It’s been a long 11 weeks since we started working remotely. We’ve been lucky enough to keep delivering solid strategy and creative work for our clients. And in between, we’ve stayed connected and kept our culture thriving through video calls, stand-ups—and daily contests.
Even though we can only interact digitally, we’ve continued to learn more about each other and have some laughs and banter along the way. Here’s how we’ve kept our company culture flourishing.
Sharing creates caring
Our most successful work-from-home contests involve employees submitting photos or videos, and a storytelling component. I can’t tell you how many times in the past few months I’ve rearranged my furniture to poorly film choreographed dance moves, donned a wig, or shared an unflattering photo of myself.
Asking coworkers to show their most embarrassing fashion moment or seeing them lip sync “9 to 5” by Dolly Parton is asking them to be vulnerable and real, but it also makes them more endearing. We often forget that the person across the cubicle has a full life and hobbies outside of the working hours we interact with them.
Contests like “Tell us the craziest thing you’ve done on vacation” and “30-second dance party” allow Envisionit employees to open up, share more, and not take ourselves too seriously. My personal favorite was The Getty Challenge where people got really creative.
Group effort
No contest is complete without having a little incentive.
When we first shifted to WFH, Envisionit sponsored the prizes. We eventually made it a group effort and moved to an employee donation-based prize system. Our team donated prizes that range from a bottle of wine to baked goods to homemade candles and works of art. These prizes are even more rewarding because they’re donated with love and care by some of our own. I can’t tell you how thankful I am that I shared a karaoke video of myself in Mexico from 2015 because it won me this amazing work of art by my coworker, Ryan.
Thanks to sharing a silly story about myself, Odysseus is going to hang in a place of honor in my home office. And you simply can’t put a price on that. Eat your heart out, generic Homegoods prints!
Enjoying our agency
In a time of uncertainty, it is such a gift to enjoy where you work and the people you work with. Keeping our work-from-home contests running smoothly five days a week has absolutely been a group effort. Whether it’s sharing a funny picture, a sweet story, making a playful comment, or donating a prize, every single person in the agency has played a part in our company culture digitally. It truly speaks to the creativity, resourcefulness, and all-around genuine character of the folks in the agency, and shows there’s no place quite like Envisionit.
