How Can You Strengthen the Communication In A Remote And Hybrid Setup?

With a growing percentage of workers working from home, implementing enjoyable and effective team-building exercises is critical to sustain and strengthen the communication of your remote and hybrid teams.

Covid-19 compelled everyone to go remote! And now, when asked, one out of 3 workers said that they would quit coming to the office full-time.

Although many businesses were already using hybrid models when the pandemic struck, companies that had never learned to balance the remote and in-office workforce struggled to keep everyone together throughout the changeover.

But the ones that had previously integrated a system for remote work into their process are at a great advantage. As a result, despite having to employ a more divided model, the teams of such businesses remained cohesive.

Better communication leads to more empathy, which is the least understood and most successful attribute we can develop as employees.

Moreover, remote work and hybrid models are here to stay in the long run.

So, businesses that can strengthen the communication of their remote and hybrid workers through team-building exercises will maintain a stronger bond among their employees regardless of distance.

And here’s how you can accomplish it:

1) Create a Communication Strategy

Communication becomes much more crucial in a remote workplace. And teams must be, therefore, far more deliberate about how and when they interact with one another.

With a variety of modern communication platforms and supposedly 24/7 accessibility of remote teammates, it is easy to constantly and unintentionally interrupt employees’ work hours or violate their personal hours.

Moreover, conducting delicate or challenging talks over the video that relies on body language and emotion can be tough.  Along with that, poorly written messaging can be the source of misunderstanding and anger.

Obviously, communication in the virtual workplace is critical, difficult, and something that all organizations should prioritize.

The correct tools must be chosen, norms for interaction must be established, training must be provided, and consistent modeling and reinforcement from management are all necessary for successful remote communication.

2) Introduce Healthy Socialization

Remote team-building exercises that are both functional and enjoyable for your staff boost productivity.

Anyone, regardless of location, can play online games like ‘Jeopardy’ that offer them a common topic to discuss.

You can also set up specific support areas for remote workers to discuss work-from-home strategies.

Some send gifts to let their remote colleagues know I’m thinking of them, which is a form of team-building and it influences how they perceive them as a teammate.

These activities should be functional, but enjoyment can also be functional.

Plan a team happy hour or a weekly “Filter Friday,” during which employees can use any filter they like during their video meetings.

While it may appear to be just for fun, supporting positive social dynamics among all employees – corporate and remote — shows that you care about their well-being, which inspires them to work hard for you.

3) Check on Your Teammates

When employees are isolated from the rest of the team, it’s easy for them to disregard their health, but incorporating remote workers in team-building activities helps you know they’re doing well.

Remote workers frequently find that walking from their bedroom to their home office is their daily exercise. So build channels of communication that encourage shared physical activity.

A lunchtime walk around the building can be transformed into a remote team-building activity via video chat, and everyone can benefit from the beneficial social interaction. Not to mention it will also strengthen the communication with peers.

Team-building exercises can also benefit the mental health of remote workers.  In addition to that, the remainder of the team not only uplifts remote workers through social support, but they also develop more understanding of their remote counterparts.

Read: Top 6 Video Conferencing & Virtual Meeting Platforms

4) Remove Limitations to Participation

Word of mouth in the office can teach someone what he or she does not know, but remote workers are excluded. So organize a team-building exercise with all communication limitations in mind.

Employees may regard the entire process as a burden if having to figure out a new program on their own prevents them from participating in an activity.

By removing barriers to participation in team-building exercises through education in areas such as technology, everyone can buy in and enjoy the rewards.

Creating a stable hybrid model is, of course, dependent on network strength and security.

Remote workers can participate in team-building events more easily if they have access to high-quality internet and fibre, as well as additional levels of security, such as protection on public networks, automatic firewall upgrades, and PC encryption.

So, when you remove limitations and strengthen the communication, your remote and hybrid setup thrives.

5) Promote Both Active and Passive Learning

One of the most significant advantages of working in an office is the passive learning that occurs. Thus encouraging this with remote workers would necessitate strong team-building initiatives.

Active learning occurs when a training program explains the steps to teach a new position, whereas passive learning occurs when you are in the presence of someone who has more abilities or information than you.

A senior employee may not purposefully share words of wisdom with junior employees in order for them to learn but unconsciously.

However, opening contact between remote workers and those who can teach them by example would require advancements in communication technologies.

Additionally, more and more tools will emerge and platforms will emerge to allow this highly beneficial passive learning among remote workers as more organizations hire remote workers. So be involved in your hybrid-infrastructure investments.

Read: 5 Key features of a Good Employee Management System

Bottomline

Team building allows employees to form deeper relationships with one another by opening up channels of communication.

When you make entertaining and functional activities easily accessible to all employees, no matter where they are, they learn to work better together. And it also, inevitably, helps you strengthen communication amongst peers.

Last but not least, you should try WorkHub, an affordable collaboration tool for remote and hybrid teams. It will definitely help you strengthen the communication between all your employees through its robust relevant functionality.

Book a free WorkHub demo today and learn how it can help you strengthen communication in your remote and hybrid setup.