Make sure team members don't isolate themselves
Research shows that we tend to communicate less when we work alone. This can lead to feelings of helplessness, frustration, and less team cooperation. The risk, which increases for those who work offsite much of the time, is that they end up feeling isolated.
We can not work one hundred percent collaboratively all the time, either. This would be very exhausting. It is necessary for all of us to have our ´me´ time, in order to process information, and lay out the work, before continuing the process of sharing and collaborating with our co-workers. However, one needs to stay mindful about not falling into the trap of not communicating, even though this tends to fall naturally for us when working from home.
Create good routines for meetings, whether hybrid, onsite, or offsite
To succeed with the hybrid workplace model, having good routines for conducting hybrid meetings is essential. This is important to create good social bonds amongst team members, for effective communication, to provide - with essential information, for general brainstorming, and the opportunity for team members to ask questions, however big or small they may be.
The workplace must be optimised so meetings can be arranged easily and effectively, whether onsite, offsite, or hybrid. Routines such as always greeting the digital participants first helps involve them.
Creating and maintaining good team relationships can be challenging if the team members hardly meet in-person. Therefore, it can also be a good idea to arrange frequent physical meetings and events where coworkers can meet, whether it be in a social setting or work setting.
Be consistent with which communication tools to use, and how to use them
Most teams and organisations use several communication tools– Email, Slack, Teams, Canvas, Whatsapp– the list goes on. But team members may use these differently. Some are more chatty over Slack, others prefer informal and straight to the point emails.
This can lead to a lack of information flow, and groupings within the team. Therefore, organisations must be mindful about how to configure information inwardly.
That includes which tools and digital platforms that are used to share and receive information, and how they are used. You don't want to risk some of your team members falling out on essential information!
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