In partnership with ExecOnline, we conducted a research study on today’s top leadership tensions by surveying more than 43,000 people currently in managerial roles. Together we identified 3 primary tensions facing the majority of workplace leaders, as well as steps organizations and people leaders can take to alleviate and navigate them.

This research fits into our continuing effort to understand the challenges faced and competencies needed by those in leadership and provide organizations with tools to equip their people to balance leadership tensions, prioritize resources, and manage conflicting demands. By understanding the core leadership tensions that today’s managers are grappling with, your organization can improve retention and overall performance.

Regardless of industry or geography, the majority of leaders we surveyed find themselves in a bind. In addition to focusing on their own personal development, managers are tasked with the needs of direct reports and team members who depend on them for guidance and support. Add to that external factors such as economic uncertainty, technological shifts, the rise of hybrid work, and the ongoing recovery from a global pandemic, and it’s clear that leaders today are facing new and daunting challenges that they need support to resolve.

What Are the 3 Key Leadership Tensions?

Leadership Tension 1: Addressing Social Isolation While Embracing Remote Work

Though it’s widely believed that people leaders are particularly motivated to return to office settings, 99% of those we surveyed who work virtually at least part of the time reported that they’ve found remote work offers several benefits that working in an office doesn’t. For instance, 75% of leaders reported appreciation for additional time available through avoiding long commutes, and 56% pointed to flexibility as a key advantage. Leaders also recognized other organizational benefits, especially related to attracting and retaining talent with a broader talent pool.

Although many prefer remote work, the arrangement also often leads to social isolation. Most leaders in our study reported increased difficulty building relationships with coworkers, and agreed that reduced social and professional interactions have caused strain. Feelings of isolation can negatively affect peer-to-peer and peer-to-supervisor relationships.

That’s why finding a way to embrace the benefits of remote work while also addressing social isolation is a critical leadership tension faced by today’s people managers.

Leadership Tension 2: Managing Burnout While Pursuing Development Opportunities

The cumulative effects of pandemic stress and its global aftermath have created unprecedented levels of collective exhaustion. A staggering 72% of leaders surveyed reported that they are “at least somewhat” burned out — the 6th successive quarter this figure has been above 70%. Further, nearly half (46%) of those in leadership positions told us they need more resources to be effective at work.

We know that people burn out from a lack of support and resources, conflicting or unclear work tasks, a lack of autonomy, and forced attention on matters that are unimportant. It’s important to note that the quality of relationships (or lack of them) in the workplace is also directly connected to burnout, adding an additional level of risk of exhaustion and overwork for those working virtually or in a hybrid arrangement. These elements, especially combined together over long periods of time, can lead to sustained burnout that’s difficult to overcome.

When leaders experience burnout, they struggle to find a place for growth and development in their already-hectic schedules, and they have a hard time learning, or being able to absorb and apply the things they do learn. Yet when asked what would help them be more effective in their roles, 41% of leaders reported that they desired more leadership and development opportunities than they currently receive. It’s a major challenge to fit in professional development and work toward career advancement when you’re already struggling just to manage or prevent burnout.

Organizations must look for ways to support their people leaders in spending time on growth and development opportunities while also fending off burnout.

Leadership Tension 3: Making Hard Decisions While Motivating and Engaging Talent

For organizations to thrive despite economic uncertainty (including the possibility of a recession), leaders must be able to effectively manage conflicting job demands and show strategic leadership by prioritizing resources.

Recent economic volatility and the many workplace changes relating to the global pandemic have caused managers to face heavier workloads — along with fewer personnel and resources. In fact, the top 2 responses in our survey that leaders noted as their biggest challenges in the current work environment were managing more work with smaller teams and boosting employee engagement and motivation without monetary incentives. Also, any financial incentives that leaders do have at their disposal are less effective motivational tools, due to persistent inflation.

That’s why a 3rd key leadership tension that today’s managers face is becoming skilled motivators of talent who can engage and retain their employees while also making tough decisions using limited resources.

How to Resolve These 3 Leadership Tensions

Recommended Strategies for Organizations

1. Address Social Isolation While Embracing Remote Work.

One way to enable people to move past feelings of isolation is to provide ample opportunities to enhance human connection. Facilitate chances for those who don’t interact with each other on a daily basis to discover shared interests and commonalities through working together. Be intentional about enabling social interaction through more cross-functional projects, working groups, breakout sessions during organization-wide meetings, and events like “lunch and learn” presentations open to all employees. Create virtual spaces for connection, such as coffee breaks and water cooler chats, to create opportunities for connecting on both work and non-work-related topics.

Development can play a role, too. Make sure people leaders are trained to be empathetic, show compassionate leadership, and create an inclusive work environment. Consider offering development specifically aimed at improving virtual communication effectiveness and work to build conversational skills across the organization. In addition, group or team coaching can assist with bringing leaders together to work toward a common goal and encourage better communication and collaboration.

Lastly, look for opportunities to build connections among remote teams, and facilitate as many opportunities as possible for real-time, synchronous collaboration. Research has shown that teams who take advantage of real-time technology, such as video meetings and instant messaging/chat, have a much greater connection to each other and the work they are doing. You’ll want to leverage technology thoughtfully to facilitate effective virtual collaboration, and be intentional about selecting the right technological tools and setting clear expectations for their use. Encourage leaders to establish team norms and work with team members to agree on appropriate cadences and platforms for check-ins, brainstorming sessions, and virtual social events.

