Building a cohesive team can be challenging, even when you have all your employees together under one roof. When your team is spread out across multiple office locations, though, that only makes things harder—challenging, yes, but by no means impossible.
As an executive coach and leadership keynote speaker, I’ve worked with a lot of entrepreneurs and managers to develop tight-knit company cultures—and that includes some companies that have multiple offices or campuses. Let me share with you a few basic recommendations.
Building Culture Across Campuses
Have an All-Company Retreat
Nothing brings people together like a big, fun event, planned for somewhere other than your company headquarters. Spend a Saturday going somewhere off-site to mingle, get to know each other, do some team-building activities, or perhaps even listen to a motivational speaker. Realign everyone in your company to the broader goals and values of the business.
Schedule Interoffice Visits
Set aside some opportunities for employees from one office to collaborate with employees at another office—and make sure they do their collaborations in person! Moving people around a bit is a great way to break down some of those barriers that tend to exist between different offices.
Have a Standardized Orientation
Something else I’d recommend is that as you onboard new hires, you have a truly standardized orientation process—one that ensures everyone who works for your company, no matter which office or campus, knows what the ultimate values and mission of the company are. This common ground is crucial for fostering team unity!
Promote Equality
Ultimately, it’s critical to ensure that all your employees have equality of experience—that employees at different offices feel like they are working toward the same goals and that they are held accountable to the same standards.
Create Cohesive Culture
As you try to bridge any cultural gaps between different offices, I’d love to offer my services—either as an executive coach or as a motivational speaker. Connect with me today to find out how I can help!