Maybe the most divisive topic in remote work is whether email is a help or a hindrance to our productivity. It’s fast, convenient and pretty much free. On the other hand, there’s too much of it, our inboxes are inundated, and responding to all those notifications stops us from doing other, more productive, work. There is a whole cottage industry of experts saying we need to use … [Read more...]
Avoiding Cliques on Your Hybrid Team
When you have a hybrid team, some of your team works in the office, some work from home, and some work who-knows-where depending on the day. That can make it hard to create a cohesive team. It isn’t that the team intentionally doesn’t want to work with people who don’t share their workspace, or that managers mean to exclude certain people from team tasks. But whether or not … [Read more...]
The Long-Term Implications of Working from Home During the Pandemic
Remote work was on the rise long before the COVID pandemic hit. The trend was already towards greater flexibility and mobility in how we do our jobs. So, it’s no big surprise that there are some obvious short-term changes in the workplace: more hybrid work teams, ubiquitous webcams (along with the accompanying “Zoom fatigue”) and confusion about what the office should look … [Read more...]
Effective Collaboration on a Hybrid Team
by Kevin Eikenberry One of the reasons some organizations give for their decision to bring everyone back to the office is “we need collaboration.” In fact, after “we need to be together for our culture” (I’ve dispelled that myth in this post) it is the second most common concern about a hybrid workplace. Hybrid team collaboration is possible, if we are willing to think … [Read more...]
Effective Brainstorming Across Distance
One of the most common complaints about working on a virtual or hybrid team is, “People can’t brainstorm and collaborate the way they do in the office.” For many teams, this is a critical issue because the whole point of being in teams is to create a sum that’s greater than all of the talented parts. Can you brainstorm, share ideas, and innovate even if you aren’t locked in … [Read more...]