Simple rituals that kept our global design team aligned, motivated, and human. No matter where we worked from.

After the world shifted to remote work, MOHARA decided not to snap back.

Even after offices reopened, remote remained optional. We had hubs in the UK, South Africa, and Thailand, but no one was forced to show up. I was based in Bangkok. My design team was spread across South Africa, Portugal, Spain, and the UK. Sometimes working from home, sometimes working from somewhere new. It worked because we made it work.

Compared to engineering, design was a smaller team. And unlike engineering, design often felt isolated, especially in early-stage product work where generalist designers are embedded solo in startup teams. That’s why we built team rituals. Not performative. Not corporate theatre. Just consistent human habits to keep people aligned, supported, and inspired.

Here’s what worked:

Daily Standups
Every day, we’d jump on a quick call. Not just to list tasks, but to hear each other. Talk through roadblocks, share updates, vent, laugh, refocus. I’d use this moment to zoom out and re-align the team. It made each day feel connected, even when people were working alone on different projects.

1:1s That Actually Mattered
We made space for weekly check-ins. But many of the team dropped in more often to show work, talk career goals, get feedback, or just chat. It wasn’t pressure. It was presence. It was about making sure no one felt like they were figuring things out alone.

Design Training
From interns to seniors, we ran regular sessions. Foundational theory, tools, critiques, frameworks. There’s always something to sharpen. It helped us maintain high standards and grow together, regardless of timezone or title.

Monthly Design Retros
Outside of project retros with engineers and PMs, we had our own space as designers. A place to reflect on what wasn’t working, propose improvements, and bring ideas to the table. It gave us agency. We fixed things as a team, not just as individuals.

Design Quiz
Yes, a quiz. On theory, history, trends. Things designers should know beyond Figma. It wasn’t about scores or hierarchy. Just friendly competition, smart questions, and learning outside the typical project grind.

Design Onboarding
Every new designer got a proper introduction to how we worked. Our roles, tools, rituals, principles. Not just access to files, but actual orientation. It gave everyone confidence and context from day one.

Getting to Know You
One of our designers suggested adding a few random personal questions to our team calls. Where you grew up, what your guilty pleasure was, your weirdest food experience. It became a team favourite. We discovered things we never would’ve otherwise.

Playlists
We launched the MOHARA Mixtape. Weekly Spotify playlists submitted by the team. Different cultures, different sounds, one shared experience every Friday. It was a simple way to celebrate our global roots.

Food Challenges
It started with a debate over the best sandwich. It escalated into full-blown themed food competitions. We’d record ourselves cooking and eating, then vote on winners. Sandwiches, burgers, desserts. I proudly took the burger crown.

Remote Working Rhythms
Time zones were a reality. People worked from home, from airports, from beaches. We didn’t expect everyone to be online at the same time. We just agreed on a window of overlap. A shared four-hour block where everyone would be available for meetings, feedback, and connection. For some it was the start of the day, for others the end. It gave us enough structure to stay in sync without forcing anyone into rigid schedules.

These rituals weren’t complex. They weren’t expensive. But they worked.

They kept us connected not just as colleagues, but as people.

There were plenty of company-wide initiatives too, but these were the ones that made our designers feel like a team, even from opposite sides of the world.

What are the small things you’ve done to keep your team together?