#scandiwebstories: Creating a Virtual Community Through Online Events

The Covid-19 pandemic has transformed how we work, and organizations, including scandiweb, have gone global, with remote workers spread across different locations and time zones. While this offers many benefits, such as increased flexibility and access to a broader pool of talent, it also presents challenges when it comes to building a united team culture. This is where the Online Events Team comes in.

Together with my colleague Alise, we are scandiweb’s Virtual Community Facilitators and Event Hosts, and our work in virtual community facilitation and event hosting includes managing and guiding interactions in online communities and planning and managing virtual events. Both are important to build a sense of community and connection among an internationally distributed workforce like scandiweb. Let’s look at the main reasons online events help us achieve these goals and how!

Bridging geographic barriers

Online events can help bridge geographic barriers that might make it difficult for remote workers in different locations to feel connected. By providing a platform for remote workers to interact with one another, it is easier to build relationships and create a sense of community across borders.

Virtual events can also be planned to coincide with convenient times for employees in different time zones, ensuring that everyone can participate.

In our online events we can feel united and connected at the same time and place no matter if it’s sunrise in Brazil, midday in Latvia or sunset in India. 

Fostering cultural understanding

Working with colleagues from different cultures can be challenging, but a strong virtual community helps to foster cultural understanding. 

A fun, albeit arbitrary, example is the debate between my colleague Alise and me about eating bananas on bread or putting soy sauce on dumplings. Our cultural differences have become events where we appreciate the reasons behind our taste preferences. We include the guests of the online event in this discussion, giving them a fun topic to discuss, express their opinion, and provide a little insight into each other’s preferences.

By giving a platform for remote workers to interact with colleagues from different countries and backgrounds, it is easier to learn about other cultures and build relationships based on mutual respect, understanding, and, not least, friendly banter. 

Virtual events can showcase different cultures and traditions, promoting diversity and inclusion.

Encouraging collaboration and boosting morale

Building a strong virtual community can foster open communication and collaboration, as we have seen demonstrated lightheartedly in two of our most popular games—”AI Artist” and “Gartic Phone/Meantime podcast.” AI Artist is an engaging team-building game where participants collaborate in groups to recreate a picture generated by AI using the correct keywords. Gartic Phone/Meantime podcast is a hilarious game that combines Pictionary, Broken Telephone, and a podcast format. Both activities have promoted team connection through shared laughter, interactive conversations, collaboration, and creativity.

Through group discussions, micro-engagements, team games, and problem-solving activities, it is possible to cultivate stronger relationships and promote teamwork. This, in turn, can enhance decision-making, boost productivity, and ultimately make us all happier teammates.

Finally, you can also improve team morale and engagement through virtual community facilitation and event hosting. Remote workers can participate in virtual team-building activities, such as online games and quizzes, that help them connect and bond with colleagues. These activities can also break up the monotony of working remotely, increasing motivation and productivity.

Build a digital community with us!

scandiweb CEO Antons Sapriko spoke of creating the Online Events Team with “a goal to enhance our human relationship within our professional domain and daily communication.” Simply put, our Online Events team is here to build a community in our digital office for everyone at scandiweb. People are social creatures, and our ability to come together and support each other has allowed us to thrive throughout history. 

Let us roll with the momentum of history and have a laugh on the way, it’ll be a blast! And try putting soy sauce on your dumplings!

If you are ready to become a part of scandiweb, do not hesitate to visit our Careers page and find the role for you—we have multiple vacancies available for junior, mid, and senior-level specialists! 

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