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Future of work

Why Distributed Work Is The Future—And How to Run An Effective Hybrid Team

The future of work is remote and hybrid, and companies that force employees back to the office will quickly realize the disadvantages of fully office-based work.

It’s understandable why many leaders cling to in-office work. It’s what many of us are used to, and, admittedly, some work is performed better in person. But employees expect and deserve the flexibility of distributed work—and your company can achieve greater success by enabling it.

To help company leaders understand how to build an effective distributed team and explore why I built Frameable as a fully remote company, I joined Lisette Sutherland on The Collaboration Superpowers Podcast. Below, I share a few highlights from our conversation and tips for empowering remote teams. 

Why did you decide to make Frameable a fully remote company?

If you want to attract and retain the best talent, you can’t require employees to come to your physical office. 

We’re not back to 2019 in terms of the way we work and what employees expect about their relationship with their employer. Employees need a balanced life. For us, it’s not worth the trade-offs of having a physical office and insisting that we only hire people who are nearby and willing to commute. We’d prefer to benefit from investing in a remote team where people can thrive from anywhere.

What are some of the challenges your team has faced working remotely?

There are some challenges of entirely remote work, but they all have antidotes and best practices to mitigate the effects. 

The primary challenge of remote work is that, no matter how good your toolbox is, you still benefit from spending time in person together (even if you’re not working when you do it). Humans are social, and we need that person-to-person connection. Offsites are one of the things we do to fulfill this need. We hold an all-company offsite twice a year, and as we grow, we may support different teams having offsites across the country or around the world. 

We see many other companies try to get together at least once a year, too. And not just for gathering in a conference room with a novel view. Planning opportunities for team members to engage in social avenues above and beyond sitting in a room together working all day is essential. Host a cooking class. Go on a hike. Take a ropes course. Anything to help people understand each other outside of work will help them work together more effectively. 

For more advice, I recommend reading my Fast Company article about how to build a great company culture in a fully remote company

Are ‘return to office’ mandates misguided? 

There are many explorations of why companies are mandating employees to return to the office, and some are pretty cynical. In some cases, the boss thinks it’s not a big deal to ask people to commute (possibly because their commute is the shortest), or they simply don’t want to work from home anymore. 

From what I’ve seen with most managers, however, they are just used to working in an office. And it’s true there are elements of in-person work that are hard to replicate with the current out-of-the-box toolset that workplace tool providers offer. 

If companies aren’t intentional about adapting their toolkit—not only using the tools but misusing them deliberately to achieve certain things they weren’t designed for—then it’s easy for teams to just sit at home and rely on their calendar to guide their work. And it’s harder to achieve that same level of collaboration and creativity at home if everyone’s just working through their calendar. 

How can leaders create a better team culture remotely?

Enabling a remote culture is a win-win for the employee and the company. 

Research from Nick Bloom at Stanford found that people save 72 minutes commuting each day when working from home. And 40% of those time savings are spent working extra on primary or secondary jobs. The rest of the time goes toward leisure activities—which are essential for preserving one’s well-being—or caregiving activities. When companies give employees the freedom to work from home, workers are willing to split the time they save commuting between themselves and their employer. 

When people are rested, relaxed, and able to invest in their health, family, and well-being, they do better work. And they don’t mind working a little more if they love their job and feel a healthy balance. 

What is a virtual office manager, and how does the role benefit remote or hybrid teams? 

A virtual office manager is vital for companies trying to get comfortable with and effectively transition to hybrid work or a fully distributed team. You can have a sole virtual office manager or distribute the responsibilities across many people. And this doesn’t have to be a full-time position; 10-20 hours a week can suffice for many teams.

A virtual office manager ensures that everyone is engaged and can work effectively with their personal office setup. They help team members overcome challenges and continually assess and optimize the virtual or hybrid workspace so everyone can thrive. Think of it like a traditional in-person office manager but for distributed, remote, and hybrid teams. 

My team created this virtual office manager’s handbook to fully explain how this valuable role can maximize remote employee engagement. 

Why is Frameable focused on Microsoft Teams?

Frameable’s solutions have evolved quite a bit over the years. We created a virtual office that was truly delightful, and then our customers and potential customers expressed that they wanted it to integrate with the solutions they were currently using.

After assessing the core infrastructure providers currently available to power hybrid work—video conference solutions, collaboration solutions, scheduling solutions—we realized that Microsoft would be a valuable place to start!

What does Frameable offer? How does it improve Microsoft Teams?

We offer a family of complementary, interoperable—but distinct—upgrades available through the Microsoft App Store. We designed these solutions to improve the out-of-the-box experience companies and users get from Microsoft Teams. 

For example, During Microsoft Teams video calls, only one person can share their screen at a time. We’ve observed, however, that many collaborative working sessions work better if people can work fluidly—receiving, producing, and note-taking. Our app MultiShare allows multiple people to share their screens simultaneously in a Microsoft Teams call. This helps meetings move smoothly without team members interrupting each other to ask for permission or give a courtesy heads-up that they would like to share their screen.

We offer a diverse set of products that sit on top of Microsoft Teams, and MultiShare is just one example.

Tools That Power Effective Remote Teams

The above topics are just a few areas that Lisette and I discussed. To learn more about what tools my team uses to power our distributed workforce and how we assess which tools we will use next, listen to the full episode here

Listen to our podcast, Remotely Possible, wherever you get your podcasts

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remote work

Why Virtual Onboarding for All Employees is Crucial for Success

Building a great hybrid work culture starts with your virtual onboarding process. But don’t just take my word for it—research shows that 70% of employees believe their onboarding can make or break their experience, and remote employees are 117% more likely to leave if they feel under-trained during the onboarding process. 

It’s crucial to create a positive first impression for remote workers and help them transition seamlessly into your company. Unfortunately, there appears to be a significant disconnect in how companies approach their onboarding for employees outside of the corporate HQ and what their remote and distributed workforce actually needs. 

The Virtual Onboarding Disconnect

A positive onboarding experience will set the stage for your workers to integrate into your company and feel fulfilled in their roles. When their first impression of your team isn’t face-to-face, however, it can be harder to ensure that impression is a good one—and it comes down to having a comprehensive onboarding process.

