High-Performing Remote Teams, Culture and Autonomy | Featuring Ali Hill of Pragmatic Thinking

Remote Work Productivity & Lifestyle

Allan of RemoteCompass chats with Pragmatic Thinking CEO Alison Hill.

Pragmatic Thinking is an AFR Fast 100 company that works with large organizations that are going through change. Alison’s work has made its way into businesses such as PepsiCo, McDonalds, Virgin Australia, Siemens, and more.

Show notes:

• Ali's clients were already crafting much greater flexibility for their staff even before the pandemic
• Covid accelerated existing plans to find ways to connect differently (i.e. when there's no office space or watercooler)
• Leaders had to communicate the focus on performance more clearly
• Introducing location flexibility means both 1) sourcing talent from different locations and 2) enabling existing team members to connect differently
• Strategic decisions that are typically made within the two- to three-year cycle are now being made at the three- to six-month cycle
• Organizations that will succeed through the next phase are those that balance a sense of calm and flexibility
• Pre-pandemic, innovative leaders would have imagined a hybrid (remote) setup for 10% to 20% of their workforce. COVID has shown that this affects more like 90% to 95%
• Succeeding with a hybrid team starts with the belief that this way of working is worth pursuing in the first place
• Their team has a "seize the midday" ritual where they're encouraged to go outside to move, generally at 12 pm
• The blurring of boundaries between work and life also came with positive effects like meeting some of your coworkers' kids by virtue of doing video conferences
• Ali wraps up her workday by writing down three things she achieved today, three things she'll let go of today, and three things she needs to do tomorrow
• Teammates not only ought to communicate clearly. They also need to connect with each other as humans
• It's important to remember tangible ways to connect, like sending a care package
• As folks work from anywhere, they need three elements: 1) performance, 2) culture, and 3) autonomy