Fostering gratitude in a remote and async company
The story of Friday Lightning Praises
The challenge of remote recognition
In a remote and asynchronous work culture like Alan, fostering a sense of community and recognition is challenging.
It is easy to overlook the small wins and efforts that contribute to our success. By dedicating a specific moment each week to recognize these achievements, we’re not only acknowledging the hard work of one another, but also fostering an appreciative culture!
That’s why we’ve introduced Friday Lightning Praises : a simple but powerful ritual designed to foster gratitude and end every week on a high note.
How Alan overcame it: Friday Lightning Praises
Friday Lightning Praises is a weekly ritual on Slack, where team members publicly share a one-line praise for a colleague (or more!).
At Alan, we already have a dedicated #team_praise Slack Channel to praise people for great accomplishments. Friday Lightning Praises came up as a way to to lower the bar to praising people. The quick succession of praises makes it energizing!
While Friday Lightning Praises can be adapted for any team size, we’ve found it works best with groups of fewer than 20 people. In smaller groups, the practice feels more personal and impactful, and everyone has a chance to be recognized.
Start your team’s praising journey
To get started, simply choose a time on Friday to start the thread and encourage team members to participate.
The message goes along the lines of “What is one thing that a [member of your team] did this week that impressed you or that you are grateful for?”
Initially, it may require some nudging and reminding, but over time it becomes a habit. Once it has taken root, you can automate the process with a Slack bot! You can share the practice with other teams in your company, so that everyone can benefit from this.
It started as a ritual for the Product Management community at Alan and it quickly got adopted by many teams as they leaned about it.
We’d love to know what you think of it, or how you do it at your company.
Please reach out if you have any feedback!