Where exactly are companies falling flat regarding the virtual onboarding experience? After an uninspired onboarding, remote workers are the most likely to feel undertrained (63%), disoriented (60%), and devalued (52%). 

These feelings are concerning, but companies can address them with intelligent planning. A successful virtual onboarding program should:

  • Include Workplace Technology Training: During onboarding, walk employees through each tool they will use to complete their work. Additionally, explain how they can successfully navigate your virtual workspace, including how to access critical resources. Check out more tips for successful virtual training here. 
  • Extend Onboarding Beyond Orientation: Employees need a clear understanding of what their first day and week will look like at your company. Provide a thorough schedule for their first week, and coordinate video meetings to learn more about their specific role and meet their manager, mentor, and coworkers. Schedule regular check-ins with the employee and their manager to discuss their challenges and ensure they understand their priorities. 
  • Show Them They’re Valued: Remote workers often need additional reassurance and recognition, especially when new to a company. Welcome all new team members through your companywide channels to show them they’re valued. Ensure managers provide positive feedback during every check-in, spotlighting specific achievements or accomplishments. 

Create a Fulfilling Virtual Onboarding Experience

New employees shouldn’t feel undertrained, disoriented, and devalued after they join your company. Following the strategies shared above can address these challenges and give your employees the best experience from their earliest days.

If you’re looking for more guidance on developing a successful virtual onboarding, we have you covered. Download our virtual onboarding ebook to learn the strategies and best practices to ensure your remote workers feel valued, supported, and confident in their new roles.

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Future of work remote work

A Manager’s Checklist of Opportunities to Build Meaningful Connections in Virtual Offices

Building a healthy and collaborative workplace culture requires a consistent strategy, but the rewards are well worth the effort.

Employees who feel connected to their company’s culture are much more likely to thrive and stay. And those happy employees can even be up to 20% more productive than those who are dissatisfied. The key is to help employees build genuine relationships with their peers to foster healthy communication and overcome potential conflict—and that’s easier said than done.

Managers play a major role in building connections in virtual offices and reinforcing the company culture. For those who may be new to managing virtual teams, it can be challenging to know where to focus your effort to drive the best results. Let’s explore the main opportunities for managers to connect employees, regardless of where they are based.

5 Ways to Connect Employees Across Your Distributed Workforce 

To perform their best, virtual and hybrid workers need a clear understanding of their “purpose at every level.” This means that everyone—from your entry-level employees to executive leadership—should feel confident that they are working toward your mission with purpose.

Rallying virtual employees behind your company mission requires a different approach for each level, and relationships will make or break your experience. Implement these strategies for building relationships in virtual teams to strengthen your culture:

  • Prioritize Your Virtual Onboarding: Your company needs to make a solid first impression on all new employees. To do so, create a virtual onboarding plan that provides a smooth transition into your company and clearly explains how new hires can succeed as part of your distributed team. Onboarding is also the ideal time to get to know new hires and encourage them to share their outside-of-work interests and previous work accomplishments. Not only does this help new hires start building their own internal network, but it also gives leaders more insight to connect employees based on their commonalities and shared hobbies. 
  • Establish Mentorship Programs: Pairing early career professionals with mid and senior-level employees can be incredibly effective for building relationships and breaking down potential cultural barriers. New employees can more quickly learn about your company’s culture and understand their potential career progression with guidance from their mentor, and both the mentor and mentee will benefit from the new relationship. 
  • Create Space for Non-Work Conversations: In the physical office, a company’s water cooler or kitchen was a hub for quick conversations and friendly banter. Likewise, virtual workspaces should also offer places for employees to chat about matters not related to work. Consider creating dedicated channels in your communication tools for employees to talk about personal hobbies and interests, and offer open networking rooms where employees can catch up throughout the work day.  
  • Start Meetings With an Icebreaker: Team meetings are a key opportunity to check in with employees. At the start or end of your meetings, host a quick conversation where everyone can share something about their week or personal life or recognize each other for their accomplishments. Taking a few minutes from each meeting to focus solely on your employees as humans can spark connections and help them build and find commonalities. 
  • Live By Your Values: When implementing the above strategies, your team needs to live the values you are trying to nurture. Encourage managers to dedicate time each week to actively work on building relationships within their team, and openly discuss the challenges that people are facing. 

Start to Build Employee Connections on Day One

There are challenges—and distinct advantages—to building genuine connections in fully remote, distributed, and hybrid teams. Try out a few different tactics, and find out what works best for you and your team. But ask for ongoing feedback and be open to adapting as your team grows and develops. 

One of the most important times to help an employee embed themselves into your culture is during their new hire onboarding. The onboarding process presents many key opportunities to connect employees and establish a healthy foundation that will help them overcome any challenges they face in your virtual workspace.

To bring a new-found sense of community to your virtual or distributed team, add Spaces to Microsoft Teams and see what a virtual office can do for your team’s productivity.

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remote work

Take Remote Work  More Seriously Starting with Supporting Their Office Design

In the absence of a physical office location, what does ‘office design’ mean for employees who work from home (WFH)? There are two ‘spaces’ that combine to make up a remote employee’s workplace. The first is their physical location, where they’re actually sitting at a computer doing their work. The second is their virtual location, which can be defined as the platform or collection of programs that an employee uses to complete their work online. For companies seeking to support their remote staff, a consideration of both spaces will be necessary. 

The Physical Office

Start with embracing what WFH is
When home space becomes a workspace, it’s natural that one will inevitably affect the other. In embracing WFH culture, we must normalize and embrace that there are variables at play in every employee’s environment that employers cannot and should not try to control. 

  • Interruptions
    There will be interruptions—dropped internet connections, kids screaming in excitement, cats sitting on keyboards, etc. Acknowledging this reality and having defined procedures for dealing with these inevitabilities will keep things stress-free and efficient. If there are important meetings that management particularly wants to keep uninterrupted, communication is key. Being flexible in scheduling may allow an employee to capitalize on naturally quieter times during their day, and planning ahead will allow the employee to temporarily adjust their environment or location to suit their work needs. 
  • Decor
    While it would be ideal for all remote employees to have spacious, private offices in their homes, that is simply not the reality for most. Many remote workers have gotten impressively creative with some WFH desk setups, as shown in this 2020 CNN article. As varied as these home workspaces are, they have one thing in common: they all work!

