I switched to fully remote work 2.5 years ago, and my tips are somewhat similar. All of these things have positively contributed to both my own well-being and job satisfaction, and they've been positively mentioned to me by higher ups in reviews and such. I didn't start these things with that intention but it has been a welcome side benefit - I started to do all this because working remotely left me feeling isolated and lonely. Now, things are pretty good and I can't really imagine going back to work in an office!
- Use Slack for water cooler talk, but not just "on brand" links like articles about software. Make or join a #videogames, #movies, #music, and/or #photography channel and talk with people outside your team. If it makes sense, some of these hobby channels can have little activities or contests. Our photography channel runs an inconsistently updated photography "contest", but mostly we just share our favorite shots and talk about gear we can't afford.
- Have a team happy hour about once every other week, during company time. We do ours on a Friday, just after 1pm for me (central time). It's late enough that many people are ready to relax a bit before the weekend but early enough to let the people on the west coast join. Just grab a drink (hard or soft) and talk about stuff!
- Do activities after hours with coworkers, if they're open to it. I run a bi-weekly movie night (on weeks we don't have the happy hour) and invite everyone on the team to come. Frankly, it's usually only a couple regulars, but those that come seem to enjoy it and it's really improved team camaraderie. On some nights we switch it for a game night. Among Us is a newer game that is absolutely perfect for this.
Hacker Cinema
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I switched to fully remote work 2.5 years ago, and my tips are somewhat similar. All of these things have positively contributed to both my own well-being and job satisfaction, and they've been positively mentioned to me by higher ups in reviews and such. I didn't start these things with that intention but it has been a welcome side benefit - I started to do all this because working remotely left me feeling isolated and lonely. Now, things are pretty good and I can't really imagine going back to work in an office!
- Use Slack for water cooler talk, but not just "on brand" links like articles about software. Make or join a #videogames, #movies, #music, and/or #photography channel and talk with people outside your team. If it makes sense, some of these hobby channels can have little activities or contests. Our photography channel runs an inconsistently updated photography "contest", but mostly we just share our favorite shots and talk about gear we can't afford.
- Have a team happy hour about once every other week, during company time. We do ours on a Friday, just after 1pm for me (central time). It's late enough that many people are ready to relax a bit before the weekend but early enough to let the people on the west coast join. Just grab a drink (hard or soft) and talk about stuff!
- Do activities after hours with coworkers, if they're open to it. I run a bi-weekly movie night (on weeks we don't have the happy hour) and invite everyone on the team to come. Frankly, it's usually only a couple regulars, but those that come seem to enjoy it and it's really improved team camaraderie. On some nights we switch it for a game night. Among Us is a newer game that is absolutely perfect for this.