In this episode I had a wide ranging conversation about remote leadership with Amy Robinson. I’ve been looking forward to our conversation for quite a while!
Amy and I talk about her experience leading remotely – and how she’s approached team development and building culture when everyone works in different places.
About Amy Robinson
Amy Robinson is an operations executive in the start-up space with a background in fostering customer relationships, team and personnel development, and planning for growth. Amy has led teams for technology and beverage brands in the startup space, and for prominent retailers such as Apple and Build-a-Bear. And she’s here to share what she’s learned from her wide ranging experiences.
How to Contact Amy
LinkedIn: @arobinson8
Email: amy@crafthousecocktails.com
LISTEN TO THE EPISODE
SELECTED LINKS FROM THE PODCAST
Guy Kawasaki – Remarkable People Podcast
Abraham Paskowitz – The Life Lessons of Surfing
Post-it Notes
Normal Gossip
UnF*ck Your Brain
99% Invisible
Beyonce – Break My Soul
Amazon Echo Dot
SHOW NOTES
[01:43] Amy introduces herself
[03:58] Representing a brand you believe in
[07:49] Effectively leading a team remotely
[09:00] Amy’s biggest surprise in the remote environment
[13:52] Thoughts on camera on or camera off
[14:59] Amy provides an example of giving feedback
[20:08] Trusting employees in a remote environment
[24:10] Having clear agreements with your team
[26:29] Moving from hours worked to work produced
[37:48] Motivating your remote team
[43:42] Team building activities for remote teams
[48:47] The psychological impact of working from home
[52:09] Podcast that helped Amy reframe her brain on WFH
[55:31] What Amy wish she would have known when she started leading
[57:06] A mentor that has made a difference in Amy’s career
[59:57] The routine that contributes to Amy’s well-being
[1:05:11] The song that hypes Amy up when she needs an energy boost
[1:06:04] One purchase <$100 that has made a difference in Amy’s life
[1:08:00] The books that Amy’s reading and podcasts she recommends
QUOTES FROM THE SHOW
The realization that no matter how big your team is no matter if you’re seeing each other over a camera or in person you know basically at the end of the day it’s it’s the same thing you know everybody at the end of the day wants to do a good job and what it takes in order to do that you know comes down to a lot of communication training.
For me the important thing is that I’m proud of what I’m doing that I’m representing a brand that I believe in.
You don’t have to watch somebody to understand whether they’re working or not if you know if they’re not producing then they’re not working.
It’s definitely been probably the biggest project is getting the executive leadership team to understand you know the value of of communication and how quickly you can lose your audience or how quickly you can gain lifetime you know a lifetime employee.
The biggest challenge was finding that balance of valuing time and enough communication that everybody felt like they were all working you know for the same goal.
We’ve learned a long time ago that people learn in different ways and so training caters to the visual the auditory learner and it’s really the same thing I feel like with motivation in in the remote environment.
I’m very clear that the most important part of motivation is what does motivate you and I I ask that question.
Responses