    So long as an employee’s work is getting done on time and to satisfaction (and there is nothing on display that could be potentially harmful or offensive), there is no need to question or comment on what their workspace looks like. If a role requires high-level professional meetings or face time with current and prospective clients, providing a good camera light, external mic, and coaching on best practices for virtual backgrounds is appropriate.
  • Location
    With the line between home life and work life blurring with remote employment, it is important to understand appropriate boundaries regarding work requests. Limiting where and when an employee can travel hampers future open and proactive communications from taking place. Instead, let your employees take responsibility for ensuring they can connect effectively and complete assignments to the proper standards, no matter where they choose to do their work. 

Recognizing and accepting these eventualities are minimum requirements for employers of a remote workforce. Furthermore, embracing flexibility can be linked to better mental health, work-life balance, and increased workplace satisfaction for everyone–including those in leadership positions. 

So what can be controlled in a remote employee’s physical workspace? There are several things employers can do and provide to support their remote employees and set them up for success- wherever that physical location may be.

  1. Standardize tech wherever possible
    For employers constructing a remote office, it can save time, frustration, and money to ensure all employees are equipped with the same brands and models of equipment wherever possible. Not only will this standardize the employee experience, but it will also enable employees the opportunity to troubleshoot issues together rather than relying solely on the office tech support specialist.  
  2. Provide home office stipends
    No two remote employees will have the same work from home setup. Some will be better equipped than others, while some will have significant barriers in their immediate environment to working in comfort. A home office stipend is a payment given to employees to use towards investing in their remote workspace. Whether spent on ergonomic chairs, an air conditioner, or a rented desk in a co-working space, a home office stipend empowers remote workers to equip themselves as needed to do their best work comfortably and efficiently.
  3. Accommodate special needs
    Standardizing equipment and providing a stipend are great ways to level the playing field for your employees. However there may be a few individuals who need additional flexibility and support to shine their brightest. Keeping regular communication open and working together to create solutions to specific needs can positively impact an employee’s day-to-day work, producing a happy and productive team member. 

The virtual office

Don’t make the mistake of thinking that a virtual space does not need the kind of management and structure that a physical office space needs! If anything, a virtual office space requires even more explicit communication and coordination to ensure that individual employees and the organization have what they need to perform.

Improve remote work with a collaborative virtual office platform

Luckily, not all of the foundational work of establishing a remote workplace will fall to organizational leadership. Post-pandemic, there are now a wealth of remote work platforms that organizations can choose from to get them started. 

Many of these platforms vary widely but have similar core offerings that are now considered necessary office tools for modern work, such as cloud storage, video conferencing, and instant messaging and email capabilities. The decision on which to choose is an important one that organizations will want to weigh carefully.  “Technology and workplace tools are, for all intents and purposes, the new workplace,” says the Harvard Business Review. “As such they’re becoming central in attracting and retaining new talent, fostering workplace culture, creating productivity and more.” 


Whatever platform you choose, it will be essential to offer onboarding training and self-serve resources for further education and reference.

Meta work: proactively prioritize organization and communication

Even with a virtual office platform, employees can still be at a slight disadvantage. For example, it can be difficult to obtain quick clarifications when they’re in a work-from-home situation. Remote employees must rely on the timeliness of instant chat, email, or phone and video calls for all of their communications. Depending on their colleagues’ schedules, this could have them waiting much longer than they would in a physical office. Proactive organization and communication can resolve many of these time-consuming clarification requests.


Some easy first steps towards better organization and communication include: 

  • Write clear meeting descriptions or agendas into your meeting invitations
  • Create a central place where all important organizational resources are stored and accessed 
  • Implement naming conventions for saved files to make them easy to find
  • Document workplace conduct rules, communicate them and stick to them
  • Schedule regular check-in’s with direct reports to ensure there is no uncertainty about work responsibilities and roles

Creating and adhering to best practices for communicating and providing a clear, organized structure for company documents and resources saves employers time and money and allows employees to work efficiently and effectively. 

Office enhancements 

Keeping up with the newest technology enhancements and tools is important in the ever-changing landscape of virtual work. There are additions to the established platforms that improve on existing functionality and break down communication barriers that are still present in even the most efficient remote work teams. The Frameable Spaces integration in Microsoft Teams combines the structure of the Teams environment with added ability to work transparently, meet and communicate with teammates easier. Learn more about how the Frameable Spaces app can transform your Microsoft Teams experience today.  

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Future of work online meetings remote work

The Future of Work Begins Now—Here’s Who’s Designing It

By now you’ve probably heard this a thousand times: hybrid work is here to stay. People love their remote and hybrid jobs, and everyone has come to the general consensus that workplace flexibility is not something that people will easily forgo. As companies and workers alike look to the future, it’s helpful to keep an eye on the biggest change-makers in the industry. Here’s a look at our team’s round up of the people and organizations to watch as we navigate the ever-changing future of work. 

Nicholas Bloom

Bloom, a Stanford Economics professor, is the foremost expert on remote work and remote work trends, authoring some of the most insightful research on the subject to come out in the last decade. In 2017, when only 8% of the U.S. worked from home, Bloom gave a talk about his research and how leaning into work from home could change the world. Now in 2023, he’s become a key advisor to many Fortune 100 companies, and definitely someone everyone interested in the remote work revolution should keep their eye on.

Katie Burke

As Chief People Officer at Hubspot, Katie Burke has shaped the company’s post-pandemic approach to business and has even shifted how they pay their employees. Compensation at Hubspot is now based on one anchor city per country; for example, New York City is the anchor for U.S. based employees, so no matter where U.S. Hubspot employees find themselves, they are being paid fairly. With this move, Hubspot is leading the way as many other organizations look to become both more equitable and attract top talent—no matter where they are in the world. 

Canva

Canva is an approachable graphic design platform that is changing the way people create and collaborate on visual content. With a user-friendly interface and extensive library of design templates, Canva is empowering individuals and teams to create professional-quality designs without the need for specialized skills or software. This democratization of graphic design is helping to break down barriers to entry for those interested in design and enable more creativity in the workplace across various industries. Furthermore, Canva’s cloud-based platform allows for seamless collaboration and sharing of designs across teams. Canva is playing a key role in enabling remote collaboration, they even bolster a large roster of entirely remote employees around the world.

