Navigating the Remote Workforce: Adriana Vaccaro of Culture Redesigned On Strategies for Growing a Geographically Dispersed Organization

An Interview With Rachel Kline

Timely and effective feedback goes a long way when we are dealing with remote teams. The best way to remove barriers for someone, is to provide a clear path for self-development. I describe effective feedback as a direct and kind statement that addresses an opportunity to improve with built in accountability measures.

An increasing number of organizations are tapping into the global talent market and building semi or fully-remote workforces distributed far and wide. While harnessing diverse talent can be a boon for innovation, this operational model is not without its challenges. In this series we ask seasoned HR and operations professionals and leaders about what it takes to run a geographically dispersed organization. As a part of this series, we had the pleasure of interviewing Adriana Vaccaro.

Adriana is the CEO and Founder of Culture Redesigned.

She specializes in helping companies build winning teams that deliver on their goals. Rather than traditional consulting techniques, her company uses Behavioral Science Data to align Human Capital with Business Results.

Adriana is an experienced Human Resources leader, her areas of expertise include employee engagement, DEI driven organizational culture implementation, change management, and training and development.

She is a Senior Certified Professional by the Society of HR Management, Certified Executive Coach, Six Sigma Black Belt, Certified PI Partner, and member of the Delta Mu Delta Honor Society of International Business.

Thank you so much for your time! I know that you are a very busy person. Before we drive in, our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you tell us a bit about your ‘backstory’ and how you got started?

I got started in Human Resources Management about 15 years ago. Early on my career I started focusing my attention on Process Improvement. I am a Six Sigma Black Belt; at that point it was all about metrics and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). Then, I realized that even if you have great processes and great people performing those processes, that formula doesn’t equal success unless you provide an inclusive environment where All individuals can thrive. That concept inspired me to start my company and so far, has been the best decision I have made.

It has been said that our mistakes can be our greatest teachers. Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

The funniest mistake I have made was earlier as a first-time manager. I had a total misconception about what performance improvement really meant. I thought every individual was naturally driven to get to the next level. I then realized that every person has a different way of connecting with work. It could be positive impact, innovation, human connection, financial success, ascending a corporate ladder, etc. To drive performance improvement, we really need to identify what that factor is for each member of a team.

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful for who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story?

I am extremely grateful for those who fueled my dream of entrepreneurship. While many people around me would’ve preferred it if I stayed in my corporate and safe full-time job; I knew I had something very valuable to offer. When you are in that stage of getting started, having even one person who genuinely believes in your idea really means the world. That person to me was my late stepdad, Ricardo. He believed in my dream even before I did.

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

“How you do anything is how you do everything” Martha Beck.

That is something I always keep in mind. We can find excuses for not doing our best or we can find reasons to do the very best. That mentality can set you apart.

Thinking back on your own career, what would you tell your younger self?

I would give my younger self two notes:

1. I have learned the most from being uncomfortable. I think when we are young and good at something we can get comfortable. I would tell my younger self to shorten those periods of being comfortable. In those moments of discomfort is when you transition into a better version of yourself.
2. I would give my performance and results a louder voice. I missed out on opportunities because I wanted people to notice my talents and abilities based merely on my performance and results. I learned that sometimes CEOs are distracted and those who were always advocating for themselves bypassed me even when my performance was better.

Let’s now move to the central part of our interview. What are your “Top Five Strategies for Growing a Geographically Dispersed Organization”? Please share an example for each.

1 . Prioritize Culture.

Be intentional about organizational culture. Allow employees to connect genuinely with the purpose of the organization while still being true to their individual values. Every organization has a culture whether by accident or by intentionality. In the very fast paced world, and strange job market we live in, creating organizations that put the employees first has become the ultimate competitive advantage.

2 . Optimize the environment.

There are three relevant elements of an optimized environment.

Trust, Accountability and Psychological Safety. The interesting part about these three elements is that even though they are all clearly different, you can’t fully accomplish one without the presence of the other two. Fine tuning those three elements allows you to create an environment where people feel connected and positioned to succeed.

3 . Understand your team members.

