The big question facing credit unions, and every organization really, is how do you maintain or build a great culture in a remote environment? Despite being physically apart, creating a culture where everyone can thrive, enjoy coming to work and make their best contribution is absolutely possible.

It's true that not every job can be done away from the office, but many employees are experiencing and enjoying the freedom and flexibility of the pandemic-induced lifestyle of working from home. Yet many leaders are struggling with their workforce remaining remote. Many have a desire for people to return to the office to maintain collaboration, camaraderie and productivity. Here's my message to leaders: Embrace the remote evolution with open arms. All the things you want from your team and for your credit union are possible with people working from home.

At Vizo Financial Corporate Credit Union, we have listened to our employees and stayed the course of remote work with overwhelmingly positive results. We use Gallup's Q12, an ongoing, 12-item employee engagement survey, to measure our employee engagement – a term that Gallup popularized. Engaged employees are those who are enthused about their work and enthusiastic about their workplace. They routinely and willingly give their discretionary effort. Engaged employees are the backbone of a highly productive and enjoyable culture. Some of the beneficial traits of an engaged employee include:

• Taking responsibility for their performance and attitude at work;
• Not letting a problem become an excuse for inaction;
• Being proactive in their approach;
• Rarely complaining or placing blame; and
• Consistently going above and beyond what is required.

As you read this list, I'm sure there are employees fitting this description who immediately come to mind. Just imagine if you had a credit union full of these people. How much would the employee experience, as well as the member experience and overall productivity, improve?