The Complexity of Hybrid Engagement

The concept of a hybrid work model gained momentum about 18 months ago.

And as companies began to explore it, the buzz from HR teams was this is going to get complicated. And they were right. At this point, very few managers have “mastered” it, and many employees are saying it’s clunky and not resetting the culture the way leaders hoped it would. And it’s still one of the top Google searches this year.

There’s a clear delineation between why one model was easy and the other is more difficult. The virtual model solved for individuals. There wasn’t a choice about the virtual setting as a way of working. Everyone was in it, and everyone adjusted to it. Interestingly, most companies said it worked. They gained efficiencies and felt that they were able to leverage individuals effectively. What most managers now say is that the team aspect suffered in a virtual setting. It was just harder, and in some cases not feasible, to keep employees connected to each other and leveraging the skills of each other. So, high productivity from individuals but much less collaboration across teams.

And that’s the shift with the hybrid model. Companies want to bring back the collaboration that helps processes evolve and improve as they moved forward. The complexity is that when companies opened their doors, few acknowledged the objective and the shift from individual focus to team focus. And companies didn’t give managers a lot of guidance on how to build team contracts. And managers need it. They learned so much in the last two years about managing to individual needs, and now they aren’t sure how to balance individual needs against team priorities. In order for hybrid models to work, the priorities of the team have to come first.

In our workshops, we talk about the difference in engagement of the work and engagement of individuals. Both are a part of setting the hybrid model, but the approach may differ between the work and the people.

To reset the engagement of teamwork, we coach managers to define the work of the team first. Build a visual representation of what the team does and the connection points that the team needs to integrate the work and deliver outcomes. The manager defines the connection points and the vehicle used to collaborate on work. Over the last two years, managers have jumped back into details to keep processes going. While managers had good connection to most employees, the employees didn’t have consistent and essential connection to each other. It’s time to pull out and let team members own the processes.

The manager sets the date, the time, the cadence and the process of teamwork. The employees drive the connection that comes from it. It’s the engagement of teamwork that allows us to learn from each other, build trust with each other and ultimately, leverage each other toward better outcomes.

Managers have to be unapologetic about putting the team first in the hybrid model and having new norms that are requirements for being on a team. If the team needs to meet in person on Mondays, then the team has to meet in person on Mondays. Interestingly, as we’ve worked with managers on defining the “team contract,” they aren’t getting the resistance that they thought they would. That’s because we don’t need to reset to how we worked two years ago, and most people welcome the connection back to the team. Employees are adjusting to new expectations, and many admit that the shift to hybrid wasn’t as dramatic as they feared.

But will the culture reset if different teams have different contracts? How can managers continue to drive personal connection with employees that they don’t see regularly? The connection part is proving to be the toughest part of the hybrid model. It was the toughest part of the virtual model, and it remains amongst groups that don’t get together regularly.

Managers sure tried. From virtual games, to wine tastings, competitions and hobby huddles, they did it all. It’s just hard to accept that looking at a screen can deliver the same energy and engagement as sitting across from someone. It worked for a while when life was virtual, and the screen connection was the only connection we had. But life has reset. People are out in restaurants, seeing friends and family in person. Ironically, for many employees, the work group is the only one they don’t see regularly. Managers who try to set virtual connection points are competing with the in-person connections that have returned to all other parts of life.

To reset engagement with people, we need to acknowledge that virtual connection isn’t as good. We get energy from being with people, and while different people like different doses of that energy, a virtual connection doesn’t deliver the same thing. Managers have to find ways to build connection into a team contract.

In-person connection fits easily in a local teamwork model because people are in the same location and getting meals together or planning events together comes easily. Many companies are returning to in-person meetings which creates an opportunity for those who aren’t in the same location to plan for touchpoints throughout the year. It’s an essential part of strengthening a culture, and if your team doesn’t have the opportunity to get together, you need to create it. Even global teams that are very far apart are finding ways to bring employees who live in the same country together so that everyone has the opportunity to reset, re-energize or begin relationships.

As managers and leaders ask for guidance on retaining employees, I often say that people leave companies as individuals. If their work environment and setting is always individual, the culture doesn’t have much of an impact on them. But they tend to stay with companies when they belong to a team or have friendships where they work. The company culture comes through in the people they know and the leaders they like to work with. We talked about this on a recent podcast, Resetting & Reducing Social Distance.

The hybrid model has more complexity, and to work well, it has to focus on the work of the team and the connection of individuals to each other.

If you’re interested in improving your team’s model, we can help through our group workshops or 1:1 coaching to build a tailored plan for your team.