The behaviors and performance we see from team members are the results of individual drives and needs. While we tend to focus on what we “see” AKA results. It is important to understand each person in order to effectively communicate, motivate, and provide accountability. When we understand each individual, we can focus on their strengths as opposed to their deficits. For example, a great individual contributor might become just an average manager. That is the case for individuals with a low drive for dominance and independence. This kind of person thrives on collaboration, and managing other people is perceived by them as a derailer from their own great performance. For other individuals with a high drive for independence, leading a team is a second nature and a source of inspiration. Understanding the individual behavioral drives of each team member is a vital step of creating dream teams.

4 . Focus on outcomes not outputs.

A key factor for creating engaged, high performing, and geographically distant teams is having absolute clarity on outcomes. An outcome is defined as the overall achievement of a goal and goes beyond immediate outcomes. When we focus on outcomes our view is narrow and our thinking becomes basic. Outcomes consider the broader impact of a collective effort and also provide room for individual creativity.

5 . Feedback and Employee Development.

Timely and effective feedback goes a long way when we are dealing with remote teams. The best way to remove barriers for someone, is to provide a clear path for self-development. I describe effective feedback as a direct and kind statement that addresses an opportunity to improve with built in accountability measures. When feedback is excessively sugar coded the point gets lost. I have seen managers providing such diluted feedback that it ends up sounding as a water down compliment and not an opportunity for improvement. If you really want to develop a team and inspire players to perform at a higher level, build trust by delivering powerful actionable feedback.

Tell us a bit about your workforce, where are your people based?

I am in Massachusetts and so is our Operations Manager, we have had collaborating remote consultants in New York, Minnesota, California, Qatar, Brazil, and Canada. We also support multiple clients with geographically dispersed teams, the largest one with approximately 400 employees.

Why did you decide on a remote model, how has it benefitted your organization?

As many other organizations, the pandemic offered a new perspective in terms of what was possible. When we are looking for a team member we are really focusing on finding individuals with really high emotional intelligence (EQ) and a passion for building thriving organizational cultures. With that clear objective, where they are located, becomes a lot less relevant.

What are the main challenges of operating a remote workforce and what strategies do you use to overcome them?

I can think of two challenges:

1. Time zones. Sometimes you want to deliver a message, even celebrate something great, but you have to wait 6 hours so you are not making a call to a teammate at 2am their time. We have learned to optimize our project management tool to communicate effectively but sometimes we just must wait!

2. Creating time to connect at a human level. While the team might be geographically dispersed we know how important for trust building it is to get to know each other. We put time and effort into creating spaces to connect authentically outside of our projects. Whether it is talking about personal hobbies, hosting a mastermind or sharing something personal.

Which tools do you utilize to help run a remote company?

We use three tools consistently. Asana for project management and communication, Zoom for virtual meetings and Predictive Index for team awareness and employee engagement.

What strategies do you use to find, attract, and hire remote talent?

When we are looking for a new team member we always mention it to our clients. They know better than anyone the type of player that will succeed at our organization. We also encourage internal referrals, and when posting on job boards we are specific and realistic about the work we do and about our core values. We look for culture-add as opposed to culture fit.

What are your 3 main tips for leaders who want to build a geographically dispersed workforce?

1. Use your organizational core values in your job descriptions and ads. Core values shouldn’t be just “fluff”. You want them to serve as a compass for individual to connect with the purpose of your organization.
2. Take time to know your candidates and engage in best practices when it comes to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Don’t allow an address, a name, a school reputation, to skew your view of a potential candidate. Be present and connect authentically with potential employees. Don’t look at the selection process as a transaction. I personally see it an exciting opportunity to bring the next amazing team member.
3. Take time to design and deliver an outstanding onboarding experience. You want employees to feel they are part of something bigger. Onboarding shouldn’t just be about software’s and tasks. It should have a very human component of connection, inspiration, and an invitation to provide value at the highest possible level.

We are very blessed to have some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world whom you would love to have a private lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this.

Simon Sinek. I love his books, I have read them multiple times and every single time I learned something new. I admire the way connects work to a life purpose.

How can our readers further follow your work?

We are very active on LinkedIn and always happy to connect with individuals wanting to improve remote teams. Our website is www.cultureredesigned.com. You can book time with us right from the website.

Thank you so much for sharing these important insights. We wish you continued success and good health!