Remote culture and ownership: a simple guide for leaders

Does your team feel remote, or just disconnected?
Many founders worry that going fully remote will kill the culture they worked so hard to build. But in my experience, and after 10 years running remote teams, remote culture can actually be stronger. The secret is to give people freedom, and also clear ownership.

Main point: Remote culture works best when people focus on results, not hours.

Why culture still feels hard

Even now, many leaders still have the same concerns:

  1. Creative work feels stuck. It's harder to brainstorm without being in the same room.
  2. It's harder to know who's doing what. Out of sight, out of mind.
  3. New people don't feel the vibe. Without the office, the culture feels invisible.

These concerns make sense, especially if you try to run remote teams the same way you ran office teams. According to Buffer’s State of Remote Work 2023 report, 23 percent of remote workers say loneliness is their biggest struggle, and another 21 percent stay home too often because they lack a reason to leave. See Buffer's data

But here’s the good news: the same survey shows that 75 percent of remote workers still feel connected to their colleagues. Culture still exists; it just shows up in different ways.

The formula: freedom × clarity = ownership

Remote work is built on trust. People decide when and where to work. Leaders care about what gets done. This only works when people have freedom and know exactly what they own:

Ownership = Autonomy × Clarity

Real ownership looks like this:

  • People connect their weekly goals to company priorities (OKRs).
  • Everyone can see progress in one place, no need to ask around.
  • Feedback focuses on outcomes, not activity.

GitLab is a great example. With more than 2,000 employees, they share all their processes in a public handbook and let teams set their own OKRs. See GitLab’s handbook

5 simple things that build remote culture

1. Clear mission

People can’t take ownership if they don’t understand the big picture. Keep your mission short and simple. Use tools like EOS to connect each team to that mission.

2. Shared goals and metrics

Show company, team, and personal goals in one tool (like ClickUp, Notion, or Asana). When everyone sees the same goals, you don’t need so many meetings.

3. Async comes first

Write updates. Share Loom videos. Use threads. Save live meetings for when you need to decide something. This keeps calendars clear and makes knowledge easy to find later.

4. Feedback and rituals

  • Weekly updates instead of slide decks
  • Monthly reviews focused on what we learned
  • Online team retreats with breakout rooms

Atlassian has some great templates here: Remote teamwork Playbook

5. Leaders go first

Leaders should share their work openly, reply in public threads, and follow the same rules as everyone else. If leaders stay quiet, async culture dies.

A real example: helping a creative team

A creative director asked me how to keep designers and writers working well together in a remote setup. Here’s what worked for one startup I helped (30 people):

  1. Peer Pods (2 to 3 people) check each project for fit, voice, and business goal.
  2. Comment first. People give feedback in Loom or Figma before any meeting.
  3. Short live calls. 30 minutes max, focused on making decisions.

The result: projects moved 18 percent faster, and team satisfaction jumped from 6.2 to 8.1 (on a 10-point scale).

Common pushbacks and simple replies

Objection Better way to see it Quick fix
"I can't see the work happening." You don’t need to see people, just their progress. Set up a team Kanban board.
"Creativity needs real-time energy." Creativity needs trust, not just face time. Try a virtual design sprint using Miro and Zoom.
"New hires won’t get the culture." Culture lives in habits and tools. Give each new hire a buddy and a 30-day challenge.
"Performance will go down." Clear goals help people self-correct. Link bonuses to results, not hours.

Try this: 90-day remote culture sprint

Days 1 to 10: See where you are

  • Ask your team about clarity, tools, and trust.
  • Write down your current processes.
  • Publish a one-page culture statement.

Days 11 to 30: Start small

  • Pick one team to try async-first habits.
  • Write clear “Definition of Done” checklists.
  • Create a simple dashboard for goals (even Google Sheets is fine).

Days 31 to 60: Share new habits

  • Everyone shares weekly updates in writing.
  • Peer Pods start in creative teams.
  • Run a virtual retreat to talk about the mission and OKRs.

Days 61 to 90: Improve it

  • Measure engagement, project time, and goal success.
  • Do a team retro to gather feedback.
  • Celebrate progress. People take more ownership when they feel proud.

Harvard Business Review explores why remote work can actually strengthen bonds between coworkers and offers tips you can use in this phase. Read the HBR article

How you know it’s working

  • Projects finish faster
  • People score higher on team surveys
  • Most goals get done (80 percent or more)
  • Managers spend less time in status meetings

Final thoughts

  • Remote culture is something you build, not something that just happens.
  • People take more ownership when they have freedom and clarity.
  • Start small, measure often, and adjust quickly.

Want help getting started?

Let’s talk. Book a free 20-minute virtual coffee to share your challenges and walk away with at least one useful idea. No pitch. Just a real conversation. Book a slot