Cheryl Cran

Cheryl Cran, the founder of NextMapping, is a recognized expert in the future of work and its surrounding thought leadership. She has been at the forefront of the conversations surrounding the future of work, providing insights and guidance to organizations worldwide. Cheryl’s vision for the future of work is one of innovation and human-centeredness, where organizations are able to adapt quickly to changing circumstances and leverage the latest technology to achieve their goals. As an acclaimed author of 10 books and an inspiring keynote speaker on the topics of remote and hybrid work, Cran is a visionary thought leader in the future of work. Her insights and expertise have been featured in top-tier publications including Fast Company, Huffington Post, and Forbes as she works to shape the future of work by empowering individuals and organizations to embrace change and create success regardless of their industry.

Frameable

Frameable has brought a new perspective to what it means to collaborate remotely. Developing sleek and easy to use tools for elevating day to day meetings, productivity, and even large-scale virtual events, has positioned them to become a stand out in the remote work space. Their flagship product, Spaces, gives teams a virtual office that is straightforward and easy to use. And for organizations that already use Microsoft Teams, they even offer a built-in application specifically for Teams users to make work more streamlined and collaboration seamless no matter where coworkers are located. 

If you’re looking to take your remote team to the next level, see how Spaces can improve your team’s connectivity and productivity–no matter where they are. Schedule a demo to learn more.

Front

Front provides a shared inbox platform for teams to manage their emails, social media messages, and other communication channels in one place. Its platform offers features like email templates, message assignments, and automated workflows to help teams work together more efficiently and effectively no matter where they are. On top of this comes integrations with top technologies already in use by many, like Slack. By simplifying and automating many repetitive tasks that come with day-to-day work, Front is positioned to keep changing how we work.

Chris Heard

CEO of Firstbase, Heard founded the company that is now changing the way organizations handle the hardware needs of their remote workforce. By giving teams access to the physical items they need to get their jobs done and keeping track of everything in the cloud, Firstbase is making it easier and more efficient for companies to take advantage of going remote. Follow him on LinkedIn where he regularly discusses the future of work and shares conversations from his podcast Against the Herd.

Hive

Hive is a new platform for managing both projects and teams. It offers a centralized workspace where team members can collaborate, track their tasks, and communicate with each other. Hive’s big differentiator is its ability to integrate with other tools that teams often use, such as Google Drive, Salesforce, and GitHub.Its user-friendly interface and powerful features make it a popular choice among teams of all sizes, from small startups to large enterprises. 

Notion

Notion is the productivity and project management app taking the world by storm. From solo-entrepreneurs to full teams, Notion’s user base has quickly grown and it’s easy to see why: Notion is approachable. Whether a team needs to plan and scope a large project, or a young adult finds themselves needing to create a budget, Notion is straightforward and customizable to users’ needs. This all in one powerhouse that can be a CRM, calendar, note taker, and even an Excel competitor is definitely one to pay attention to. 

Okta

Okta provides identity and access management solutions. With a cloud-based platform, it allows organizations to securely manage and authenticate users’ identities across different applications and devices. Okta’s platform is highly scalable, allowing businesses to easily integrate it into their existing infrastructure. As remote, hybrid, and work-from-anywhere models continue to grow, the need for secure and efficient identity management solutions is definitely not going anywhere.Their continued expansion of capabilities has positioned them to become a new leader in the industry.

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productivity remote work

How a Virtual Office Integration Can Benefit Your Customers and Your Business

As more organizations look to incorporate hybrid and remote work into their workflows, virtual office integrations have become an increasingly popular option. With virtual office integrations, organizations can offer their employees increased flexibility while reducing costs associated with traditional office spaces. In this blog post, we will explore virtual office integrations’ benefits for both channel partners and their customers and why they should include them as a key part of a modern business strategy.

What is a virtual office integration?

A virtual office integration enables employees to work together more effectively when they are not physically together. These integrations are typically bolted onto traditional meeting and communication software, such as Microsoft Teams, enhancing the platform’s existing capabilities. Think about the different interactions you have experienced when working in an office versus working remotely. Traditional meeting software is very limited in terms of visibility and insight into co-workers’ daily activity and enabling ad-hoc collaboration. Integrations can allow employees to hold more effective and engaging, scheduled and unscheduled virtual interactions that better replicate the in-person experience.

Benefits to Customers

As a channel partner, you understand that keeping your customers happy is essential for building long-term relationships with your customers to drive growth. By offering a virtual office integration, you can help your customers reduce friction, increasing customer satisfaction and loyalty. When offering a virtual office integration, highlight the following benefits:

Increased Flexibility

A frequently cited benefit of working remotely is the increased flexibility it gives employees. Virtual office integrations can help fuel this flexibility by providing a greater toolkit of real-time collaboration tools, more accurate statuses, and eliminating the silos that can arise during remote work, allowing teams to work together more effectively.

Access to Top Talent

Whether your customer is currently working remotely or is transitioning to a remote or hybrid workstyle, a flexible work environment will open up the opportunity to hire top talent from around the world. Recent data from LinkedIn showed that although remote jobs represent less than 20% of jobs posted, these listings accounted for over 50% of all applications. As the labor market continues to remain tight, employers looking to hire top talent face increased pressure to maintain or expand their remote work policies. A virtual office integration can ease communication across locations and time zones and increase productivity during core working hours, allowing organizations to hire the best talent from around the world.

Cost-Effective Solution

One of the most significant advantages of virtual offices is their cost-effectiveness. According to Global Workplace Analytics, “a typical employer can save about $11,000 a year for every person who works remotely half of the time.” Virtual office solutions and integrations can eliminate costly expenses such as rent and overhead costs, justifying the integration cost.

Minimize Learning Curves

Out-of-the-box virtual office solutions offer the same benefits as integrations, but they can pose a challenge for customers in terms of learning and adaptation. Integrations, on the other hand, can be much more user-friendly as they can blend seamlessly into existing workflows and systems. According to a 2021 Deloitte survey, poor integration across applications is seen as one of the main barriers to the effective application of tech, with 45% of respondents ranking this as one of their top three issues. Offering customers a virtual office integration rather than a new solution can help make the transition more manageable for employees, ultimately resulting in a more seamless and productive work environment.

