With hybrid work seemingly here to stay, more and more startups are recognising that whilst this flexible working model can offer many advantages, it brings plenty of challenges too - particularly when it comes to keeping teams connected and engaged.
After all, with some employees working in an office and others working remotely, working together as part of a team and making valuable connections and relationships is no longer just a given. It takes a deliberate and concerted effort on the part of managers and founders to ensure that it happens. However that effort shouldn't just focus on employees who work together in similar functions or departments - it matters across the board.
Good working relationships are essential - even amongst employees who would generally have weaker ties and connections, who have minimal interaction due to their roles, and who may rarely have to work closely together. Managers and founders need to do what they can to cultivate those relationships too as failing to do so can lead to a myriad of issues.
If your startup has gone down the hybrid route and you’re finding that your team is becoming somewhat disconnected, it’s time to do something about it.
Why you need to connect your team
Impact on Productivity
Even though employees who work remotely or on a hybrid basis, may, to an extent, work effectively, both the overall team morale and productivity can be impacted if they have limited opportunities to engage with their co-workers and other departments. The more that your employees work independently or in silos, the more negative the impact in the long run.
Cultivating cross-team communication can help new friendships to develop, creating a much happier working environment, ultimately leading to greater job satisfaction as well as having a positive effect on productivity levels.
Feelings of isolation
Prior to the pandemic, when remote and hybrid working wasn’t as popular, it was a lot easier for managers to spot when an employee in the office was feeling out of sorts or was struggling in some way - whether that was by their body language or general mood. That, of course, is no longer the case, particularly if most communication is taking place online.
Employees who work on a hybrid basis or who have limited interaction with others due to their role, can end up feeling isolated unless proactive steps are taken to help them forge new links and ties with their co-workers and enable them to feel that they are part of a connected team. Addressing potential feelings of isolation won’t just improve their emotional and mental wellbeing, it will also help create a much more positive and supportive business culture.
Loss of creativity and innovation
Let’s face it. Creativity and innovation go hand in hand and the more disconnected your startup team is, the more both will naturally suffer. Developing opportunities where employees can come together, build relationships and work collaboratively on business challenges can not only help unify teams but can also kickstart creativity and stimulate innovation.
If you don’t nurture connections between your team or facilitate new ways to foster innovation and creativity, you will be seriously hindering your startup’s growth and success. You may also find that some of your employees may begin to feel a little bored and start making their move.
Camaraderie and culture
When employees are working remotely or on a hybrid basis, there are often fewer opportunities for the fun stuff, the casual conversations by the photocopier, the impromptu catch-ups over coffee. Whilst not necessarily work-related, they are nonetheless important and can play a big part in ensuring that employees enjoy what they do. Finding ways to inject a little fun into the day and help friendships to develop, even when teams are apart, can go a long way to improving the daily grind.
Making a conscious effort to help your hybrid employees build meaningful connections with each other is a must - from coordinating work schedules to holding all-staff meet-ups and team socials. Providing opportunities for them to form friendships, develop authentic working relationships and also have fun, can make all the difference.
How to connect your team
Tools that can help…
There are a whole host of apps and tools that can help your team connect, no matter where they may be. Remember too that if these tools are going to have the desired positive impact on building connections and bringing your employees together, they ought to be used by everyone in the organisation. Senior leaders and managers need to be proactive, lead by example and fully embrace their usage! They can help to reinforce the message as to why they’re being used, the core aim and how everyone will benefit.
Otherwise, the novelty may soon wear off or the tools may end up being used by only a handful of employees and that will entirely defeat their purpose! Many of these apps and tools also provide managers and leaders with reports filled with data and insights on how your team is connecting, enabling you to get a clear view of their impact and take action to change things around if the metrics aren’t as positive as you’d like.
Here are a few of the tools that might be worth a look…
Slack - As a “Digital HQ”, Slack makes it easy to keep your team connected and more productive, no matter where they may be. You can set up dedicated channels for projects or teams or cross-functional channels enabling everyone to have a shared view and access to the info, files and people they need.
And to help cultivate those connections and friendships further, you can even set up channels dedicated to hobbies and interests. So whether your employees are into gaming or cooking, running or crafting, you can create a channel specifically for those shared interests.
By providing a space where your hybrid team can engage on anything from their fave recipes to the best hiking spots, you’ll be going a long way to helping them build connections. And if you’re unsure what sort of channels they’d like, ask them! Get feedback from your employees and then set up the channels that they’ll actually want to be a part of!
Donut - This innovative tool helps teams “connect around the watercooler”, and meet for virtual coffees and aims to foster collaboration, community, and friendship.
fikaTime - This app works with Microsoft Teams to help your employees to pair up for virtual coffee chats, nurturing friendships and that sense of camaraderie.
CultureBot - This Slack app aims to strengthen employee engagement, helping them to feel connected to their colleagues and do everything from celebrating birthdays together to sending shoutouts of recognition for a job well done.
CoffeePals - Another tool that integrates with Microsoft Teams, CoffeePals aims to randomly match people in a team into pairs or groups for a coffee chat.
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Offering personalised, consultative service, at TableCrowd Talent we’re a specialist recruitment agency with our finger on the pulse of the startup and scaleup scene. We are committed to matching graduates, professionals and C-level executives to exciting startup and scaleup jobs across London, the UK and Europe.
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