Centric Consulting case study: Culture is the key to remote work success

3.1 Trust in employees

Leaders used to keeping tabs on their employees in the office often worry that being remote will mean employees going rogue and slacking off. Numerous studies have found the very opposite: Remote workers tend to feel more productive without the distractions of an office [4], and many remote workers actually log more hours than their in-office peers [5].

Centric’s experience confirms this. The company’s No. 1 rule is mutual trust between the company and employees. The company does not monitor when employees are at their desks, what apps they’re using and what sites they’re visiting. Employees are free to get the job done when and how they feel is best for them. And they rise to the occasion.

Trust between employees is another central pillar of Centric’s success. This is critical in a virtual environment where workers aren’t constantly strengthening their relationships with face-to-face time. To foster trust between coworkers in a virtual environment, Centric:

Encourages employees to take time to build relationships with one another.

Trust is a proven winning strategy. High-trust organizations such as Centric typically have lower turnover [6], higher stock market returns and incre-ased engagement, agility, and innovation. Employees at these organizations also feel less stressed, more productive, and more energetic [7].

3.2 Embracing flexibility

Because Centric trusts its employees, the company can embrace the flexibility remote work offers. People generally have the freedom to arrange their workday as they feel best. So long as they’re meeting their obligations, they’re free to coach their kid’s baseball team, volunteer with organizations they care about, and take real breaks throughout the day. In other words, work isn’t forcing them to miss out on everything else life has to offer.

Leaders make a point to communicate and model this flexibility to employees. They let people know it is expected that their day might not always look like the traditional workday, and they certainly don’t have to feel guilty or hide when they are doing a nonwork activity. The company also sets different expectations for how work gets completed –it’s OK if calls or emails are not returned immediately or work isn’t delivered in a normal window.

Flexibility is more than a nice perk. It’s also key to keeping remote employees from feeling burned out –recent research shows that exhaustion from constant digital communications is a real challenge for remote workers [8].

3.3 Strong interpersonal relationships

Centric’s culture emphasizes prioritizing relation-ships. Unlike in an office where employees are constantly bumping shoulders and informally chatting, building strong connections over virtual mediums takes deliberate effort.

It can be easy to jump straight to business when you’re not physically in the same room, which is why the company has a policy to begin virtual meetings with a few minutes of personal connection. This applies to group calls, one-on-one interactions and in-person meetings, too. When employees showcase their personality, communicate their interests and share details of their lives, they forge strong relationships –proven to be a key factor in positive work performance and successful collaboration [9].

In addition to encouraging employees to invest in their work relationships, Centric also trains people in conflict resolution. It’s human nature to avoid uncomfortable conversations –being virtual makes it even easier to let problems fester. But conflict is inevitable, so Centric gives employees the tools to resolve issues in a way that maintains the relationship.

3.4 Investment in quality tools and technology

Today’s technology makes it possible to colla-borate with anyone, anywhere in the world. Centric learned the hard way that skimping on tech investment leads to inefficient processes, frustrated employees, and stymied collaboration.

When the company finally invested in top-of-the-line collaboration tools (Microsoft Teams), it immediately became a more connected, cohesive, and transparent organization. Productivity increased and email traffic plummeted as employees began using chat and video calls to communicate more effectively and efficiently. Microsoft Teams also allowed leadership to become more accessible, helping employees get the information they need, when they need it.

Even with tons of options available today, many companies fail to make proper investments in tech tools to help remote workers do their jobs. According to Microsoft’s 2021 Work Trend Index, 42% of employees who have been working from home for a year don’t have the tools they need to do their jobs, and 10% lack adequate internet.

3.5 Hiring for culture fit

Centric’s hiring process is long and careful. The company spends about 50 percent of the time with a potential candidate gauging skill qualifications and the other half ensuring the person aligns with company values and culture.

To guide the decision-making, Centric broke its culture into two categories:

Aspects that can be taught (such as learning to innovate and Centric’s client delivery philosophy)

Candidates that fall short on the parts of the culture that can’t be taught don’t receive an offer.

Much of the company’s recruiting process is virtual, taking place over phone or video calls. For most roles, however, Centric does vet candidates in person for part of the process –as a consulting firm, the bar is high for soft skills, which can be difficult to assess virtually. This is especially important for roles requiring in-person interaction and collaboration.

3.6 Culture-focused mentorship

To ensure Centric clients and business partners have a consistent experience that aligns with the company vision, new Centric hires go through an in-depth, year-long culture curriculum. The process begins with a fun, high-energy one-day course led by founders and top leaders. The lessons employees learn during the day are reinforced during their first year on the job through virtual sessions with leadership and online courses.

Centric also provides intensive mentorship for leaders to ensure they infuse the culture into the area of business they manage. New leaders are paired with a senior executive who guides them for their first two years at Centric. Leaders also go through a leadership development program that includes a self-assessment against key Centric leadership traits, a 360-degree feedback process and Centric case study training.

3.7 Strategic in-person encounters

When there’s not a global pandemic, Centric invests approximately 6% of its net profit in hosting companywide meetings. U.S. employees get together three times a year, while those in India gather once annually. Each companywide meeting includes a mix of business and fun relationship-building activities.

The company believes the investment is well worth it: In-person meetings cement virtual relationships, energize teams, and—most importantly—reinforce the Centric culture. The experience helps employees build valuable new networks, provides shared experiences to deepen relationships and fulfills the psychological need for connection (solving the common remote-worker isolation problem).

Centric employees get together in person on a smaller scale, as well. Operating groups regularly meet, and leadership comes together annually. Additionally, teams typically get together when a new member is joining, when there are recurring issues, or when key decisions are being made.

3.8 Continuous culture improvement

Centric relies on regular employee feedback to maintain and improve its culture, gauge employee satisfaction, address concerns, and guide employee development. In a virtual setting, it’s critical to take deliberate steps to take the pulse of how employees are feeling –otherwise, problems can easily fly under the radar.

Feedback at Centric comes in many forms, including:

An annual internal company satisfaction survey that includes culture-related questions. This survey is anonymous and provides quantifiable data that allows Centric to benchmark and track its progress and spot relevant trends.