These steps will help balance the leadership tension between embracing the benefits of remote work and the accompanying social isolation, loneliness, and disconnection it can bring — all while your organization improves retention through embracing flexible work arrangements.

2. Manage Burnout While Pursuing Development Opportunities.

To support today’s stretched-thin leaders, organizations must focus on providing development opportunities that mitigate burnout — or at least avoid increasing it further. This means training must be easy to access and fit into busy schedules, and should help leaders who are dealing with burnout to heal from it and alleviate its effects, while also growing needed skills.

For example, virtual leadership development programs are an effective way to provide leaders with access to learning at their own pace, without the hassle and expense of travel. Furthermore, those we surveyed reported that virtual programming, shorter modules, and on-demand options among the top reasons that would enable and encourage them to participate in learning opportunities. Leaders who put in the effort to offer professional development that meets these criteria enable exhausted individuals a chance to turn away from their daily work to focus on putting energy into reflection, growth, and self-improvement. This is way that organizations can help mitigate work-life conflicts among their employees.

Similarly, one-on-one coaching can improve performance and show support, providing a way for organizations to enable their talent to prioritize development and bring their best selves to work, while focusing on the participant’s individual needs, values, and challenges. The combination of coaching and mentoring with tailored professional development can enhance personal growth while also reinforcing learning and trying out new mindsets and behaviors — ultimately helping leaders to build their leadership skills and resilience.

To address this leadership tension, organizations should be intentional about creating an environment of support, and treat managing burnout not just as an outcome of development, but as a learning objective for development in its own right.

3. Make Hard Decisions While Motivating and Engaging Talent.

Given the impact of economic uncertainty, shifting generational expectations, and high employee turnover, organizations need leaders who are skilled at motivating and engaging employees. They must also understand how leadership development powers engagement and retention. Our research found that while a third of leaders are highly proficient at strategic prioritization and talent engagement individually, a meager 9% are highly proficient in both skills. That’s why organizations must focus on leadership development to ensure that their managers are as skilled at strategic decision-making and financial insight as they are at effective communication, showing compassion, and leading hybrid teams.

Our research with ExecOnline also found that when leaders believe their organization prioritizes and invests in their professional development, productivity is 12% higher and retention increases by a whopping 41%. This investment also helps increase people’s ability to take on daily challenges and build meaningful connections in the workplace. These aspects combined have the potential to dramatically increase employee motivation and engagement and improve your organization in a way that attracts and retains future talent, too.

Managers can ease these leadership tensions by prioritizing work tasks for themselves and team members, delegating workloads given the reality of fewer team members, and becoming comfortable making critical business decisions amid organizational uncertainty. And organizations should plan to continue to invest in leadership development even during economic downturns to ensure they’re securing their pipeline of leaders for the future.

To manage the leadership tension of keeping talent engaged while making hard decisions with limited resources, focus on supporting overall employee wellbeing and work to identify ways to motivate people without monetary incentives by building and maintaining and positive culture of inclusion in the workplace.

What These Findings on Leadership Tensions Mean for Leaders and Organizations

Managers in today’s work environment face unique and increasingly difficult challenges. Our findings show that now is the time for leaders and organizations to take the necessary steps to acknowledge and address these 3 key leadership tensions to ensure long-term success. In short, offering cross-functional opportunities for remote workers to connect, investing in professional and personal development while mitigating burnout, and being strategic about the skillsets leaders need is vital for organizations navigating these leadership tensions.

When organizations invest wisely in their people and supply leaders with the right tools to be successful, they can increase employee wellbeing, improve the culture of the organization, and cultivate a competitive edge in an increasingly volatile and unpredictable world.

Ready to Take the Next Step?

Take steps to support your workforce facing these leadership tensions. We can help you foster connections within teams through group coaching and reinforce learning by pairing training with one-on-one coaching.

The post Today’s Top Leadership Tensions & How to Address Them appeared first on CCL.

• Case Study
• : Banking & Financial Services

SGX Group Partners With CCL to Boost Remote Worker Engagement by Building Internal Coaching Skills & Capacity

CLIENT:	Singapore Exchange Group (SGX)
LOCATION:	Singapore
SIZE:	1,100 employees

Client Profile & Challenge

Singapore Exchange (SGX Group) is Asia’s leading and trusted securities and derivatives market infrastructure, operating equity, fixed income, currency, and commodity markets to the highest regulatory standards. SGX is committed to facilitating economic growth in a sustainable manner, leveraging its roles as a key player in the ecosystem, a business, a regulator, and a listed company.

Based in Singapore, SGX is Asia’s most international multi-asset exchange, providing listing, trading, clearing, settlement, depository, and data services. The organization is globally recognized for its risk management and clearing capabilities.

When the COVID-19 pandemic sent SGX’s workers home, it transformed how the company operated day-to-day and raised new opportunities and challenges for senior executives and managers.

In an environment where the person-to-person connections were only virtual, company leaders sought guidance on how to better engage employees. Based on feedback from employee surveys, members of the company’s executive management team saw a need to be more accessible and inspiring in the difficult period of the pandemic. Frontline managers, in turn, needed to establish a sense of community and connection with their teams working from home to better engage employees.

