Is Hybrid/Remote Work Doomed to Fail?
Happy Earth Day!
I get asked periodically how companies will maintain and grow healthy corporate cultures in an environment of hybrid and/or fully remote work. The argument goes something like this: If my people aren’t together everyday, how can culture thrive? Sometimes, this question is a mask for unspoken undertones like damnit, I’m paying for this physical office space, I want it full of busy humans, or I don’t trust that the work is getting done if I can’t see it happening in front of me.
I’m on the record that these are terrible excuses for forcing everyone back together in a physical work environment and we won’t rehash that here. Instead, I’d like to spend our time this morning focused on how to make hybrid and remote work for your business. Your people want autonomy, flexibility, and to align their personal purpose with that of the business they dedicate their time to. How can the leader of a modern business balance trust and accountability to nurture a corporate culture that works for all stakeholders? Here’s a primer on this critical balancing act.
Define your organization’s purpose and vision—relentlessly communicate this to colleagues in myriad ways. Without a clearly defined North Star, organizational culture and subcultures will form from the narratives that individuals and teams dream up to fill the vacuum left by poor leadership and weak messaging.
Set clear organizational goals—both long-term and short-term—that are derived directly from the purpose and vision statements developed in step one. Ensure these goals are SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, time-bound) and are cascaded throughout the organization. Use catchball exercises to build organizational alignment around these top-level goals. Catchball is the process of asking for feedback from teams down stream and revising/refining goals based on multiple rounds of feedback across the organizations primary value streams. All individual and team goals should align with overarching organizational goals. Said differently, everyone in the organization should have a clear understanding of their role and how their goals/accomplishments will make a positive impact on organizational outcomes.
An engaged employee knows how their work is positively influencing the outputs of the organizations value streams. They understand how their personal purpose aligns with that of the business. They’ve found meaning in their work. Requiring everyone to sit next to each other in a physical space will not drive an enlightened corporate culture—giving individuals and teams meaningful work and a sense of purpose is what matters. So once purpose, vision, goals, and standard work are established, bringing individuals together to solve important organizational challenges is what will drive a sense of meaning and belonging across the company. As I look back on my career, the memories that really stick with me are the times that I was working both physically and remotely with colleagues on cross-functional teams that were charged with solving critical customer-focused challenges, developing new products, or ensuring that organizational flow was optimized. Yes, I enjoyed walking the halls and the impromptu conversations with colleagues at the water cooler, but that didn’t bind me to the culture of the business I was leading—it was the shared sense of purpose and the meaningful work we did together to achieve the vision we set out to make reality that really mattered and stuck with me. Want a great culture? Ensure everyone has an opportunity to engage in meaningful work.
Make learning and coaching a priority. Bringing teams together to engage in experiential learning that is designed to have a positive impact on their ability to contribute to the company’s value streams is a fantastic way to build a great corporate culture. When your people see that you’re making direct investments in them and those investments are designed to help them improve and grow as contributors to the overall success of the business, engagement and belonging are bound to improve. However, investments in learning and coaching can backfire if (a) they’re reserved only for top performers, or (b) the “why” is not clear. Learning opportunities should be equitable and tailored to the team or individual’s continuous improvement journey.
It’s easy to fall into the trap of believing that physical proximity is what drives great organizational cultures. Yes, being “together” is indeed important, but I argue that it’s the quality of human interaction that’s the key to building a great culture. You can provide the flexibility, autonomy, and purpose your teammates are looking for in hybrid/remote work environments and nurture a wonderful corporate culture simultaneously by ensuring that the human interactions that do take place are designed with purpose, clarity, and meaning.
Please note that we’ve just scratched the surface on this topic today. The above points are made from a 30,000 foot view. Stay tuned for the release of my forthcoming book The Balanced Business—Building Organizational Trust and Accountability through Smooth Workflows for more on the subject.
