  Psychological safety is a precondition for learning and success in software
teams. Companies such as SavingsBank, which is discussed in this article, have
developed good practices to facilitate psychological safety, most of which
depend on face-to-face interaction. However, what happens to psychological
safety when working remotely? In this article, we explore how Norwegian
software developers experienced pandemic and post-pandemic remote work and
describe simple behaviors and attitudes related to psychological safety. We pay
special attention to the hybrid work mode, in which team members alternate days
in the office with days working from home. Our key takeaway is that spontaneous
interaction in the office facilitates psychological safety, while remote work
increases the thresholds for both spontaneous interaction and psychological
safety. We recommend that software teams synchronize their office presence to
increase chances for spontaneous interaction in the office while benefitting
from focused work while at home.