Benefits to Partners

Upsell Current Product Offerings

According to the book Marketing Metrics, businesses have a 60-70% chance of selling to current customers, compared to the probability of selling to a new customer at 5-20%. Virtual office integrations can provide a great opportunity to upsell or cross-sell to your existing customers. Providing bundles with virtual meeting platforms or other complementary products can offer your customers a wide range of valuable benefits while increasing your recurring revenue streams. 

Increase Customer Retention

As companies continue to navigate the new realities of the post-pandemic world, virtual offices have emerged as a practical solution to optimize remote and hybrid work. With many companies looking for solutions that can help them stay connected and produced while not physically together, offering cutting-edge virtual office integrations to your customers can help position you and your business as a leader in the industry. Stay on top of your customers’ current problems to help increase satisfaction and loyalty long-term.

Differentiate and Grow Your Business

One of the best ways for partners to maximize their ROI is to diversify their portfolio mix. By adding virtual office integrations to your existing portfolio, partners can expand their product offerings, target new markets, and reach a wider range of customers. Virtual office integrations are a valuable product add as the remote and hybrid work models continue to grow. A Gallup survey in June 2022 found that 8 in 10 people work in a hybrid or remote environment, leaving only 2 in 10 people working entirely on-site. This means there is a significant market for virtual office integrations, and partners who offer this solution can capitalize on this trend while reducing dependence on a single product offering. Since most virtual office integrations are subscription-based pricing models, this also opens up the opportunity for recurring revenue streams, leading to greater stability for your business.

Empower Your Business Growth—Join the Frameable Partner Program

You’ve heard about the rise of remote and hybrid work models, but are you offering your customers the solutions they need to thrive in this new landscape? Our Microsoft Teams integration allows you to enhance your customers’ remote work experience while latching onto a software solution they are already familiar with. Connect with us today to expand your product offerings, increase retention, and boost your ROI.

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online meetings productivity remote work

19 Tips for a Successful Sales Kickoff (SKO)

Make your next  SKO a success

Whether you are kicking off a new fiscal year or a new quarter, it’s imperative that you set the right tone for your team. An effective sales kick-off can make all the difference for maximizing your team’s energy, effort, and optimism when it comes to the upcoming season. 

Starting off on a positive note is crucial. But how do you do so without sounding cheesy and disingenuous? Doing this effectively requires setting both reasonable first milestones and not starting off on a negative note or creating an association of fear with the project or quarter. 

However, this doesn’t mean you have to avoid talking about gaps or areas for improvement entirely. Just be sure to round out any mentions of potential blockers by talking about how you will help alleviate them and ways that leadership can support your team. You want your team to leave the sales kickoff feeling invigorated!

The Essential Hybrid or Remote Sales Kickoff (SKO) Checklist

Our diverse team of experienced remote work professionals compiled a checklist of the best steps to take (and the order in which to take them) to make sure your remote or hybrid team’s project, quarter, or yearly SKO is a great success!

Enable Your Hybrid SKO’s Success with the Right Technologies

Of course, every team is different, and no checklist is one size fits all. But incorporating many or all of the above steps will ensure your kickoff is enjoyable, memorable, and tee’s up your next chapter on a good note.

Whenever and wherever your team works, Frameable has all the tools you need to make your next kickoff customized, fun, and functional. To discover how you can bring this same excitement to the way you work, learn more about Frameable Spaces for Teams and book a demo to get started.

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remote work

3 Ways Your Remote Hiring Process Is Costing You Your Best Candidates

After hearing countless horror stories about remote interviews, it’s clear that the worst practices from in-person hiring have transferred online—and they’re destroying the candidate experience.

A long time ago, I applied for a role at a Fortune 500 company where several former colleagues worked. I passed the initial screening and was scheduled to visit the company’s downtown office and meet who would have been my manager and coworkers. 

On arrival I had to check-in with security, who clearly were not told I was coming. After 30 minutes trying to contact the company, I was finally allowed into the office—to then be told that my interviewers were no longer available; so, they threw anyone they could at me. 

The first person I spoke with had no idea what I was supposed to do, and it was clear he didn’t like his job. Others asked me a generic list of questions. The person who would have been my manager had decided to work from a remote office that day, so I sat in her empty office and had a phone call with her. Good thing I took the whole afternoon off to come into their office, right?

Poor communication, unprepared interviewers, and a clear disregard for my experience made it easy for me to decide to not move forward in the process. The disappointing thing, though, is that these are all simple areas to address with the proper care. And, they should not still be a problem in the age of remote hiring. Yet they are!

If you’re hoping to hire great people, then you need to structure the whole process from the interviewees’ standpoint. Let’s explore what companies are doing that is hurting their hiring process, and what to do instead.

The Current State of Remote Hiring

We’ve been hearing from many industry peers that remote work has led to an even longer, more involved hiring process—and that’s not a good thing for candidates and companies alike!

Let’s look at the current reality:

  • A standard job opening will receive 118 applicants on average (250 or more for corporate jobs). Understandably, this applicant volume can overwhelm a hiring team.
  • Job seekers who apply to 21-81 jobs have the greatest likelihood of landing an interview. This numbers game means that candidates are likely to become critical of every step of the process for each job opportunity.
  • Most entry-level positions involve 2-4 interviews, but executive-level positions often require more than four. 
  • Recruiters and hiring professionals generally agree that it takes 60 days to fill a non-managerial professional role. But what if you can accelerate that by creating a better process?

How To Improve Your Remote Hiring Process

Instead of creating a more efficient process, too many companies have taken what they were doing wrong in the pre-pandemic world and ported it over to the virtual interview process—so now, people take a half day off to sit on video calls with people asking them the same questions.

In talking to our peers, the following are the most commonly cited criticisms about remote hiring processes, and tips to help you build a better experience.

Improve Candidate Communication

A lack of communication, communications intended for another candidate, and slow response times cause anxiety and frustration for job seekers. To help alleviate these feelings, companies should clearly explain:

  • How long candidates should expect to hear back after they apply
  • How many steps the interview process may take, with an overview of what each step involves and an estimated timeline for each
  • How candidates can ask questions and seek help during the process 

Start by reviewing your job listings. In addition to the job description and company background, include a section about what the interview process involves and how quickly you’re looking to fill the role. Be as specific and transparent as possible, detailing exactly what happens at each step of the process and how long it will take—and be sure to fulfill those expectations!