SGX scaled up digital learning at work and sought to amplify employees’ ability to transfer that learning to business applications. For deeper learning to occur, employees need to feel psychologically safe and highly connected. For SGX, it was people managers who had the most potential to create a space where employees were engaged and felt safe to better learn and apply those learnings to the business.

Solution and Results

SGX partnered with The Center for Creative Leadership (CCL)® to develop a coaching mindset and skills that would increase the leadership impact of managers and executives. The initiative had 2 main goals:

1. Create a cadre of internal coaches who would provide ongoing coaching to employees.
2. Develop an impactful coaching experience for senior leaders and high potentials embedded in intensive development programs.

SGX viewed coaching as a transformative leadership tool because of how its benefits could ripple through the organization and reach all groups the company was concerned about: senior leaders, people managers, and frontline workers.

CCL drew on its Better Conversations and Coaching curriculum to train about 40 senior leaders as internal coaches. The SGX and CCL teams worked closely to handpick and identify senior leaders with a developmental focus.

Across 2 levels of Better Conversations and Coaching, each with about 30 hours of training time, participant coaches learned 4 foundational skills:

• Listen to understand.
• Ask powerful questions.
• Challenge and support.
• Establish next steps and accountability.

Participants learned to use these skills in their day-to-day interactions, as well as in formal coaching sessions. Participants also received small group coaching from more experienced coaches.

CCL and SGX partnered to foster an internal community of coaches at SGX who support each other. Coaches met every quarter to share success stories and learnings. These high-impact sessions deepened reflection and advanced the learning among the leader coaches.

This program has created significant coaching capacity among the senior leaders of the organization and generated valuable opportunities for mid-level and frontline leaders to receive coaching. The leader coaches started by coaching their direct teams; some leaders also coach cross-functionally.

The prestigious Management Associate program at SGX was another opportunity to leverage senior leaders’ coaching capacity. A set of leaders from the group of 40 were assigned as mentors to the Management Associates through a structured six-month program. The goal was to provide every management associate with an internal coaching and mentoring opportunity.

SGX has successfully cultivated a comprehensive learning environment that prioritizes coaching and development, thereby fostering a robust learning culture. This strategic approach has led to a significant increase in employee engagement survey results on learning & development, surpassing industry norms. The company’s commitment to learning and development has resulted in employees feeling more engaged at work.

As SGX strengthens its culture and implements new business initiatives, senior leaders are better prepared to act as change coaches and culture ambassadors to continue the SGX growth story.

Learn More

BY THE NUMBERS
A post-program employee survey showed measurable increases in favorable engagement scores:
75%	reported their managers keep them informed about what is happening at SGX.
67%	said management shows a genuine interest in employee career aspirations.
67%	said managers are great role models of SGX behaviors.
70%	believe their job performance is evaluated fairly.

Participants Say

“[The training] provided some tools and techniques in helping the coach to engage and allow a more productive engagement with the coachee. It is particularly useful as the roleplay reinforces what was taught.”

Program Participant

Wholesale Markets & Platforms

“Using an analogy, coaching is like learning how to cook a dish: You may know the basics after the course, but mastering the process is a lifelong journey. There is always room for improvement.” 

Program Participant

Human Resources

Partner With Us

We can work with you to create a customized solution that builds coaching capacity among your leaders, leading to a stronger coaching culture across your organization.

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The post SGX Group Partners With CCL to Boost Remote Worker Engagement by Building Internal Coaching Skills & Capacity appeared first on CCL.

• PODCAST

Lead With That: What Inclusion for Remote Employees Can Teach Us About the True Value and Meaning of Community

In this episode of Lead With That, Ren and Allison discuss the leadership lessons we can take from the current societal discussions surrounding inclusion for remote employees and hybrid workers.

Recently, the ethics, productivity, and health concerns related to remote work have been more prominently discussed in the media, due in part to many employers taking steps to put an end to allowing their employees to work away from the office. These changes have been a source of dismay for many of those in the workforce who have had the flexibility to work “unplugged” since the onset of the pandemic in early 2020.

While there are many different opinions about the value of remote work, the conversation highlights, from a leadership perspective, what the true effects of remote work may be, and who returning to the office really benefits. Join our hosts as they explore the landscape of leadership in the hybrid workplace, its challenges, and how leaders can adapt their focus to the needs of those they are leading — regardless of how they view remote work.

Listen to the Podcast

In this episode, Ren and Allison discuss the current discourse surrounding the value of remote work and the complexities that are present on both sides of the conversation. While workers and researchers have both expressed the benefits they see associated with working remotely, many employers are pushing for — and in some cases demanding — a return to the office. Allison and Ren explore what we can learn from these conversations from a leadership perspective, and lead with that.

