Our team just completed three weeks of working fully remote and we will continue this for at least a few more weeks. This is unknown and strange territory. Our team is spread across two cities and we are used to having talks over a screen. But, this can’t be compared to a situation where the whole office starts working from home. We miss the chats we had walking to the coffee machine or over lunch. Moreover, the whole world is going through the biggest crisis since the second world war. We have no way to know how your teammates and their families are dealing with it.

We set up a meeting every evening to bring the whole team together, and we call it #lifeinthetimeofcorona. There is no agenda and we try to keep it as casual as possible. One could talk about how they view the current situation or how it’s affecting their lives. One could also talk about a new series they’ve started watching or even the dish they plan to make for dinner. These are conversations which happen naturally if the whole team sits together in a shared space. But, in times like these, natural conversations are a luxury.

We invite colleagues from other teams often. We have an engineer who was to join the team beginning of April, but with the travel restrictions in place, the joining date has been postponed a few months. We invited him to join one of our sessions. I believe it was a great chance for the team to get to know their future colleague. On some days, we play some games together which adds to the fun.

I really look forward to this meeting every evening. It helps the team connect with each other and makes working together easier.