Consider setting up automated responses at every step of the hiring process to let people know when they will hear back from you, and the next steps. Automated — but personalized — messages will greatly improve your hiring experience.

“People often spell my name Andy instead of Andi, which is understandable if you have not seen it spelled,” says Andi Robinson, Hijinx Marketing. “But I had a recruiter call me by a completely different name in an email communication. I also had an interviewer not show up for the interview.”

As you receive questions and feedback from candidates, create an FAQ document with approved messages that your team can use when addressing specific needs and questions. Even better, you should share that FAQ with candidates to preemptively address their needs.

Trim the Excessively Lengthy and Complex Hiring Processes

Interviews are an essential way for candidates and hiring teams to assess each other and decide if it’s a mutual match. The issue, though, is that teams often coordinate too many interviews, which take too much time, and often involve unpaid work projects that the company plans to use (don’t do this!).

“I have been to interviews that have five rounds,” says marketer Amy Higgins. “However, each round requires multiple people and presentations. In all, I’ve interviewed sometimes over three months, meeting with 10+ people individually, completed multiple presentations that are in-depth enough to be event sessions, and still end up waiting for a decision. The higher you are in your career, the longer the process. I’m actually ok with the multiple people—it gives me a better feel for what I can expect working with the company and how their culture is internally. It’s just the time that can be painful.”

In many cases, extending a hiring process over a month or two is enough time for your preferred candidate to find and accept a job elsewhere. This makes it critical to map out your current hiring process to identify where you can streamline things. How long should each step take, and how long does each step currently take? What can you do to optimize each step without sacrificing the candidate’s experience or your ability to assess candidates?

For starters, host fewer interviews and use panel interviews to connect more team members with your candidates. Provide interviewer guides that help them understand how to effectively assess a candidate (we’ll share more on that next).

A Word About Those Unpaid Marketing Interview Projects

Back to those interview projects. I strongly recommend that you compensate interviewers if you assign them homework. Alternatively, you can host real-time tests that can be done in the course of an interview, which also allows your team to immediately assess the output and determine the next steps. 

So why shouldn’t you ask candidates to draft a content strategy or do a content audit?

“If you have job applicants create some type of work product as part of the application process, the applicant retains the rights in their work,” says Ruth Carter, Esq., Geek Law Firm. “You don’t own the rights unless they’ve assigned it to you. (If you make all prospective employees assign the rights in what they create as part of the application process, you suck, unless you’re compensating the applicants for their work.)”

The good news for applicants is you can use that project as an example of the caliber of work you do if you don’t get the job. 

“Let’s say you don’t have the prospective employee sign over their rights,” says Carter. “The applicant retains copyright ownership of their work, and can copy, distribute, and display it wherever they want. If their work contains IP owned by your company, such as a company logo, they will likely need to change this to a fake company logo to avoid giving the impression that there’s a relationship with the company that doesn’t exist.”

One senior marketer friend went through a month-long interview process, with three rounds of interviews with multiple people in each round, and a final content audit project. They didn’t get the job, yet noticed the company implemented many of their ideas. While this is perfectly legal since there is no legal protection for ideas in the U.S., it’s yet another reason why it’s better to pay even a small fee to candidates creating a work product that your company intends to use.

Prepare All Interviewers 

One of the easiest areas to address is also one of the most common issues with hiring processes in general: unprepared interviewers. 

Every interview should dig into unique areas to decide if the candidate is the right fit for the role and company. Instead, most interviews rehash the candidate’s work history, reconfirm the role they’re applying for, and explore a script of questions. 

Make this experience better by ensuring that every interviewer has read the candidate’s resume, understands the job description for the role, and reviewed the candidate’s LinkedIn profile or portfolio. Your goal is to make the candidate feel valued and gain an understanding of what it is about them that compelled your company to interview them for the role.

“I was interviewing with a hiring manager and the first question she asked was about my book,” said Andi. “It showed that she had done her research on my background.”

Ensure that every team member prioritizes interviews the same way you would treat a client—there should be no reason for an interviewer to be late or miss a scheduled interview. If your team has a virtual office manager, they can remind your team members about an upcoming interview. 

In the worst case scenario where an interviewer misses their meeting, then you should immediately call the interviewee to apologize and alert them of the next steps. If someone is waiting to be interviewed but receives no update, then they will understandably become frustrated with the process.

Prioritize The Remote Candidate Experience

The shortcomings of most remote hiring processes are not unique to remote environments, but they cause greater harm to the candidate experience because there isn’t an in-person connection to compensate. 

Provide clear and direct communication throughout the entire process, and ensure that everyone involved with the interview understands their role. Prepare interviewers so that they can host a meaningful conversation with the candidate, and consider hosting panel interviews to streamline the process.

If you see an increase in candidate turnover, then you may need to assess if you have too many interview steps or are taking too long to interview your candidates. 

After you find the ideal candidate and they’re about to join your team, follow these four tips for welcoming and engaging your new remote team members. To encourage ongoing connection and collaboration in your remote team, learn how Frameable Spaces empowers your team to interact just as you would in the physical office. 

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4 Small Ways to Show Your Remote Team You Appreciate Them

Just because your team works remotely doesn’t mean you can skip out on employee appreciation. When working as a distributed or hybrid team, it’s important to develop a variety of avenues where you can publicly show your team how much you value their contributions. Research has continually shown that teams who feel valued and appreciated are more engaged, confident that they will be treated well in the future, and are less likely to quit.

Establish A Culture of Communication

If your team is fully remote,  it is unlikely that you will have the opportunity to walk down the hall and say hello or good morning to everyone. Because of this physical separation, make a point to check in occasionally about things outside of work with different members of your team. Offering your team members this point of unstructured regular contact with you can help them feel supported. This can also be a great time to offer up positive feedback. If you noticed something they did well recently, these small moments are great for offering up those pieces of feedback.

HBR reports that it’s best to offer positive and constructive feedback as soon as possible, but not together. So when you have positive nuggets to share – make sure you share them! 

