The Culture Conundrum: 3 Do’s and Don’ts for Building Human Connection in Remote Teams

In the quest to maintain employee engagement and connection in a remote or hybrid environment, many HR leaders and organisations fall into the trap of using quick fixes. We’ve all seen the well-intentioned efforts: the pizza voucher, the subscription to a wellness app, or the mandatory "fun" social hour.

The truth is, Building Human Connection in Remote Teams must be done with Smart Planning and Strategy.

Genuine team culture is built by giving your remote team ways to connect that actually feel human, authentic, and low-pressure. It’s about strategically replacing the spontaneity of the office with intentional, repeatable habits.

Based on years of observation in the remote work space, here are three essential areas where leaders often miss the mark and how to fix them with simple, effective strategies.

Strategy 1: The Forced Icebreaker

🛑 DON'T: Force everyone to share personal weekend details at the start of a Monday Zoom call to "break the ice."

While the intent is to foster connection, this approach often creates stress. Some employees love sharing personal details with colleagues; many others prefer maintaining clearer boundaries and find the forced sharing awkward or stressful. The goal of "breaking the ice" is often achieved by simply making the atmosphere lighter, not demanding personal disclosures.

✅ DO: Run a quick, light-hearted activity or challenge, like a "Favourite Background Challenge."

Ask everyone to quickly pick a fun virtual background, then vote on the favourite. This simple activity offers a casual, fun way to start the meeting that still gets people connecting and laughing without invading privacy or causing anxiety. Focus on shared experience, not shared personal life.

Strategy 2: Limiting Interaction to Tasks Only

🛑 DON'T: Limit meetings and one-on-ones strictly to discussing reports, tasks, and deliverables.

When teams transition to remote work, all meeting time becomes hyper-focused on efficiency and task management. This rigidity eliminates the spontaneous, informal check-ins and chats that naturally happen in the office hallways, which are critical for building mutual understanding and psychological safety.

✅ DO: Schedule short, dedicated slots (in meetings or 1-on-1s) where open, casual talk is the primary agenda item.

These brief sessions—even just 5 to 10 minutes—are essential for rebuilding the informal communication lost in the remote shift. When you explicitly carve out time for non-work-related conversation, people feel safe and encouraged to talk openly, mitigating feelings of isolation and strengthening the bonds necessary for deep collaboration.

Strategy 3: Treating Team Building as a Quarterly Event

🛑 DON'T: Limit your remote team building activities to once a quarter.

The quarterly "big event" (like a virtual escape room or cocktail class) offers a momentary spike in morale, but its impact quickly fades. Culture, like any habit, is built through consistency and repetition, not isolated splurges.

✅ DO: Prioritise team building for your remote team and do it consistently, even if it's brief.

Consistent team building is the key to boosting culture and connection for remote teams. Even playing a simple, engaging game together online for 10 to 15 minutes a week can have a profound, accumulating effect on employee collaboration, trust, and well-being. Consistency builds the fire; one-offs only create a spark.

For more tips on how often you should team-build, check out our recent guide here: https://www.teemcamp.com/post/how-often-should-i-play-online-team-building-games-with-my-team

Culture cannot be purchased; it must be built deliberately, week after week. By adopting these human-centric Do’s and replacing the stressful Don’ts, HR leaders can ensure their remote work model fosters genuine connection and a thriving team environment.

What small, consistent habits has your team implemented to foster human connection this week?