Ravi: All right, so I’m going to get us started. I want to be respectful of your time. It’s so good to see all of you, my familiar friends, my community. This has shown me the ability of using platforms like LinkedIn and Meetup for good—that we can build a community across the world and across the country. So, I’m so grateful.
Some housekeeping: same as last time, this session is recorded. If you have background noise, please mute yourself. If not, feel free to stay unmuted so you can talk without having to say, “Hey, you’re muted.” Also, if you can, please keep your camera on to help us connect. If you need to turn it off for privacy or any reason, that’s fine. Please be kind, curious, and open. I know all of you, so I trust you to be this way.
I intentionally invited Susan, who is not an agile coach and not involved in agile transformation. She’s familiar with it, and I have no doubt she could be a fantastic agile coach, but that’s not her business right now. I chose someone outside of our industry because I want to learn from people in adjacent industries who are solving similar problems, so we don’t just consider ideas from inside the agile industry echo chamber.
My request is that the hat I would like you to wear for this session is: What can we learn from a successful business leader like Susan that we may customize and adapt to our context? Susan has run a completely remote organization and helped other clients solve challenges common to remote teams, so this is real-world knowledge, not textbook theory. Let’s be curious and open to applying ideas in an adapted fashion.
Just to level-set, this is a free 60-minute session. Susan is open for business if you want help—perhaps a free 15-minute exploratory call if her schedule permits. At any point, if something doesn’t sit well with you, or if you have a question or comment, make it interactive.
Welcome, Adrian. Quick intro for our meetup: we were founded in October 2010. Back then, DevOps was the rage, so I used the word DevOps in the meetup name to get attention. Since then, I’ve reinterpreted and renamed the meetup to reflect my professional purpose and values: agility, coaching, and ROI. I intentionally bring speakers and topics at the intersection of these three areas.
We meet online the second Wednesday of each month, considering attendees across India, Europe, and the US. If you find this valuable, you can support my nonprofit, Agile for Patriots. Next month, our speaker is Ela Lynn Herring, author of Unlearning Silence, who will share techniques applied to agile teams, specifically Scrum.
Decision-making is often “garbage in, garbage out”—low-quality information leads to low-quality decisions, which can affect your ability to make or save money, reduce risk, or avoid lawsuits. Giving people a voice, especially when the truth is unpleasant, can allow you to see problems before they escalate.
Regarding Agile for Patriots, we help US military veterans and spouses build fulfilling careers in agile. We provide free training, certification, mentoring, coaching, networking, community support, and ongoing training. We’ve helped 90–100 graduates so far. Their website serves as a portfolio for interviews, demonstrating practical work experience. If you’d like to support them, you can share their profiles, offer internships or jobs, or donate to keep our website and tools running.
In my company, we help with agile transformation using a three-step engagement model: a diagnostic, training/coaching/consulting, and leaving behind playbooks for self-sustaining clients. We focus on leadership development, product management, high-performing teams, and scaling organizations.
I met Susan at a conference in Las Vegas during a fireside chat. I was so impressed that I knew my community could learn from her. I love the name of her company, CEO—Chaos Eradication Officer. Susan, welcome. Please introduce yourself.
Susan: Thanks so much for having me. I’m glad to be here. It was a pleasure working with Ravi earlier this year—we were thrown together quickly to prepare for a panel. My company is called Beyond the Chaos. We help small business owners get out of the day-to-day of their business operations, focusing on technology, process development, and project management.
Most of our clients are project-based, from law cases to doula services to HVAC installation. I have a team of about 10 people. I founded Beyond the Chaos in 2016 after working virtually for six years. I wanted the company to be virtual to access the best talent without being limited by location, which is one of the biggest advantages of remote teams.
Ravi: Thank you, Susan. Let’s start with a question for the audience. In the chat window, please share your context: your company, whether you’re hiring locally or globally, and your setup—remote, hybrid, etc. Second, what’s the most important question you want answered today?
Susan: One of the biggest challenges leaders face with remote teams is culture. In 2020, many people new to working with remote teams felt, “The culture is awful.” My perspective is that remote work reveals pre-existing culture—what was happening in the office is now visible online. Creating and embedding a healthy culture is a huge challenge.
I’ve worked with mostly small businesses, but the lessons apply broadly to leaders managing remote teams. Slack is my preferred tool for conversations because it’s flexible, allows inviting external participants, and organizes channels well. Culture is visible in how people communicate—fun interactions, silly stories, work discussions—all show the health of your culture.
Making employees feel part of the organization is critical when working with remote teams. One practice I use is sending a framed copy of our mission and values to every new team member. This reinforces their connection physically and psychologically. Constantly reinforcing these values in meetings and communications ensures alignment.
Autonomy is another challenge for remote teams, where employees must be self-starters and motivated to deliver quality work. Flexibility matters more than hours—as long as the work is done, the schedule can vary. Some employees need guidance to balance work and life; some won’t thrive remotely without structure.
Audience: [Responses shared in chat about context and experiences.]
Susan: Regarding systems and processes, I’m very process-oriented. I wrote Efficiency Amplified, emphasizing that processes combined with technology define how work flows. Use Slack for communication, Jira or other project management tools for tasks. Intentionality is key—don’t leave culture to chance.
Daily check-ins via Slack help remote teams track priorities and stay connected: what did you do yesterday, what’s your big accomplishment, what’s your main priority today, plus a fun question to encourage engagement. For part-time or gig workers, they only check in on days they work, which also signals attendance.
Monthly client updates are sent from me, summarizing team accomplishments and prompting client feedback. This keeps communication transparent and prevents isolation. Structured processes and intentional feedback loops reinforce culture and accountability.
Ravi: I love that intentionality mirrors the agile principle of valuing individuals and interactions over processes and tools. Structures like daily Slack questions can inject humor, humanity, and culture.
Audience: [Responses about implementing fun daily questions or gratitude practices in their teams.]
Susan: The leader sets the tone. Participate in the questions yourself, share your accomplishments, and model engagement. Use simple, well-designed questions to convey what your organization values, like asking about gratitude every Friday.
Autonomy is a privilege and must be measured. KPIs are necessary: are employees meeting deadlines and communicating effectively? If remote work is hindering performance, you may need to address it with hard conversations—adjust support or expectations, or change roles if necessary. Part-time or gig workers need clarity on goals and outcomes but are not micromanaged.