Learn More

Interview Transcript

INTRO:   Welcome back to CCL’s podcast, Lead With That, where we talk current events in pop culture to look at where leadership is happening and what’s happening with leadership. Ren: And today as we commemorate Juneteenth on this month’s podcast, we delve into a topic that resonates deeply with both the past and the future: the transformation of work in the wake of liberation and equality. Now, since the pandemic, a lot of our listeners, and myself included, have been liberated from the office. And work has been changing, and access to work has shifted the conversation to more equitable access to opportunity. And as we navigate the ever-changing landscape of work, it’s going to be imperative that we channel the spirit of Juneteenth in our efforts to create workplaces that embrace diversity and foster inclusivity. But how do I access my team, create a sense of inclusion, when no one’s there sharing physical space. I mean, the Journal tells me the office brainstorm is dead. Elon is convinced that if you work from home, you are a morally ambiguous person at best. Even Martha Stewart is telling me that America will go down the drain if people don’t return to the office. The more disconnected our teams get, the more easily we can lose sight of the team and then lose sight of the mission; and the more disconnected we feel, the lonelier we are. And then the isolation feels more profound than ever. I mean, even CCL research warns that isolation is a pressing trend that leaders have to address in 2023. Loneliness is on the rise, and it’s killing people. “So, send them back to work, duh,” some of you might be saying. I mean, you want community, it’s right through those office doors. But I think we all know it’s not so easy. And so today, with the spirit of Juneteenth guiding our conversation, we’ll look at the future of work battlegrounds, talk about some leadership practices that can shape the new work order, creating environments that are innovative, inclusive, and energizing for all. So welcome back, everyone. I’m Ren Washington, and as usual, I’m joined with Allison Barr. Allison, what’s the worst thing about working from home? Allison: The worst thing about working from home for me do you mean? Ren: Yeah. Allison: What is the worst thing about working from home for me? I like working from home, though I do have to cook for myself, and I don’t love cooking, so I can easily be swayed to the office with food. Ren: Okay. Well, we know that there’s a food truck Wednesday, I think, in our Greensboro offices, and that does seem to bring people in. Allison: Yep, yep. Otherwise, I’m okay to work from home. I’m also okay to work from the office, so I’m maybe not the best person to ask. What about you? Because you’re not near an office, so … Ren: No. Allison: What’s the worst thing about working from home? Ren: The worst thing about working from home are the distractions that I’ve replaced with kind colleague banter. Now I remember in the office, I’d be in the office, I’d have a little room and then my door would be open, and then I’d do a little bit of work, and then someone would walk down the hallway either that I wanted to talk to or that I didn’t want to talk to. But either way, people would engage me and then I would find that I was distracted. Now, I get distracted by my dog barking at squirrels and the UPS man. I get distracted by myself sometimes. I don’t have one of those cell phone lock boxes yet, but I can see the value in it. I have to put my cell phone on a couch in the other room. So, I think probably the worst thing for me is that it’s harder to manage less-acceptable distractions. Allison: So, I want to back up because, may I ask, what is so enticing about your cell phone? Ren: Oh gosh. Well, as I’ve been doing a lot of research on neuroscience, I would say it’s probably the excitement that all of the glitz and glamour promises me, as I realize that dopamine gets me excited when I think about the rewards my cell phone is getting. So, I’ve been habitualized to the rewards of my cell phone, but I’d say YouTube shorts is probably the most toxic and time-consuming thing if I let it be. Allison: Got it. Got it. Because I know you’re self-proclaimed not a social media addict, which I admire about you because I am admittedly a social media addict. I’m not ashamed of that either. But was curious what that lock lockbox would do for you. And I’m curious, too, if you find yourself to be productive working from home. Because I know you. I’m asking that sort of as a bit of a tease because I know you and I know how productive you are. So, is it keeping you for being productive? Ren: Well, I think what I’m starting to recognize, and what I think we’re probably going to be able to explore today is, is this work from home experiment actually working? And am I productive simply because I have to be? I work in part of our organization where we don’t have a physical building and I can’t rely on the structures around me to boost my performance or my productivity. And so, I’ve had to try to habitualize some new habits that will let me be productive. I think what’s an interesting question for me is, would I be more productive now if I had an office to go to every day? And, I don’t know, maybe. I think there’s something about being with other people that helps me stay on task. I’m a big fan of public accountability and I need it. So, I don’t know really what that would be. It’d be interesting to test if I came back into it. Allison: It’s interesting, isn’t it? As an extrovert, barely, who’s barely an extrovert, when we were in the office, granted I was in the office for what, 3 weeks before the pandemic hit. So, I don’t know. My onboarding to CCL was a bit unique, but anyhow, as an extrovert, I would go into the office when it was full and go say hi to everybody who was willing to chat with me before sitting down to do my work, because that is something that energizes me. So, I actually don’t know if I would be more productive with a full office. As you probably know, I live pretty close to our offices, so I tend to be up there a couple days a week just for change of scenery and there’s not many people up there unless we have clients in town or a program. And so, I still feel like I’m in a work-from-home environment because the distractions in number are about the same. They’re just different. Ren: Yeah, exactly. I think I’m aligned with you, and the more I read about this stuff, the more I think there’s a lot of science, and I alluded to this idea of this “future of work” battlegrounds, because there’s a lot of really entrenched points of view around how productive we’re being and how much work we’re actually doing. I just read something recently that said, hey, people actually aren’t working more. I mean, they’re getting exercise, they had lunch, they’re doing other things during their workday, but maybe that doesn’t