It’s easy to forget just how much the world of work has shifted in the last few years. The work-from-home culture has introduced new dimensions, and challenges, to the way we work.
Yet, as it became the norm so quickly, and on a global scale, it can be easy to overlook the significance of this change – and how it might be unconsciously affecting your team.
There’s no doubt that hybrid working has benefits for both employers and employees, but let’s not forget about the cultural and societal importance of gathering together as a unit.
In todays blog, we look at what is potentially lost when teams lack physical togetherness, and why as a leader, getting your team together in the same place regularly might be something you want to give renewed priority to.
The Power of Gathering
No matter how often teams meet up virtually, it is just different when they meet in person. The camaraderie, shared moments and small personal interactions that come from people gathering together can’t be achieved in the same way when working remotely and individually.
As humans, we crave physical interactions with others. The extent and depth of working relationships can’t be represented by a Teams message or a ‘thumbs up’ emoji – people need more than this to feel connected and fulfilled.
Humans have gathered together throughout time for significant events, we are social creatures and studies have shown that lack of social interaction is damaging to our mental and physical health. But it can be tempting for us to stick to working from home, it is often physically easier to do this than to go into the office, but what might this be doing psychologically to your team?
What’s Lost When Teams Don’t Physically Meet Up
It can be easy for both employees and leaders to get so focused on the task at hand that they forget about their surroundings, or rather the impact of their surroundings. It’s not uncommon for leaders to have days that are so full-on that your eyes are barely drawn away from your computer screen – sound familiar?
It can be easy to think “My colleagues can reach me at the click of a button, what difference does it make if I’m in my home office or in the shared office?” But it can make a huge difference, especially in the following situations:
- When your team is made up of people with different skillsets, from different generations, and with different communication styles. All of these factors can influence how well, or poorly, virtual communications are sent and received. Scheduling regular video calls with stakeholders can be difficult especially in larger teams working with a variety of schedules, and so email and instant messaging becomes the norm. While this is an acceptable method of communication for day to day comms, a culture where everything is done by email can quickly become clinical, cold and even dysfunctional.
- When you have team members who are new, or who lack confidence or skills. Offering empathy and support to team members who need it, will be a crucial part of your success as a leader. Successful leaders create a safe space, where team members are given the confidence to grow and where mistakes are viewed as learning opportunities – physical interactions are crucial for creating and maintaining this kind of nurturing environment.
- When you’re working on something that needs immediate decisions, feedback and collaboration. Virtual working seems to have shifted the norm away from true collaboration, instead, separate projects will be worked on by teams with employees often in silos, to then be shared with or rolled out to a wider audience. It’s not that collaboration can’t and doesn’t happen in a virtual world, but it makes collaboration more of a planned event, rather than an organic process. Decisions can be rushed, or the wrong decisions can be made, when projects are undertaken entirely virtually – those unplanned conversations or sharing of ideas are less likely to happen when colleagues can’t walk a few steps to chat through an idea or potential issue that just came to them.
Making Gathering a Priority
There are lots of great things about working from home and leading virtual and hybrid teams (flexibility, increased morale and productivity, access to a wider talent pool). But don’t forget the power of gathering when forward planning with your team.
Aim to plan in regular physical meet ups with as much of your team whenever feasibly possible. Remember that newer team members, or those working on new work streams or projects in their acute stages will benefit more from regular in-person working days.
When on-boarding new team members, be clear that in hybrid roles there is flexibility, but a strong priority for your team is to have regular physical meet ups.
Finally
Getting your team together does more than just contribute to a positive team culture. It genuinely enhances relationships, and creates moments that will align your team’s goals and values that are much harder to achieve virtually.
Until next time,
Julia Carter