Create Opportunities for Wider Recognition and Appreciation

While it’s important to give praise one-on-one, it’s also important to do things for your entire team to show them you care.

Do you have weekly or monthly all-hands or other team meetings? Have different members showcase accomplishments, successes, or promotions within the team. Get multiple people involved in the announcement and make a point to recognize contributions from all corners of the business. Making sure people feel seen for their individual contributions and for the impact they have on the team as a whole. These small celebrations are also a great way to remind everyone what you’re working towards and that their contributions are important to the entire team’s success. Two great options our team recommends are TinyPulse and Achievers.

Send Care Packages People Actually Want to Receive

In a remote work environment, throwing a pizza party or bringing in donuts isn’t something you can easily do, and introductory swag boxes are more often than not seldom used by new members for long. Instead, send your team something that they would actually love and use. 

Every team is different, so it may even help to send out a survey every year or during your onboarding process to help you get a sense of what your team members would love to receive. Packages could be something to accompany a remote event or activity or be just by themselves. Here are some ideas to get you started:

  • Team sweatshirts 
  • Wine tasting or mixology box for a team happy hour or activity
  • A nice meal for their family, like steaks or sustainable seafood (no shellfish!)
  • A box of candy or cupcakes for their birthday
  • A house plant or flowers for the holidays
  • A card or gift card for those welcoming a baby
  • A gift card to order lunch during the team all hands
  • A craft box for a team activity

Remember when sending food or consumption-based activities that you are aware of any dietary restrictions or allergies team members may have. No one wants to receive a care package they can’t enjoy!

Be Flexible

The idea of offering more flexibility to employees in our current remote-forward age is not new, but it does bear repeating! Many note that being given the opportunity to flex working hours is a huge sign of trust and recognition of a job well done from management. Consider if there are times of the day you could offer as flex-time to your team. Flex-time refers to an arrangement where employees can adjust the start or end times of their work days as long as they are still working their agreed upon hours.

There are a variety of ways to approach flex time such as allowing 8-10 am or 3-5 pm as a flex block or by implementing meeting-free afternoons on certain days where employees can choose to flex if needed. These options provide the flexibility to go to the gym, schedule appointments, or drop off and pick up kids from school. Having the freedom for employees to manage their responsibilities in a way that works best for them allows you to show them they are valued and that you respect and trust them enough to get their work done, even if they choose to do so outside of conventional hours. 

Boost remote employee engagement with our free Virtual Office Manager e-book! Click to download now.

To support such freedom and flexibility, your team also needs to be supported by the best possible tools. Frameable Spaces offers one of the best ways to keep your remote and distributed teams connected wherever they are. A virtual office where you can easily see who is online allows everyone to make the best use of their time and creates space for those serendipitous interactions we know and love from the office. Check out how you can set your team up for success with Frameable Spaces.

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A Guide to Establish a Professional Look for Your Next Video Meeting

It’s no surprise to anyone that the post-pandemic world operates in a vastly different way than it did prior to March 2020. We should all pat ourselves on the back for facing and overcoming what, at the time, felt like a mountain-like virtual learning curve. Email attachments used to be the most technically complex part of many of our jobs and now look at us — we’re doing live webcasts, wrestling with VPN access settings, and connecting from almost anywhere with hotspots. What was unimaginable to most of us in 2020 is now a daily reality in 2023.

However rightly deserved, these congratulations for adapting to the new virtual sphere must be short-lived. Advancements in virtual operations are racing forward and being adopted with lightning speed. Simply being able to tune in to a virtual meeting with a functioning camera and microphone is now the minimum expectation for virtual meeting and event participants. With so many industries embracing remote operations, a new set of skills are necessary to stay competitive: it’s time to shift your attention to polishing your virtual presence.

How to Craft a Polished Virtual Presence

Your virtual presence is the way you show up on camera, but it’s not just about the way you look. It’s a combination of all of the things that factor into the way you present yourself and the impression you ultimately give to those on the other side of the screen. Just as in the real world, how you conduct and present yourself in meetings has real consequences in how colleagues, audiences, or interviewers perceive you.

Here are some tips to help you establish a polished, professional virtual presence.

Familiarize Yourself With Your Video Platform

We’re all probably now familiar with the hot-under-the-collar feeling of searching frantically for a microphone button to unmute ourselves while a group of onlookers wait patiently for your response. It’s an understandable predicament, given the number of virtual meeting platforms used across different industries, but definitely something you’ll want to avoid. As mentioned earlier, advancements are happening at lightning speed — no one can know every new product out there.

The key here is preparation. When getting ready for a meeting on a new platform, take a few minutes to familiarize yourself with the location of necessary tools, make sure you can connect your camera and microphone properly, and have any new software or updates installed. “Although it might feel awkward, it’s important for you to practice out loud, record yourself during your test run — and then watch it” says career coach Dr. Dawn Graham. This is going to give you a good opportunity to not only test that everything is working as it should but also how you’re presenting on camera.

Get the Visuals Right

Eye contact and camera position, lighting, your attire, and your space are all important aspects of your visual presentation to keep in mind.

Eye contact and camera position

Eye contact and camera position are closely related. Placing your computer camera at eye level, directly in front of you, will give the impression that you are maintaining eye contact with your audience or colleagues throughout the meeting. With this one adjustment, you both look attentive and are in turn, more engaging to speak with.

Looking at my other monitor without the camera in a dual screen setup versus making eye contact with the camera. The second photo shows someone much more engaged in the conversation.

Visually, having your computer at eye level with about two feet of space between you and the camera, should place you directly in the center of your screen which will create a more appealing visual experience for those viewing your feed (please, please — avoid the under chin, up-the-nose shot, for everybody’s sake!)

Camera position is almost equally as important as eye contact! Observe the difference between the three photos above:

1. Setting up a laptop flat on a desk and looking at another screen gives the impression that I am sitting back and observing a meeting rather than participating.
2. I’m making eye contact and am closer to the camera, which makes me look much more engaged. However, the angle makes it look as if I am peering down at everyone in the room and, with one wrong move, you’d be able to see directly up my nose!
3. I’m centered in the frame, closer to the computer, and making ‘eye contact’ with the camera set at eye level, giving the impression that we’re speaking face-to-face.

