Remote work is every employee’s dream and also a great benefit for companies in many areas. Remote work trend is rapidly growing but it is often a struggle to ensure the change to take place smoothly within the current work environment. We can learn 4 core elements for successful implementation of remote work from Atlassian’s case.

4 Keys to Successful Remote Work Implementation

Based on their research and experience, Atlassian introduces 4 key areas to focus on during the remote work implementation in order to reduce risks.

1. Team configuration (e.g. Roles in the team, cost functionality)
2. Team operations (e.g. collaboration tools)
3. Communication culture and tools
4. Team health and wellness

Make Your Employees Happy

According to their in-house survey, about 95% of the employees welcome the change and adjustments required for achieving a remote-friendly working environment. They see the company’s decisions and investments positively as they believed the flexible work-life reflects the mission and core values of Atlanssia.  

Broader Talent Pool

Remote friendly work environment allows start-up companies like Atlassian to quickly expand their business scale and access a wider pool of talents.

Atlassian experienced approximately a 25% increase in inbound interest towards the hiring of a fully remote team compared to the Sydney-based similar positions. It clearly represents that there is a demand for remote working.

Risks of Impulsive Implementation

Impulsive implementation without a concrete remote policy can be risky, with 57% of companies lacking guidelines about remote work.

Atlassian says the important factor for a successful implementation is a gradual transition. Starting from one area of the world and not rushing in the total implementation has been working well for them to effectively plan, learn and adapt the practices.

Team Health and Quality

For instance, maintaining the health and quality of the team is important. To avoid a negative impact on team performance, Atlassian assesses teams and individuals thoroughly if they are ready to adapt remote work or not. A step by step transition – such as starting from one or two days a week rather than replacing the entire week – is effective to adjust and improve the practices.

Prevent Loneliness

Atlassian also prepared a series of guidelines to approach loneliness and isolation that might affect remote employees. As one of the solutions, a Slack room and Zoom call hours were set up for keeping remote workers connected to their team and enhancing collaboration. These tools and platforms have been used among many Atlassian employees and so far successfully prevented remote workers’ isolation.

Atlassian expects such remote working practices will enhance the in-office relationship and experience.