actually translate to more hours worked. And when I think about that conversation, it makes me think about the tensions that we’re going to have to navigate between all that that flexibility offers us and then the downsides of, what I think some people are rightfully claiming, of a lack of community, lack of connection, and this idea of isolation. Our newest research trends are pointing to it. Well, whether or not I need it, if isolation is becoming a problem for people and for most of the population, we need access to people, so is it worth it anymore, I wonder? Allison: What is very fascinating to me is this conversation of isolation, that’s an epidemic, which is, that’s very real. There’s lots of research around that. But why are we, and I don’t mean me and you, I mean we in general, why are we insinuating that community needs to be found at work? Yes, there’s an epidemic of isolation. There’s no denying that. There are dramatic health impacts to that as well. And that doesn’t mean that going to work face-to-face as opposed to work from home or even flexible working arrangements is the solution. So, I don’t know, are we capable of feeling community at the workplace? Probably, for some, yeah. And is going to work the way to combat isolation? I’m not so sure about that. Ren: Maybe it doesn’t have to be work, but I do believe that … just think about the last group Teams meeting or Zoom meeting you were in. And just think about the beginning of the pandemic when all of us went … virtual happy hours were all the rage, and when’s the last time you did a virtual happy hour? God, just the idea of it makes me kind of like, I don’t know. Yeah, I saw the look on your face. We’re like… Allison: Nope. Ren: And I think about it because virtual happy hours aren’t just 2 people talking, one at a time, and then other people listening. And so I think, I don’t know if we have to go back to work, but I can understand some people making a claim like, hey, you spend a lot of time working and if we want to collaborate community or foster a community, then sure, just go into a shared working environment where, then you can engage with people and have access with them, and there’s your solution. You won’t feel isolated if I mandate that you’re not isolated. Allison: If you mandate that you’re not isolated, that’s interesting, because you could still feel isolated, and many people do. You absolutely could. So, it’s tricky, and I’m not trying to argue with you, but what I am trying to highlight here is the ever-changing and constantly differing opinions on this. And that’s what they are, opinions for the most part. When I knew we were talking about this and I went to the old Google to see what was happening in the news, I just want to read to you some of these. So, when I put in the Google search, “is hybrid work dying,” and then I click the news and see, so these are all very, very recent articles. And let me just tell you a couple of the headlines because they’re very contradictory. So, the first one is, is remote work dying a fast death. The second one is, the office is dying, it’s time to rethink how we work. The next one is, full-time office work is dead. The next one is, hybrid work is doomed. The next one is, business leaders say remote work is bad for employees’ wellbeing … and so on. You get the point. So, it’s clickbait, I think, these days. Again, I am not underestimating that isolation. I’m not arguing that it is, I agree with that. It is an epidemic, but I don’t know that returning to the office is going to solve that. Ren: Well, that last headline is something that I think is really interesting, this idea that remote work is not good for employee wellbeing. And it’s such an interesting refrain because I think that the early line was remote work is the biggest boon to employee wellbeing that there has been before. And maybe it was these forced boundaries that we were able to create, because we had to have separation from work in ourselves. And I guess what I’m really curious about is, how honest are those people who believe that community through connection at work, how honest are they being? Are people really telling the truth that remote is not good for your wellbeing? And they’re like, “Hey, no, come into work dude, because I care about you.” Or is it this nefarious thing where, and I’ve read some places where hybrid work is kind of this subtle play that you get people back to the office 2, 3 times a week, they kind of get mad, but then they get calm, and then you hit them with the 5 days back because it’s easier to say, “Hey, what does it matter? You’ve been coming back to work 3 days a week, what’s 2 more days?” As opposed to just jumping right into, you’re coming back to work. Full stop. And so maybe that’s my next question. Is hybrid even safe? Are those people being legit? What do you think? Allison: Well, I have 2 answers to your questions and I want to back up just a little bit to the article, the last article that piqued your interest. So that’s the tagline, right? Let me read the rest of this. Just like the first 2 sentences to you. “Business leaders say remote work is bad for employee wellbeing.” That’s what I read to you. “But workers disagree; remote workers experienced higher meaningfulness, self-actualization, happiness, and commitment than in-person workers.” So, I don’t know. Ren: Yeah, self-actualization. Managers are like, but what about my self-actualization? Yeah. Right. It’s an interesting narrative how they shift. Allison: Yeah. And now I’ve forgotten what the second half of your question was. Could you remind me? Ren: Just, is hybrid safe, do you think that it’s just a trick to get us back full-time? Allison: That’s hard to say. I mean I think there are a lot of industries probably that do see dips in production probably. But there are also industries that don’t. And so, my assumption is, at the end of the day, it’s probably going to depend upon, are we maintaining growth? Are we reducing turnover? Reasonable, right? Turnover is always going to happen, but are we maintaining or reducing turnover? Do we have retention rates? My guess is that that’s probably what the conversation is around. I know there are a lot of companies right now, a lot of our clients talk about this too, who are surveying employees trying to figure out what it is that they actually want and truly trying, like truly trying to accommodate. And so, I’m not sure what the answer is. I mean, I think there probably are some companies who posit that “we’re trying to help you decrease your isolation, come to the community that is your workplace.” And I’m going, that feels like a bit of a manipulation. Also, I know that my job is to work. I was hired to do some work. And so, at the end of the day, if my company says, “We’re coming back to the office,” I’m going to go, “Okay.” But I also sit in a pretty privileged position. I know that there are marginalized