When you have no work from home policy start here

Whilst working from home is common place for a lot of companies it’s still more likely that there is no work from home policy where you work. Here’s something to start you off that’s reasonable and fits the needs of a lot of people.

Arranging when you can work from home

• Once a week is fine.
• Give advanced notice of 1 week (if possible) for when you are going to work from home.
• Avoid Mondays and Fridays (if possible) as these are the days when we run key ceremonies e.g. planning and retros.
• Emergency work from home is OK, let the team know the circumstances if this is awkward then let your manager know the emergency.
• Add your WFH into the team calendar.

Tips when working from home

1. Say “👋hi” in the Slack channel when you start your day.
2. Set your status in Slack to “🏡 Working Remotely”.
3. Let people know when you’re available. if you’re going to be away for more than 30 minutes let people know e.g. “💅AFK for 45 minutes”.
4. Using video shouldn’t feel like a big deal. If you need to talk to someone, fire up a video call in Slack. Treat it like you would when you walk up to someone in the office.
5. Switch your camera on. Calls without video, especially conference calls, can feel like talking into a void. Switch your camera on so people can see you and connect with you by reading your body language and facial expressions.
6. If the call may interest other people in the group (e.g. knowledge share) open the video chat in the team channel on Slack so others can drop in.
7. Slack video is good for impromptu catch ups. Google Meet is good for formal meetings with a calendar invite, especially when using a room in the office.