We’re here when you need us!

Want a free 15-minute consultation with us to see how we can help you or your leaders? Book a call now!

The Virtual Manager

While 2020 wasn’t the year any of us expected, 2021 shows great potential to deliver on many anticipated resets. And we’re ready! Ready to move beyond the pandemic, ready to reset company goals, and ready to feel energized for the year ahead.

Companies are talking to employees, industry experts and business partners to get a sense of what those resets will be. One that is generating a lot of discussion is the work from home setting. Early survey results show more than 90% of employees like this new setting for work…and they want to reset on where they work and how they work. While some companies may continue to work fully virtually, most will reset a new normal that isn’t fully back to where we were in 2019 and won’t fully continue as we are today.

But what will continue is a new role: the virtual manager.

When teams began working from home, we coached managers as boundaries around their role became very blurred and unstructured. Overnight, they were managing around and through personal dynamics.  And they had to learn how to track work dynamics, personal dynamics and emotional distress over a virtual platform.

We wrote about the big shifts (It’s Getting Personal , March 2020). And we quickly saw that most managers were hesitant with them, some managers were tentative about them, and by the end of the year, all managers adjusted to them.

Managers were coached quickly to lead with empathy and understanding in 2020. Now, the expectations of a manager have reset again in 2021, and managers are still learning to manage virtual Productivity, virtual Connectivity and virtual Collaborability.

Here’s why:

Productivity

While managers still have empathy for dynamics surrounding a work from home setting, there has been a reset on expectations. Many employees worked very consistently through the pandemic; others were more sporadic. The result is managers who are trying to figure out how to allow for flexibility while adding more structure and pressure to deadlines and deliverables.

It means they have to be focused on how they set expectations and clear in how they communicate those expectations. And they will have to balance the pressure that one person’s flexibility puts on another person’s deadline. They will manage some people who come in the office and others who remain at home. They will feel more pressure on their own schedule as they try to adjust to everyone else’s.

We’re helping managers with meeting agendas, difficult conversations and a more structured plan for updates. Everyone is still learning.

Connectivity

Managers worked hard throughout 2020 to connect with virtual employees. It almost doubled the amount of time it takes on their calendars. Most say they never really tracked the hallway chats or drive-by conversations in the office. But they’ve learned to track touchpoints now so that they can balance how often they check in and who they’re checking in with.

The frequency of meetings and checkpoints added some efficiency, but it also diluted some connectivity.  It’s hard to force connection at 10am on Tuesday if your employee is distracted or a little less open at that time. Most managers have tried virtual social time. Some ideas work, and some don’t. There are multiple learnings and adjustments around what employees enjoy and what feels forced.

And for managers, some of this felt critical as companies wanted to stay in touch through uncertainty.  But productivity and expectations are no longer uncertain. 2021 has been reset. So, what will be enough and what will be too much connection? It will be a blended approach in 2021. And most managers hope that some of the in-person and easier 1:1 connection will return.

We’re helping managers manage their time and their priorities. We’re helping them facilitate an open and candid conversation virtually. But everyone is still learning.

Collaborability

This may be the weakest link for the virtual manager. In addition to keeping individuals connected and productive, a good manager takes responsibility for getting the whole team to high productivity. And every manager says it’s harder to do. They can run efficient meetings and report outs, but they miss the group’s ability to really collaborate together. They need the spontaneous thoughts that come when team members talk often and huddle informally around the more complex opportunities.

There are lots of tools, but teams haven’t settled in easily with many of them. In many cases, the challenge is time. To make virtual work productive, managers and employees became very focused on efficiency. And while you can set aside 30 minutes to get a team up to speed, you can’t force out of the box thinking into a short meeting. When you try to replicate a longer whiteboard session, you hit Zoom fatigue with participants.

We’re helping managers’ rethink the format that they can’t replicate. We’re leveraging ways to create small discussions in large groups and prework before brain work.

And…everyone is still learning.

 

It’s a dynamic and evolving skill, and our coaching is evolving right with it. We see commonalities in challenges and different approaches to good practices. And once companies commit to their virtual work strategy, we’ll know how expanded a future manager’s skills need to be. For now, we’ve created a format that combines real-time coaching with small group discussion. Our Virtual Manager coaching circles run for six weeks and support real-time issues with tangible tools and solutions. It allows a manager to learn fast from shared group experiences. It drives discussion, camaraderie….and a little fun!

If you’d like a little support during the 2021 resets, reserve your spot in your Virtual Manager cohort here.

And as always, we’re here when you need us!