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Setting The Stage For Collaborative Hybrid Teams

Shannon is an Operations Strategist & Founder of Shannon Brooks Consulting, turning ideas into action.

As we move into this new workspace paradigm where hybrid teams working both remotely and in-office become the norm, it’s important to proactively address some of the most common challenges to ensure strong collaboration and an inclusive environment for all.

Remote colleagues often report feelings of isolation and find it hard to contribute or, worse, feel dismissed. Culturally, this can be toxic to teams and potentially the company as a whole. Here are some initial steps that can be taken to mitigate these challenges:

1. Invest in online collaboration tools.

Make sure teams have access to online collaboration tools that allow for joint editing so everyone on the team can contribute inside the virtual workspace. There are various online collaboration options on the market, but what matters most is that it allows for real-time contribution from multiple sources so people can add to, comment on or question the content. This allows for a truly dynamic virtual collaboration experience.

2. Improve your hybrid meetings.

For many, the number of meetings has increased as a result of remote working. Many people have become meeting-fatigued, but with hybrid teams, it is more important than ever to maintain virtual-meeting best practices.

Having everyone turn on their video and asking those in a room to face the camera as much as, if not more than, each other can go a long way toward inviting virtual members into the conversation. Most importantly, when hybrid teams are in a meeting, the facilitator should deliberately make space for virtual colleagues to speak. It can be almost impossible to get a word in when most of the team is in the room together with only a few virtual team members.

Teams should also consider situational unification for key meetings. For those pivotal collaboration points or important company conversations, either bringing everyone together in person or moving everyone to virtual participation (even if it’s from different conference rooms) can increase uniform contribution, allowing every voice to be heard and making it easier for everyone to hear the conversation or presentation clearly.

3. Define clear roles and responsibilities.

When everyone is working in isolation, team members may rely on assumptions to keep things moving. Someone might assume another person is taking care of a task. Assumptions might be made that a colleague knows they should take care of X before moving on to Y. Alternatively, two or three different team members may each assume they should be taking care of the same task, often creating confusion and frustration that can be difficult to untangle.

Clear alignment on who is responsible for which tasks, what role each team member is serving and who the ultimate decision makers are for key points builds cohesion among teams, especially when not everyone is in the same workspace.

4. Support intentional connection.

People often experience increased feelings of isolation when working away from a shared office space. And when part of the group is in the same office, those feelings can be intensified for virtual members of hybrid teams.

Something as simple as a reference to something that happened in the office earlier that day or an inside joke shared between in-office colleagues during a hybrid meeting can cause a virtual person to disengage. Supervisors and colleagues deliberately including virtual team members in the conversation, reaching out to them directly or finding opportunities to make a personal connection to create similar shared moments or inside jokes can go a long way in helping them feel like part of the group.

At the company level, a regular rhythm of company-wide or team-wide connective activities can also contribute to the cohesion of hybrid teams. This way, colleagues get to connect with people they might not regularly interact with, and new connections can be forged, turning strangers into friends. This can help people relate to one another on a more meaningful level. Overall, it helps remind everyone that they are part of a larger ecosystem of colleagues who are working toward common company goals.

While hybrid teams come with their own challenges, they are likely here to stay for many companies. But with a little preparation, intentional execution and authentic connection, this team model can allow for greater inclusion, broader diversity and an opportunity for everyone to contribute more meaningfully.


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