A few weeks back, we wrote about how showing your pets on Zoom meetings, or at least not hiding them like guilty secrets, can help the team bond and get to know each other. But can it go too far? Here’s the other side of that conversation. Apparently, some people make their pets too central to the process. A reader recently told me about his boss, a lovely lady who has taken … [Read more...]
When Should We Use Virtual Backgrounds for Meetings?
Have you been on a zoom meeting with Bob in Accounting, and it looks like he’s sitting in a luxurious office with a view of Manhattan? He’s not, of course. He’s using a Virtual Background to hide the fact he’s actually working from the North end of the dining room table. Someone recently asked a question on our Long Distance Worklife podcast: When is it appropriate to use … [Read more...]
Why Do We Miss In-Person Meetings?
Remember back before we got sent home for having cooties? Two or three years ago, when the workplace was as it had always been, we hated meetings. We complained constantly about them: A waste of time. Productivity killer. Boring. Remember? Now, when we ask people what the biggest reason for returning to the office is, the number one answer is “so we can meet in person.” If … [Read more...]
Is Hybrid Work What You Really Want?
Before you rush into hybrid work and simply take it as a foregone, conclusion, take a few moments and consider what hybrid work really is, not just what you've heard about it or think it might be. … [Read more...]
Why a Hybrid Workplace?
by Kevin Eikenberry While some work must be done face-to-face – healthcare, manufacturing, warehousing, hospitality and more- every organization that was forced to send people to work from home have had to think about/decide where people will work in the future. Early in the discussions about the future of work, I stated that how the decision would be made about where … [Read more...]