folks who feel a lot more comfortable working from home and having hybrid work. There are parents who feel like they can actually maintain a healthy life, to be able to get the things done in a day that need to be done. People who save money based on commute times, etc., etc. I know that I sit in a bit of a privileged position where that wouldn’t impact me as much for a lot of reasons. So, I’m prone to consider my colleagues and fellow people who don’t feel safe at the office, truly do not feel safe at the office. Ren: And I want to keep going on that thread because when you talk about the marginalized, those who might not feel safe, I wonder, I’m curious, is hybrid anti-feminist? Allison: You’re going to have to tell me a little bit more about what’s driving that question. Ren: Is this just another thing that hybrid, or the “come back to work,” is it just another thing that entrenches the status quo and marginalizes those who it used to marginalize? And so, I’m just curious, I’m reading a lot about that return to work is not going to work because it’s anti-feminist and women aren’t going to do that anymore. And as a woman, I’m just curious, what’s your take on that? Allison: Well, that’s a complex question. I think women who are in positions of privilege can say, “No, I’m not doing that.” And more power to them. Like I love that, I love that. And that’s… not everybody can do that. I think if we keep digging a few layers deeper, you have to consider the history of the work world and what “professionalism” is. Professionalism is coded and predominantly in North America and Europe, “professionalism,” I’m air quoting here, was and is defined by white, middle and upper class standards, and predominantly male standards. And it’s okay to just acknowledge. It’s okay to acknowledge our foundation of the work world. That’s going to be very difficult to change. So, I think there’s a trend for companies to try to invite people’s, again quoting, “whole selves” to work. And I just don’t know that that trend is still available for people who are not white, male, upper class or middle class. I think that trend is still coded in those predominant professionalism standards. And with that said, options to work from home for marginalized folks can invite that safety for them to be their whole selves. There are still laws that exist that prevent people from being their whole selves. So, they don’t have to encounter bias, they don’t have to encounter inappropriate comments, so on and so forth. So, I don’t know. At minimum, I’m a fan of flexible work for those reasons. Ren: And so then, is it too fair to say that hybrid then isn’t inherently anti-feminist? Allison: Is or is not? Ren: Is not. Allison: Hybrid is not anti-feminist? Are you asking me if hybrid work is pro-woman? Is that what you’re asking me? Ren: Sure. Allison: It can be, for certain groups, and feminism at its core is intended to have equality for everyone, not just women. So, then the answer would be no, because it’s not inclusive of intersectional perspective. Ren: Yeah. And I think I asked that question too to highlight the cultural battleground in the context of all this future of work. And you spoke to it already I think, quite eloquently then, this idea of what does professionalism look like and what is that imagery geared to? And then how are standards shifting or continuing to shift? And I’m really, really interested to see if there’s any organization or group of people who was willing to just do the back to the office, 40 hours a week. And again too, I understand, listeners, that some of you’re listening right now and you’ve not ever experienced work from home, because your job didn’t afford you the opportunity or the company was like, “Guess what? You don’t get to do that.” And so, I know we’re talking, too, in an interesting part of the conversation, and I think as we’ve alluded to before, the conversation about work is changing and it’s going to keep on shifting. And then, too, maybe the conversation about access and what a leader’s role in managing all this is really going to come to. Because the question of, “is hybrid anti-feminist,” is not just me asking you this. I know people are asking this when they’re being asked to come back to work. I mean we were already looking at some of the policies even for what you consider “smart money,” and how their hybrid policies are being kind of openly mocked by their employees. And so it’s going to be a tense and tight line to walk, and serious questions are coming your way if you’re a manager or team member who’s navigating this hybrid or future of work conversation. Allison: Yeah. It certainly will. And a reminder to our listeners that your manager is likely not the decider of these things. And so, be easy on your managers, because it’s likely not their decision if they tell you that you need to come back to work; it’s almost certainly a decision that was made much higher up in the organization that you have to communicate. And again, I do think it comes down to, are we being productive as an organization? Are we meeting our “goals”? Do we have the retention numbers that we want? And if not, I think this is a numbers game, again for those industries that can be work from home, or hybrid, or flexible. The research that you and I have talked about in previous episodes has stated that people are productive. We’re not losing productivity and companies are certainly not losing profit. So, I’m not sure what this is actually about, if that’s the truth. Ren: And then maybe the question is, what is this about? Is how do we continue to improve something that’s imperfect? And I think the trend of isolation, of loneliness, speaks to our opportunity. I mean the idea that people, let’s say there is someone out there who says, “No, I believe the idea of you coming to work is good for your wellbeing. Community is good for humanity. No one thrives alone.” Our resilience research speaks to that. And so it gets me thinking about the tactical approach that we’ve got to make and take to do this. I am glad that I don’t need community, but I know that if I did, I would not be getting it out here in Chicago at CCL. Where would I get it from? Allison: Right. Ren: And so that’s a real thing that I have to ask myself. And I know people are experiencing that who have bigger interpersonal needs than I do. Allison: And again, it begs the question, what is community? What are we talking about here, and why are we, again, not you and I, but generally, why are we pushing that people need to find community at work? That seems strange to me. I’ve never known community, for me, to be my work. Do I really enjoy the people I work with? Absolutely. Would I hang out with you any day of the week, Ren? Yes. But when I think about community, if you were like, what are you doing for your community today? That’s where I live. It’s the groups and the things that I do outside of work