We recently connected with Douglas Ferguson and have shared our conversation below.

Douglas, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Let’s start with something countless entrepreneurs have had to figure out on the fly – how have you dealt with the rise of remote work?

At Voltage Control, we know that keeping our remote team connected is integral to remote work. Connection in the virtual world isn’t something that happens by accident. As a result, our team intentionally creates and maintains connectivity to foster support, healthy relationships, psychological safety, and productivity.

Likewise, we create a collaborative culture where employees can freely engage or participate in asynchronous discussions actively. This is made possible through digital tools and prevents zoom fatigue. Async deep work allows our synchronous moments to be focused on innovation, relationship building, and discovery.

Asynchronous collaboration unites and unleashes our remote team. Collaborating in real-time with tools like MURAL, Figma, and Loom allows our team moments of deep focus across timezones while achieving faster results than traditional asynchronous communications.

The Voltage Control team embraces the dedication to working remotely. It allows us to broaden our talent pool, maintain innovation, re-think the way teams work, and it provides a healthy work-home life balance.

Douglas, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Voltage Control is a change agency that helps leaders and teams thrive through change to fully unleash their potential. We specialize in interventions and training focused on facilitation, collaboration, psychological safety, and play for organizations experiencing uncertainty and change. Every change is unique. With a deep respect for tailored solutions, we conceive and design custom programs that take you on the specific journey to your destination. We believe that your team has the answers and abilities for the change you seek, so our experiences are designed to help you extract them. Our master facilitators offer trusted guidance and custom coaching to companies that want to expand mindsets, transform culture, foster team health, and unleash everyone.

From Fortune 100 companies to art startups, municipal service providers, and universities, Voltage Control has helped a spectrum of organizations embrace change and build resilient teams.

Whether they are launching products, reimagining services, or improving processes, our focus on team cohesion, culture transformation, and communities of practice produce lasting impact.

Voltage Control was founded by myself Douglas Ferguson, I am a thought leader and master facilitator of change, culture, and leadership. I am also the author of four books: Magical Meetings, Beyond the Prototype, How to Remix Anything, and Start Within. I also publish a weekly podcast called Control the Room.

We Lead With Community

We are motivated by a mission to help leaders and teams thrive through change, Voltage Control calls upon fellow facilitators to transform innovation culture with the ultimate goal of changing the way we work and communicate. From free weekly community meetups to Control the Room – our annual facilitator summit – Voltage Control is building a community of facilitators to change the world.

Do you have any insights you can share related to maintaining high team morale?

Low morale and low team morale are bad for business. Morale is an essential component of any workplace. A lack of team morale will ultimately threaten the health and productivity of your team and company at large. Low morale employees are disengaged, unmotivated, and apathetic toward their jobs, work, and employers.

An unhealthy work environment contributes significantly to low morale and low team morale. While each employee is responsible for their mindset and motivation, expecting your team to perform at their best in a toxic environment is impossible.

So how do we combat this? Align team members with your core values. Set the tone by communicating your company’s values, vision, goals, and mission with all team members. Always maintain and communicate your values to ensure your team understands and aligns with your company.

Communication is key in cultivating team morale. Encourage your team members to share their thoughts, questions, and concerns with colleagues and managers. Additionally, team leaders should also communicate their expectations and needs, so employees and employers understand each other.

Positivity is an important part of any healthy company culture. Leaders should maintain a positive perspective to promote an enjoyable workplace and boost morale. Management can encourage positive thinking from the top down by choosing optimism in contentious situations and working to problem solve rather than give in to stress or fear when faced with problems.

If your employees are experiencing low morale or low team morale, team-building activities can help build stronger bonds between team members. If your company is remote, consider hosting virtual happy hours to strengthen team relationships.

These are our top ways to maintain morale, and it is how we retain our top talent!

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

In 2021 the Voltage Control team experienced a tragic loss. This triggered a pivot in both my personal and my professional life.

Jenni Robertson, our Head of Operations, and her son were lost suddenly and tragically to family violence in October of 2021. Jenni was at the core of the growth and identity of Voltage Control, deeply affected the way we work, created value for our clients, and supported our people.

In response to this tragedy, we launched an annual Jenni Robertson Memorial Scholarship. In these efforts, we are partnering with SAFE, an organization that seeks a future with a just and safe community, free from violence and abuse. We pledge to not only honor Jenni, but through continuing work with SAFE, we plan to facilitate necessary shifts in how companies, communities, and families care for each other and find the support that they need.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://voltagecontrol.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/voltagectrl/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/voltagecontrol
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/voltage-control/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/voltagectrl
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChzSl-h2ImH75mYu1TzF89g