Key Points

• Remote-first companies excel when given a strong vision and purpose.
• Many remote-first companies focus on software, but that isn’t the only area where it excels.
• Forging a strong remote-first company relies on a strong corporate identity and culture.

What are the remote-first companies that made it work? There are plenty of success stories throughout the history of business. However, little has been said about the remote companies that are making a mark on the landscape of business right now. If you’re looking to lead your remote team, some organizations can serve as inspiration or a guiding hand in how you approach things.

That said, we’re taking a closer look at some of the top remote-first companies and how they work. This isn’t a comprehensive look by any means, but rather a glance at the companies making remote work succeed. Some of these are your typical names, but others come as quite a surprise. So, let’s dive right in.

Why Do Companies Opt for Remote Work?

There isn’t any one particular reason as to why companies are choosing remote work. For some, it can come down to simple needs. Many organizations don’t need to have the infrastructure, expenses, and drawbacks that come from a physical space. That said, it isn’t a perfect solution for all industries.

We haven’t seen a pronounced shift to remote work in areas like manufacturing, particularly in the automotive and semiconductor sectors. It’s hard to remotely run something like a drill press, a welder, and so forth. That said, there is plenty of space in the world today for the likes of remote work.

Many industries have seen massive success while shifting to remote work. This wasn’t a gradual process by any means, however. There were certainly some mitigating factors at play as to why some organizations have embraced the likes of hybrid and remote workflows for their employees.

The Post-Pandemic Landscape

One of the biggest pushes into remote work came hot off the heels of the COVID-19 pandemic. At the time, it was unknown how many organizations would continue to compete in their particular niches. Offices were shuttered, streets remained vacant, and there was a lingering air of uncertainty as the world pieced together what to do next.

The push into remote work served as a natural fit for the world during 2020. However, we’re five years removed from the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic, and remote work hasn’t left yet. Many organizations are opting to be remote-first companies. Many of these organizations maintain the same level of success, if not more so in the post-pandemic world.

While there has been some resistance to remote work from many of the more senior companies in the world, that isn’t the case for everyone. The shift to remote work is only going to continue. Beyond the ease of operations, there are important considerations like reduced operational costs and massive talent pools that are more enticing than office space.

Top Remote-First Companies

So, now that we’ve set the stage, who are the top remote-first companies? Unsurprisingly, many of these organizations operate in a digital space. They offer goods, services, and even applications that most users would access through a smartphone or computer. We’re seeing record numbers for some of these organizations, however.

For the old stalwarts of their respective industries, it’s unlikely they’ll shift to being a remote-first company anytime soon. However, the companies I’ve chosen to highlight today are making the most of being remote-first, and it’s to their continued success.

That said, if you’re on the fence about shifting your business to a remote-first company, you might take these examples as a guiding hand. There is certainly something to learn from the success stories of some of these businesses.

GitLab

DevSecOps is a driving force in software development and a niche that GitLab is more than eager to fill. The software platform championed by GitLab is one of the most robust available for enterprise usage, harnessing the power of AWS and artificial intelligence for fantastic results. Above all else, however, GitLab is one of the top remote-first companies operating today.

Founded initially in 2011, GitLab has championed remote work since its infancy. Some 14 years later it is one of the leading platforms for software developers. They operate with around 2,300 team members around the world, giving them access to some of the best talent around.

Additionally, GitLab has made its exhaustive company handbook available free for anyone to read. You’ve got thousands of pages of material discussing daily operations, corporate ethos, and the standards for the many departments the organization runs remotely.

Toggl

Some of the greatest success stories in the digital landscape are forged by sheer happenstance. Over 20 years ago, Toggl was little more than a hired gun software developer. Enterprise applications were the order of the day. At some point, Toggl’s leadership started requesting more detailed information about how time was spent throughout a project.

A simple time management utility was developed, which quickly became a smash hit for clients and developers alike. 20 years on, and Toggl is one of the most successful remote-first companies operating today. As a company that helps remote workers manage their time, it only stands to reason that the company operates remotely.

Today, they’re a leading force in time management, being the de facto example of a robust tool developed primarily for remote workers. It is often said that you can’t know how something works without doing it yourself, and Toggl has put its money where its mouth is in that regard.

Bandcamp

Since the internet caught on, we’ve seen the democratization of entertainment. Think about it for a moment, it was unheard of 30 years ago to watch videos or listen to music from a relatively unknown person. The nature of fame has certainly changed, and Bandcamp is one of the leading forces behind it.

