The Collaboration Superpowers Podcast

Understanding what we need to be productive isn't just about optimizing output; it's about crafting a lifestyle that aligns with our values and interests. By identifying the specific conditions under which we thrive—be it the silence of an early morning, the dynamic buzz of a café, or the structured environment of an office—we can achieve our best work and live our best lives. This self-knowledge is a foundation for building routines, choosing workspaces, and selecting tools that resonate with our personal and professional goals. For more stories of remote teams doing great things, visit https://www.collaborationsuperpowers.com.

In this episode, we're returning to our conversation with Darren Murph, the Head of Remote at GitLab, originally recorded in July 2021. As we navigate the shifting landscapes of remote work in March 2024, Darren's insights on fostering company culture from a distance have only become more salient. This revisit highlights Darren's valuable strategies for cultivating a strong, unified company culture in remote settings and reflects on how these approaches have stood the test of time. Tune in to rediscover Darren's expert advice and explore how his wisdom continues to guide teams towards embracing and embodying their culture, no matter where they are. For more stories of remote teams doing great things, visit https://www.collaborationsuperpowers.com.

In this episode of the Collaboration Superpowers podcast, we hosted esteemed guests David Horowitz, Esther Derby, and Diana Larsen. The conversation dived into the essence of conducting a successful remote agile retrospective, highlighting the importance of clear goals, structured feedback, and the engagement of all team members. Our guests shared common pitfalls in organizing retrospectives, such as lack of preparation and inadequate follow-up on action items. They reflected on their journey of writing and updating their seminal book on agile retrospectives, noting the adjustments made in the second edition to address changes in the agile landscape and incorporate new learnings. For more stories of remote teams doing great things, visit https://www.collaborationsuperpowers.com.

In this episode, we explore the transformative impact of intentional teamwork in remote and hybrid environments. We discuss how deliberate collaboration, clear communication, and a shared vision can create a cohesive, productive team. Learn how teams that collaborate with purpose and strategy can overcome the challenges of distance, utilize diverse strengths, and achieve extraordinary results. Listen in to discover how intentional collaboration can become your team's ultimate superpower in today's ever-changing work landscape. For more stories of remote teams doing great things, visit https://www.collaborationsuperpowers.com.

DOM PRICE is the head of R&D and work futurist at Atlassian. Originally from Manchester, now living in Sydney, Australia, Dom spends half his time on the road between the US, Europe, and Australia. We discuss what Atlassian struggles with and how they share and scale knowledge throughout their organization. We also discuss how they manage communication with teams having different backgrounds, cultures. and rituals – and what they do when conflict arises. Dom's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dominic-price-0892243/ For more, visit www.collaborationsuperpowers.com.

In a traditional office, overhearing incidental conversations can lead to serendipitous learning and fast problem-solving. But how can we simulate this beneficial aspect of office culture in an online environment? Here are actionable tips to help you recreate the magic of overhearing, even when your team is spread across different locations. For more stories of remote teams doing great things, visit https://www.collaborationsuperpowers.com.

Overworking can stem from various factors, including the desire to accommodate different time zones or the absence of physical cues signaling the end of the workday. This constant “on” mode can lead to burnout and decreased productivity. Recognizing the signs and implementing strategies to maintain a healthy work-life balance is essential. For more stories of remote teams doing great things, visit https://www.collaborationsuperpowers.com.

Karin Hurt and David Dye are CEO and President of Let's Grow Leaders and are known for their practical tools and leadership development programs. They are about to release their newest book, Powerful Phrases For Dealing With Workplace Conflict, which aims to help employees and managers create better communication practices. This all leads to building meaningful relationships so that we can get work done - and even enjoy doing it. In this interview, we discuss what they learned from their extensive workplace conflict survey and the four dimensions of constructive conflict, and we learn a few phrases that can make a difference immediately. For more stories of remote teams doing great things, visit https://www.collaborationsuperpowers.com.

STEFAN ROLOFF is an Agile Coach who plans and facilitates hybrid PI Planning sessions across multiple time zones. In this interview, we delve into the complex landscape of Scaled Agile and Program Increment (PI) Planning. Stefan shares his insights on synchronizing agile teams globally, outlining actionable steps for overcoming time-zone barriers and fostering effective collaboration. For more stories of remote teams doing great things, visit https://www.collaborationsuperpowers.com.