Lighting

Perfecting your lighting is just as important as having your camera positioned correctly. Without proper lighting, you may not be seen at all! There are a plethora of professional lights and setups you can invest in to get great lighting, but it’s not necessary for most of us. We certainly don’t disparage those who do this because they look good when all set up, but it’s a nice-to-have. Most of us will want to start with what we have, by setting a bright (read: not harsh —industrial shop lights are not necessary) lamp behind your computer so that the light falls on and highlights your face as an easy first step. 


To set your lighting, open your virtual meeting platform and observe yourself on screen to determine what light placement looks the best on your face. Depending on the light source, you may need to boost it up with a few books or try a couple of different angles behind the computer. Avoid direct overhead lighting as it can create harsh shadows underneath the eyes, nose, and chin that can cause you to look haggard.

These four photos show different lighting techniques in the same spot in my basement office.

1. Don’t just rely on the existing lighting in your space – this photo was taken with just my overhead lights on behind and beside me.
2. Avoid direct overhead lighting as it can cast unflattering shadows on your face and make your features a little more difficult to see.
3. When setting up lighting augmentations, avoid super bright lights! Too bright of light and your whole image will appear washed out.
4. This is my lighting with my overhead lights behind and beside me on and two lamps with standard soft white bulbs posted slightly behind and to the side of my laptop.

If you’re meeting during the day, setting up in front of a window so that the natural light illuminates your face is a great option for lighting — just make sure that you are facing the window instead of having your back turned to it. Being back-lit will make you appear completely in shadow on screen.

The difference between:

1. Artificial light from my computer screen, ceiling lights, and lamps on either side of my computer.
2. Natural light, facing a window with one lamp beside my computer.

If your desk is set up with your back facing the window, consider relocating for important meetings or putting blinds down and relying on artificial lighting. A bright light behind you will cause you to be backlit with your face in shadow.

Your Attire and Your Space

Expressing your style through your fashion and decorating choices are never something that we’re going to argue against. For the purpose of this guide, we will make some suggestions for things to avoid since they can be disproportionately distracting over video.

For clothing: 

Striped patterns can produce a moving/ strobing effect on camera, depending on your computer settings. Since you can’t control the setting on other people’s computers, best to avoid stripes and tight patterns on clothing altogether.
This red scarf reflects color onto my face, which a cooler more muted tone does not. Depending on the brightness of your lighting, the red ‘glow’ produced from hot colors can be very distracting.
My dark hair mixes with the background on the left, making me look like a floating head. The white shirt, white background combo produces a similar effect and looks bland on camera.
  • Jewelry that shimmers or jingles can come across as very loud or bright on camera.

For your space:

  • Tidy, neutral spaces are best. A cluttered or messy room can give the impression that you are disorganized. Take a few minutes to clear away any distracting piles that fall into your camera’s view and avoid showing artwork that may not be appropriate for professional settings.
  • When possible, minimize activity in your background (you want the focus to stay on you- Fido sitting behind you will most certainly be a distraction).
for keeping the focus on you during important meetings. Looking at the two images above and be honest – where is your attention drawn to in the first photo and where is it in the second?
  • Virtual backgrounds can be glitchy and are not the cleanest look but sometimes cannot be avoided. If you do opt for a virtual background, go for a neutral image or color that shows you in the sharpest relief possible. If you’re in a dark room, sitting against a wall or hanging a sheet behind you it makes a huge difference in how natural a virtual background looks. 
While this background is certified groovy, it is definitely distracting compared to the neutral ones shown to the right. The following pictures show the difference in using a virtual background without a sheet behind me and with one. The line between my hair and the virtual background looks much more natural when a light sheet creates a contrasting color difference between me and the background.

Perfect Your Audio and Adjust Your Communication

While visuals are important, nailing your audio setup is vital. After all, what is the point of a call if you can’t hear or speak to the person you’re trying to connect with?  ‘Can you repeat that?, You cut out’ or ‘Do you have a fan on in the background?’ are the new phrase equivalents of ‘speak up, we can’t hear you in the back!’ There’s nothing quite like these jarring interruptions to completely throw you off your roll when talking in a meeting.

Use an external microphone

Laptop microphones have come a long way over the past few years but they pale in comparison even to the microphones built into headphones we now usually get with our smartphones. Not only is the microphone closer to your mouth, they’re also designed to sort out background noises to make your voice stand out even more clearly. If you’re seriously committed to top notch sound, there are plenty of USB microphones on the market to choose from that fit all price ranges (several people in our office use this one and love it!). There is also something to be said for the attention grabbing power of a smooth, radio-quality voice!

Tweak your communication style to fit the format 

Once you have your microphone and speaker settings optimized, it’s important to think about how communicating through video calls and chat can be different than talking in-person and how to adjust your speaking style to fit this new interactive format. 


You can control your own sound quality but not your audience’s speaker level or hearing abilities. When talking, make sure to speak directly into your microphone and pay attention to your communication speed and enunciation. What you’re saying is important – make sure everyone hears every word! A nice extra benefit of speaking in a clear, measured tone is that you will seem confident in your words

Though it may seem counterintuitive, nonverbal communication can sometimes be more helpful and less disruptive in video format than a constant stream of verbal contributions. Practice actively listening by looking at the person who is speaking, nodding your head, and smiling in encouragement when possible instead of unmuting to give running affirmations. This will help to keep the airwaves ‘clear’ for the speaker’s words to reach other meeting attendees unimpeded.  
Finally, take your time and leave room in the conversation to allow other people to speak. Since some people mute themselves automatically to keep their environmental noises minimized, it now may take a few extra seconds to unmute to respond to something you’ve said. Take a small pause between talking points. This small adjustment will create space for higher quality interactions in your meetings and again gives you the bonus of sounding more confident in your speech.

The Perfect Complement to a Polished Virtual Presence — Frameable Spaces

Now that we’re all familiar and hopefully more comfortable with virtual work, the next step in professional evolution is to develop a strong virtual presence. Using the guidelines listed above will help you establish a polished reputation and highlight you as a competitive candidate in remote work. 
It also helps to use a platform with useful features you can rely on. Frameable Spaces can help take your remote work to the next level with virtual backgrounds, noise cancellation, and a variety of other collaboration features. Book a demo to see how Frameable Spaces can give your distributed teams all the benefits of working together, no matter where they are.

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