Pilar Orti

remote working can greatly improve productivity and focus, especially on deep work tasks.

f you use shared tools – for example, a Kanban-style board such as Trello or Planner – it’s easy to maintain an overview of what you are working on, which anyone can examine if they want to see the status of something

When objectives are well defined, trust is maintained, and everyone communicates effectively and appropriately – they will not get hung-up on needing to be seen to be ‘busy’ while working remotely. They can just enjoy being truly productive and effective.

If it’s competitive, designing an open space for discussion, where everyone can hear everyone else and see each other’s designs or scribbles, might not be the best option – that is, unless you want to challenge and change that culture through changing the environment.

if we are really competitive, those spaces might end up being unhealthy, bragging noticeboards. Or if we are used to keeping our heads down and barely interacting with anyone else, when we move to online communication, we could end up with an unused space that screams: ‘Nobody cares!’

I have observed that little thought goes into designing the digital workspace in a way that is in line with the organisation’s or team’s culture, or that helps us change it when we need to do so.