that are my “community,” my family, and so on. So, I feel strange talking about community being found at the workplace. Ren: I think I’m tracking with you. You said that earlier, and I didn’t think I fully internalized it, but now I think I’m tracking with what you’re saying. It’s like, hey, maybe before the solution is bosses, let me create community at the office, what could I do to facilitate your desire of connecting with community outside of work hours? But wouldn’t that be an interesting idea if an organization said, “Hey, we know you need people, here’s a link to all of these local organizations where you live, where you could meet people that you live near”? Allison: Yeah. And that’s the thing, I mean, work from home and flexible working, and this was the case for me too, it still is, affords me to be part of a community more, because I’m not commuting, right? I can just be at home if my neighbors need something, which I could tell you some hilarious stories about just some things that happened with my neighbors during the pandemic, getting creative around supporting each other. It afforded me the ability to build deeper connections in my community and I’m grateful for that. So, if my workplace really is truly committed and really wants me to not feel isolated, then my argument would be that they would continue with flexible work arrangements. Again, I don’t have biological children, but my family members do, and a lot of my friends do. And it gives them the opportunity, [for example, for] Roger, to go to his daughter’s graduation that was in the middle of the day on a Wednesday. I don’t know why, who puts a graduation in the middle of the day on Wednesday? That’s not the point. But it affords parents, for one, to be able to do these things with their children. It affords people in the queer community to not have to feel isolated at work. So, I don’t know. Ren: I think that’s maybe the biggest revelation that I’m having right now and grateful for you. I know that I can be really, sort of in my mindset of, “if it ain’t broke, let me operate in it.” I don’t know. And I forget that, because I don’t really have a lot of interpersonal needs, but such an interesting idea as we start to think about a tactical approach for someone who leads people who are feeling isolated, what can you do to help them feel connected to where they live and breathe every day? And that, I think, is such an interesting a-ha for me is, if companies are really invested in wellbeing, and they have an employee like me who’s in the “Chicago office,” who maybe has 2 other people that attach to the organization but don’t live and work here, help me feel connected to people by finding places where I live to stay connected. And then that naturally raises the challenge. And I think, as we start to shift our attention of what can someone do, is on managers and then the leadership structure, you are going to have to work harder. I think that is going to be the truth. And a manager’s like, “I already work hard enough, what do you mean? I got to do all of this stuff?” And it’s like these are the things that you’re going to need to do a little bit more to help people feel more invested, which is to know your people, to help them find that community and then to do that groundwork for them sometimes. Allison: Yeah. And I’m sort of noodling on what you’re saying here, is it a manager’s responsibility to make sure that someone feels less isolated? That’s 1. And 2, how do we know that our teams are feeling isolated? How do we know that? So, there’s the research that says isolation is an epidemic now, period. But that’s probably inclusive of work, but a lot of other things. Work is not the only thing. So, I bring this up again just because that research is not stating that isolation at work is a problem. It’s saying isolation is. And so, a manager who cares about me feeling isolated, that’s a really lovely thing, and I don’t know that it’s his job to make sure that I don’t feel isolated, generally speaking. Ren: I would say it’s probably not a manager’s job alone, not their responsibility alone to have that conversation or to be honest about it. But I think the best people managers know their people. And so you ask, how do I know people? I might ask, “Hey, how are you feeling? I read this weird article about isolation being this pandemic. Are you feeling isolated? Are you feeling lonely? And, can I do something for you in the context of work to help alleviate that?” And if I can’t, then maybe I can start to say, “Oh cool, Allison, tell me about those organizations that you want to be attached to in your home or in your community so you can feel connected.” Allison: Yeah. Got it. So yeah, let’s play this out then. Let’s say you and I have the same title. Let’s say that all of us LSPs are together and Jere and Chris are saying, “Are y’all feeling isolated?” And more than half of the people say,”yes.” What would you want? The thing is, this is hard for me to role play a little bit because I don’t feel isolated. So, I’d be curious to see how that would play out for managers and companies, which is I think what we’re getting to, what managers can do, what leaders can do. And you highlighted probably the most important thing, which is simply asking, how are you? Developing those relationships. I mean, we see that play out in all of our programs. I’m just coming off a program from last week where we ask them on day one, how are you feeling, when they come in and they say, “Anxious, a little unsure, we don’t know what we’re doing, what’s happening, we don’t know each other.” And then on day 5, this group is so tightly bonded, they live all over the globe, and they want to stay together. They want to be together. And they’re so inspired by one another, having been together. So, how can we take our own advice at CCL and play that out? Ren: I mean, that, the idea would be to bottle that experience and then just ship it to all of your people that you work with and be like, every time you’re feeling lonely, take a hit of this. And then you’ll be like, “Oh, sweet. I feel that connection that I forged over 4 intense days of being deeply connected with people through work, reflection, conversation, free time.” And so, I think that speaks to the very essence of why there is that lingering tension in the back of all of our minds of the benefit of that human connection. And then when I go back to … the benefit of the human connection is, even a man like me who is an island, and don’t tell me otherwise, I know that maybe the best kind of management or conversation that I can have in that context is going to be someone asking me… a manager who realizes that their job is their people. Now, you need an organization that supports that kind of thought. But that’s what I meant earlier by a manager who has to work more. It’s… how can organizations support that 4-day intense connection experience and