HEATHER HANSEN is a true trailblazer in global communication and an unwavering advocate for amplifying diverse voices. Heather's resounding stand against language-related biases in international teams has garnered her a prominent position as a sought-after consultant for some of the world's largest companies. With her thought-provoking 2018 TEDx talk, "2 Billion Voices: How to speak bad English Perfectly," Heather unravels the unspoken influences of language, accent, and eloquence on our perceptions. Today, we dive into her vision of creating "Unmuted" workplaces, where inclusivity, innovation, and open communication thrive in an ever-evolving landscape of remote work and dispersed teams. For more stories of remote teams doing great things, visit https://www.collaborationsuperpowers.com.

ADAM RIGGS is the CEO and Found of Frameable, building products to help the digital collaboration experience in MS Teams. Before Frameable, Adam was a Presidential Innovation Fellow at the Treasury Dept. and a subject matter expert at the State Dept. on various open data and knowledge management challenges. Adam shares his best practices and tools for the remote and hybrid workforce in this interview. We cover multiple topics, including the return to office mandates, building a great company culture, and tools for remote and hybrid teams. For more stories of remote teams doing great things, visit https://www.collaborationsuperpowers.com.

PROJJAL GHATAK is the CEO and co-founder of OnLoop, a platform reshaping the performance management landscape and introducing the concept of Collaborative Team Development (CTD) to transform how hybrid teams are evaluated and nurtured at their core. In this interview, we delve into the critical components of effective performance feedback, explore what leaders can do to better coach individuals on their teams, and discover how to cultivate habits around essential feedback topics. For more stories of remote teams doing great things, visit https://www.collaborationsuperpowers.com

ANDREA "DEA" WOODARD is a business consultant and facilitator specializing in remote and hybrid leadership. She is also passionate about personal user manuals. In this interview, we dive into how to use personal user manuals, the downsides, what it means to be more ourselves at work, and how to start building your own manual. For more information, visit https://theremotelife.notion.site/Andrea-Dea-Woodard. For more podcasts, visit www.collaborationsuperpowers.com.

SUMEET GAYATHRI MOGHE is a product manager, a future of remote strategist, and the author of the Async-First Playbook: Remote Collaboration Techniques for Agile Software Teams. In this interview, we discuss what problems asynchronous work solves, why it's challenging and worth it, and where teams can begin. For more stories of remote teams doing great things, visit https://www.collaborationsuperpowers.com.

In this interview, we sit down with SOPHIE WADE, an esteemed work futurist and the founder of FlexCel. With a mission to establish "digitally integrated and responsive sustainable work environments," her company offers advisory services and transformative workshops. As the author of Empathy Works, Sophie brings a wealth of knowledge and insights to our discussion. We delve into the fascinating realm of the future of work, exploring the essentiality of flexibility and the transformative journey that lies ahead. We also uncover key focus areas for leaders as they navigate this transition into a future defined by flexibility. For more stories of remote teams doing great things, visit https://www.collaborationsuperpowers.com.

PETER SMIT is a global thought leader in collaboration with 35 years of global experience across multiple industry sectors. He is also the Founder & CEO of Collabogence Inc. This analytics startup combines workplace analytics with people analytics to provide insights into the impact of workplace changes on the effectiveness and productivity of people. He was interviewed on the CS podcast in September 2017 to discuss measuring collaborative performance. But now, we've had the pandemic! And Peter has measured 50K people and over one billion interactions. He returns to the podcast to discuss what the data can tell us about collaboration on remote, in-person, and hybrid teams. For more stories of remote teams doing great things, visit https://www.collaborationsuperpowers.com.

DAVID SMITH is a digital workplace consultant focused on helping teams develop virtual fluency and cultural intelligence. In this interview, we discuss how to know what we don't know, how different cultures learn, and how to develop a learning culture within your organization. For more stories of remote teams doing great things, visit https://www.collaborationsuperpowers.com

ADAM NATHAN is the CEO of Almanac, where remote teams write, approve, and organize documents. Almanac aims to help teams cut meetings and messages by 80%! This interview discusses structured documentation, asynchronous workflows, living handbooks, and the Modern Work Method https://almanac.io/folders/modern-work-method-QPizZr. For more, visit www.collaborationsuperpowers.com.

ELISA REGGIARDO is a Partner Marketing at Slite, a modern knowledge base that helps teams escape the chaos of information overload. In this interview, we talk about information management & asynchronous decision-making. For more information on remote teams doing great things, visit https://www.collaborationsuperpowers.com

MELISSA ROMO is the VP of Global Customer Marketing for a multi-national company. She also authorized a book called Your Resource is Human: How empathetic leadership can help remote teams rise above. In this interview we discuss the five leadership behavior Melissa outlines in her book. For more stories of remote teams doing great things, visit https://www.collaborationsuperpowers.com