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For founders who are launching a fully remote startup, one crucial aspect that cannot be overlooked is the intentional creation of a strong company culture that reinforces core values and drives desired behavior. Cultivating a values-based organizational culture right from the start can help ensure success and employee satisfaction, especially since the team won’t be working together in the same physical space.
Below, 17 Forbes Coaches Council members share valuable tips to assist founders in building a values-driven culture within a remote startup. These strategies ensure that a company’s core values are not just a set of words, but a guiding force that shapes every aspect of the business.
1. Define Clear Values And Principles
Defining clear values and principles is the basis of building a values-based culture. The values should reflect your company’s goals, vision and mission. They should define what you stand for and what you will not tolerate. They should guide your startup’s decisions, behaviors and daily actions. When defining your values and principles, involve your team members in the process. - Courtney Teague, CLT & Associates
2. Model Learning, Development And Well-Being
Culture in a company is often defined as: “The way we work around here.” Who else can be better role models for this than the founders themselves? As founders, ask yourselves, “Do we value learning, development and well-being for all our employees?” Do you value this for yourselves? Are you, as a founder, coachable? If the answer to all of these questions is “yes,” you are well set to model learning, development and well-being for an innovative culture. - Cellene Hoogenkamp, KokuaHub Inc Coaching
3. Integrate Your Values Into All Aspects Of Work
Remote startups must intentionally integrate their values into all aspects of work to foster trust. This requires the integration of values into every facet of communication. Leaders start by persistently embodying values, embedding values into coaching and feedback sessions and integrating values into performance metrics. Leadership intentionality creates consistency; consistency leads to trust. - Dale Werner, Ph.D., Mindloft
4. Share Expectations Around Engagement
Share expectations around how everyone will connect, stay engaged and be in touch. Communicating this up front is a transparent way to share what matters to the company in terms of collaboration, creating connections and the ability to work as a dynamic and aligned remote team. In addition, this helps to create accountability for everyone to show up and do their part in creating a great culture. - Sohee Jun, S.J. Consulting, LLC
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5. Create Meaningful, Mission-Aligned Core Values
A tip to help founders of a fully remote startup company create a values-based culture from the start is to clearly define and communicate your company’s core values. Make sure they are meaningful, align with your mission and guide decision-making. Encourage all team members to embrace and embody these values in their daily work, fostering a strong and shared organizational culture. - Adaora Ayoade, EZ37 Solutions
6. Schedule Agenda-Free Working Sessions On Video
Schedule agenda-free working sessions on video, as if you were just sitting in the same office together, chatting and collaborating. In startups, culture comes from the top. Your people need exposure to you, and not just in meetings and standups. If you say, “I don’t have time for that,” then it is saying you don’t have time for your people, and that just makes you a bad manager. - Glenn Grant, Selfassembled Ventures
7. Know People’s Values And Motivations For Remote Work
Understand people’s values and motivations regarding remote work right from the beginning. This could be different for everyone. Building a connection with your team while working remotely can be challenging; hence, consider finding out what values bring your team together, and communicate those values to strengthen their teamwork and engagement. - Adriana Kosovska, Zero To Dream Job
8. Hold Weekly ‘Values Meetings’
It is important that every team member knows what the values look like in action at work—it’s not just about knowing the names of the values or the definitions of the values. More specifically, what would members of this company be doing if they were demonstrating these values? A weekly “values meeting”—where the founder highlights who demonstrated which value in the past week and by doing what—really helps. - Vinesh Sukumaran, Vinesh Sukumaran Consulting
9. Live Your Stated Values Authentically
Creating a remote, values-based company culture requires authenticity. What we say and do is consistent with our stated values, which team members helped develop. We embrace the fact that we aren’t perfect, failures are learning opportunities, and honesty is essential. It also helps that all team members complete the same assessment, receive transformational coaching and practice mental fitness. - Barbara Anne Gardenhire-Mills, Purpose-Filled Solutions & Evolutions
10. Translate Values Into Behaviors, Customs And Norms
Values first need to be translated into tangible behaviors, customs and norms for everyone to understand what it means to honor those values, particularly remote peers and employees. Second, values should have enough flexibility to be satisfied in ways that honor the cultural and individual needs of people who may be working in different regions or coming from different cultures. - Joel Davis Brown, Pneumos
11. Reward What You Want To See
As simple as it is, our negativity bias has us more focused on what’s going wrong than on what’s going right. However, we know affirmations can be motivating. When a team member does something that is values-aligned, acknowledge it—to them and to the team. If you can, go further and create additional rewards. - Patrice Ford Lyn, Catapult Change
12. Start By Leading By Example
Culture goes beyond just statements on a website; you need to embody your core values in every business interaction and decision. For instance, if open communication is a key value, then when your employee disagrees with you, don’t get upset—instead, actively listen and seek to understand. Additionally, during the hiring process, assess your candidates based on those core values. - Minna Hu, AI Business Coach Inc.
13. Hire The Right People From The Start
Hiring the right people is the most important element of creating a successful and thriving culture from the start. Look for people who are hard workers, creative and critical thinkers, and innovative problem-solvers—people who listen carefully to instructions and flourish with any type of well-delivered feedback. Hiring the right people from the start matters most! - Susan Madsen, Jon M. Huntsman School of Business
14. Constantly Articulate And Communicate Your Values
One tip is to constantly articulate and communicate your company’s values. Ensure that your team understands the principles and beliefs that guide your organization. Regularly emphasize and integrate these values into your communications, decision-making processes and everyday work. This helps establish a shared understanding among team members, fostering a cohesive and purpose-driven culture. - Adewale Bello, Biz-Agility Consulting
15. Conduct Bimonthly Virtual ‘Introduction’ Meetings
Conduct bimonthly virtual meetings where everyone can introduce themselves, and every time a new employee onboards, have them introduce themselves to the group. Define what you wish your corporate culture to represent—such as quality, process, people, transparency, compassion and serving others. Continue to discuss different topics regarding your corporate culture whenever you’re communicating. - Barbara Adams, CareerPro Global, Inc.
16. Review And Reflect On Successful Employee Meetings
Make a list of your most successful employee meetings. What emotions surfaced during those conversations? What did attendees’ body language tell you about how they were feeling? Now, make a list of the emotions that everyone felt that helped drive these meetings in a positive direction. What values correspond to the emotions that were expressed? Those values are the most integral to your culture! - Roberta Moore, The EQ-i Coach
17. Create A ‘Culture Committee’
As a founder begins with the vision and mission, they should ensure that the cultural values are part of that package. Create a “culture committee” with members from different parts of the company. Set up activities and ways to discuss what is vital in your culture and how you celebrate the wins. Provide activities to bring people together and get to know each other, such as virtual happy hours or 15-minute meetups. - Wendy Hanson, BetterManager
