a coaching programme.&nbsp;This gave me the chance to look at myself from a different perspective: little did I know that it would take me to a different career path, that of being a coach.&nbsp;

Patricea Pop

I’m a freelance writer working with startups and B2B tech brands for more than 7 years helping them produce long-form content that drives traffic and engages readers.&nbsp;

Patricia Borlovan

I’m Lucia Margan, a Digital Marketer specialized in SEO Content Writing, Copywriting and UX Writing with more than 7 years of experience in the field. I am passionate about producing high-value content that creates a true impact and organic growth.&nbsp;

Lucia Margan

Co-founder of Pluria and 7card, 10 years ago I left my career in management consulting for the uncertainties&nbsp; and excitement of entrepreneurship.

Andrei Crețu

Journalist by profession for over 10 years, but converted to public relations and human resources. I appreciate good manners and the art of communication in all its forms. I consider that elegance in behavior is the most precious prerogative, a principle according to which I guide my entire activity.

Delia Pușcă

I studied English and Spanish language and literature and translation was (and still is) my first love. Once, out of curiosity I took a job as a technical writer. Curiosity is what still drives me to look for fascinating stuff.

Lidia Mussato

To accept. To know. To love. To learn. To receive. To return. To transform!

Ane-Mary Ormenișan

With over 10 years of experience in communication and content creation, I am passionate about design, writing and visual storytelling. I like to paint stories in words and pixels and discover people who inspire us.

Georgiana Petcu

Media consultant, with theatre roots, strains in television and fruits in brand and communication strategies.&nbsp;

Viorela Mihai

hc_admin

I have been contributing and working in the entrepreneurial ecosystem of Latin America for 8 years. My expertise refers to startup creation, sales and consulting in entrepreneurship. Throughout my entrepreneurial career, I have had the opportunity to create two startups.&nbsp;

Mateo Marulanda

Andreea has a Bachelor’s degree in Philology, she has published articles and reviews, and she writes about books that interest her.

Andreea Moldovan

IT-enthusiast, adventurous and nature lover, even remotely, I focus on my work the same way I focus on my passions.

Carmen Petrovici

Freelancer, I am curious by nature, with a passion for writing and reading, especially in places that inspire me, which I choose according to mood and season: an intimate café, a blossoming park – as long as the battery holds – or a coworking space with modern facilities.

Laura Coman

My connection with writing started a long time ago when I was just a kid passionate about stories of all kinds. Just reading stories was not enough, so I started to build new ones and put them down on paper.&nbsp;

Rafaela Sava

Originally a legal consultant, but more of a communication person, passionate about writing, digitalization, social media, history and philosophy. At the same time, I don’t think there is a problem that can’t be solved with a good book or a series.

Diana Nădejde

I believe in the power of human connections and how storytelling can turn strangers into loyal brand advocates. That's why, through my role as Digital Marketing Specialist at Pluria, I develop strategies that speak through valuable content and enable brand development on digital platforms.

Betsy Riatiga

Writing is my second nature, but working from anywhere in the world is probably my first. I explore remote work and the best places to do it, always in search of stories worth telling.

Anca Șerban

Young entrepreneur with vision and desire to bring about a change in the society. Passionate about acting and writing. I am focusing on building, I strongly believe in the human potential, I am trying to deeply understand every situation I encounter in a project and to infuse positive energy in each human interaction.

Ana Maria Vâlcu

Chatty is a freelance writer from Manila. She finds joy in inspiring and educating others through writing. That’s why aside from her job as a language evaluator for local and international students, she spends her leisure time writing about various topics such as lifestyle, technology, and business.

Chatty Garrate

Experienced HR and Communication professional with extensive experience in the banking, IT, and fintech sectors, with experience M&amp;A and a PhD in HR. A former cellist and avid music enthusiast.I’m driven by curiosity and embracing&nbsp;an optimistic approach. I believe that open communication and continuous learning create an environment where everyone feels valued and inspired to reach their full potential. I also strongly believe in a climate of mutual trust where ideas flow. Knowing that daily life can be a dizzying carousel, I strive to find a balance between intensity and fulfillment, without it becoming overwhelming.

Nora Dobre

I am Colombian and I am completely in love with my country and with what I do. Social Communicator and Master in Marketing Management with 8 years of experience in marketing, communications and content. I love creating, generating new ideas, writing and enjoying a good coffee. People say that without a north it is impossible to know where to go, and that is what I am focusing on: defining my personal and professional north to work every day to be a better person, to fulfil each one of my dreams and to give my team, my family and the people I know the best of me.&nbsp;

Natalia Gómez Almansa

Writing has always been my passion, and freelance is not a desire but a lifestyle. I value my freedom of choosing projects, timelines, and clients more than anything. I choose projects with which I resonate, and I always strive to leave an essential mark on them.&nbsp;

Oana Păuna

Octavia is a content marketer with a knack for storytelling that sells. She’s been at this for the past ten years and she admits that 1) she’s still got a lot to learn and 2) she drinks way too much coffee and works way too late. She plans on writing a book that will help her retire before 45 and grow chicken and lavender somewhere… away.&nbsp;

Octavia Drexler

Radu Jinga

I am a person interested in both: the mysteries of the deep past and the unlimited possibilities of the future. I am very optimistic by nature and I trust very much in the progress of the humanity. I am ready to get involved in activities helping people to adapt to the rapid changes that we all experience in the present and I do hope to bring my contribution as much as possible. I have a significant working experience doubled by a permanent wish to up-date, I love people, I fixe myself objectives that I can finalise and I have a sharp sense of humour.&nbsp;

Mariana Petcu

I am a digital project manager with a 360° perspective, passionate about understanding what makes projects truly successful and why. I’ve worn every hat in the communication domain: from PR to marketing, from content writing to e-commerce growth strategies, from managing volunteers to business development, from CSR campaigns to product development and AI technologies.&nbsp;

Valentina Roman

Who am I? It’s a philosophical question that we can leave for another time. But, I can tell you what I do and how I am. I’ve been a bilingual freelance writer for a year and a half, I started this journey believing faithfully that words have the power to change everything. Each brand keeps a story and knowing how to tell it is the secret to connecting with communities, at the end of the day words are the bridge between a project and people I write articles, blogs, microblogs, and copies. I’m passionate, enthusiastic, very organized, and curious. I spend my days in a cycle: I research, I write, I edit, I write (again) and between the breaks I prepare many cups of coffee, would you like a cup?&nbsp;