At its core, Bandcamp is little more than a music distribution channel. However, that’s selling it short. Bandcamp works with small indie artists up to legacy acts like Peter Gabriel. Further, it encourages entrepreneurial thinking in its diverse user base.

The team operating Bandcamp exemplifies why this is one of the best remote-first companies around. The music distributor pulls talent from across the globe to handle everything from customer service to highlighting fresh new artists on its blog.

Skillcrush

To live is to learn, or so the old saying goes. As a lifelong student myself, I always love to see educational resources flourish in the marketplace. For those with a mind inclined toward computer programming, you’ve likely heard of Skillshare in some capacity.

However, what doesn’t get said is that is one of the top remote-first companies operating today. Skillshare primarily focuses on providing a variety of resources and educational materials to students looking to break into computer science, coding, and other tech-savvy career paths.

Tech is one of the few bullet-proof career paths available to the average person, and Skillshare is bridging the gap. Offering courses for all levels, Skillshare is a great way to shift gears and move into a career you might end up loving.

Zapier

Automation isn’t just a buzzword these days. You’ve likely heard about the low-code or no-code solutions provided for automation. The average rank-and-file employee in any given organization likely doesn’t have the coding knowledge to automate the boring stuff. If you’re looking to increase productivity and increase employee satisfaction, automation might be the ticket.

That said, not many companies do it as well as Zapier, another remote-first company. They’ve stuck it out for some time. Automation is readily done with minimal fuss when using Zapier, allowing users to get to the work that matters the most on a given project.

As this is another digital service, it only makes sense that Zapier has opted for a mostly remote setup. There are still some in-person positions, but the lion’s share of the positions the company hires for are remote.

Sketch

If you do any sort of design work, you’ve likely heard of Sketch. A robust toolset designed explicitly for ease of use, Sketch’s software suite is one of the strongest offerings on the market for users looking to ditch the Adobe ecosystem.

Unbeknownst to many, Sketch is also one of a few remote-first companies in the graphic design space. This makes sense given the nature of software development. You don’t readily need a permanent office space to deliver quality goods to your clients.

That said, Sketch’s software suite is one of the best you’ll find and a sterling example of the quality of work done by primarily remote teams when allowed to flourish.

FlexJobs

It certainly would leave an odd taste in your mouth to run a job site for remote workers while being mostly in-person. Thankfully, FlexJobs doesn’t have that problem. FlexJobs is a stellar resource for employers and potential candidates alike, showing remote, hybrid, and flexible job postings from across the world.

FlexJobs has been remote-first since its very inception, championing the remote work movement for well over a decade at this point. They collate data and job openings from major organizations like Progressive, Amazon, Netflix, and Dropbox among others.

Kona

The shift to understanding the mental well-being of the workforce has been an unexpected success story for many organizations. A happy employee is ultimately firing on all cylinders. However, there aren’t many companies focusing on mental health in the workplace.

Kona is one of those rare organizations and another of the success stories for remote-first companies. Kona’s mission statement is putting empathy first, an approach I can certainly appreciate. While seeing increased revenue is always great, it doesn’t mean much when you have a high turnover rate.

Kona offers quite a robust variety of services, meeting with management and employees alike to discuss performance, receive coaching, and classes to increase overall employee/employer relations.

DuckDuckGo

Privacy and the internet are at constant odds with one another. At the end of the day, most users would prefer to remain anonymous. In 2008, DuckDuckGo was founded with this very purpose in mind. Offering a search engine, browser extensions, and a web browser centered around privacy, DuckDuckGo has become a mainstream success story.

This is impressive when you consider the absolute stranglehold Google has on the market. That said, DuckDuckGo has been a remote-first company from the very start. As this is primarily a software-centric organization, it makes sense, but they’ve stuck it out going on 20 years with no signs of slowing down just yet.

Other Useful Tools and Concepts

Looking for some other useful tips and tricks? You might want to take a closer look at some of our predictions about the nature of remote work’s future. While remote work is fresh in our minds, it has a relatively bright future, especially as more companies shift to it.

Further, you might want to take a closer look at how to overcome the common challenges seen with remote work. Many companies falter when pivoting to a remote workforce, but you don’t have to fall victim to the same shortcomings.

Conclusion

While many of the remote-first companies highlighted today focus primarily on digital goods, we’re seeing shifts across all industries toward this workflow. Time will tell if it pans out for everyone, but it is certainly an exciting time for organizations looking to access broader talent pools than their local areas.

The image featured at the top of this post is ©Ground Picture/Shutterstock.com.