then bottle some of it and then keep us feeling tethered together to mission and team. Yes, that is. I don’t know. I don’t know. I wish I did. Allison: I think some of the research that CCL found, and that certainly has trickled into other articles that you’ll probably find out there, are what you just said and then some, creating opportunities to have meaning in your work. So, managers can help connect their teams to a shared sense of understanding. And some of the research also found that even celebrating, just celebrating people’s accomplishments… because to your point, Ren, we would get into conversation in the office just by happenstance. “What are you up to? What doing?” And not that there would be some big celebration, but at least there would be that acknowledgement of work, and acknowledgement of work is a way that managers can create opportunities for meaning. Another point that you’ve already alluded to is finding times to check in. And, this is a big one. Do you remember when we used to call people instead of being on Zoom, getting on a phone call, instead of being over Zoom and taking a walk, being outside. If you and I have a call that we don’t need to see each other’s screens, get on the phone and take a walk. So having the opportunity to step away from a screen can be very, very impactful. And the last thing is offering mental health assistance. So that one was of interest to me, because what does that mean for a manager? And simply put, what it means is just understanding what resources your company has — and that’s it. It doesn’t necessarily mean you need to tell me your deep dark secrets, unless you want to, of course. But being able to tell people, these are the resources that we have, here’s where you find them, this is anonymous. Because some people still have a lot of shame around admitting that they need help. So, creating a bit of a normalcy around talking about those things. Ren: Yeah. The continued focus, I think… there’s this phrase and this thought, some of the hardest words to say in English are, “I need help.” And so, I think, as a manager too, or someone who works with people, is that things change. I’m allowed to be cool with it, and then not be cool with it. I could have been really enjoying remote, and then now I don’t. And I’m not saying that’s for me personally and not like I have a choice. So, whether or not I do or not, I’m remote. That is my existence right now. But I think as we navigate this, and we work with people, it’s reminding us of that people connection. And I guess what we can do is try to build the spaces between us, where if I’m in pain or not feeling my best, that I just have an environment or someone to say, “Hey, this isn’t currently working for me as well as it used to.” And I don’t know if it’s a trend forever, but it’s a trend for now. And so, I again think around the leader who’s listening to us, and you may not be the one calling the shots, but you’ve got people who are looking to you, or even a team member and you’re not calling the shots, you have people looking to you, you can model some of this behavior by making sure that if people are feeling lonely and isolated, that if you’re available to them, how can you stop? And I think for me it’s still like you said, why do we have to think about it at work? Can’t my job be to help you feel fulfilled everywhere? Maybe. Allison: I mean, that’s a big job. That is a big job. And I appreciate that you think that way, too, because you are embodying the essence of, I think, what can be missing from leadership, which is understanding that your people are human beings, the people that you lead are also human beings. I think sometimes we go into autopilot and forget that, and you and I have talked about this before and I will reiterate it, that the skill of listening from a place of understanding versus the skill of listening to prepare for what I’m going to say next, those are 2 different things. But listening to understand will start to create that foundation of trust with you and your teams. I think about people who are in marginalized groups, and why and where they may not feel comfortable speaking up. If I say, “How are you?”, they might say, “fine.” Because they’re not comfortable telling me that yet. So it’s really important if you do want to have an inclusive style of leadership to listen from a place of understanding, ask the questions. And if people aren’t responding to you right away, that’s okay. These things take time. And the second part is transparency. And what I mean by transparency is not necessarily dumping, rather saying, “this isn’t my decision right now, Ren, but let me see what I can find out for you” or “this is the information that I have right now and I apologize, I don’t have the rest of the story, I don’t have the rest of the information, but let me see what I can find for you.” I think sometimes people can feel shut down at work when they’re told to do something with no context. “Hey, we’re returning to the office, period.” And that’s the end of the conversation. That’s it. You and I, I think, are similar in ways even though you are remote. If somebody told me I have to return the office, I’d go, okay. I’d say okay, but I understand that not everybody handles change that way. And people need to know the why. People need to know that. So, communicating as best you can, the why’s around decision making, and if you don’t know it, admitting that you don’t know it, then that’s okay. Ren: And for those of us receiving it, I guess, if anything, I think the pandemic and this post-work and this endemic that we’re in, it gives us all a chance to say, what are we here to do and what do we care about? And what can we do in the confines of that? And some people are going to have to shrug and say, okay, they’re coming back to work and it will hurt, and it will steal away from them things that they had been able to foster. And for some it will be a boon. And I think the toughest part of that will be continuing, for us, to feel included, valued, and seen even in the spaces where we feel unseen and devalued. And again, I think a leader (and reminder to all of you that you don’t have to have to have a title of leader to be a leader, we all play that role in the social process of leadership) as helping all of us feel supported. And maybe you know someone, and you work with them regularly, and you’ve got eyes on them and other people don’t, and they’ll tell you the truth, and they’ll tell you not, “I’m just doing fine,” but “I’m doing other.” And maybe that’s the thing that we can start to do is share more of the burden that we all experience. Allison: Yeah. Gosh, I feel like you just sort of mic dropped right there. Yeah. Ren: Well, you’re welcome. Allison: I don’t know if I could say it any better myself, sharing the burden, looking at leadership from that perspective in that anyone can be a leader and to share, not necessarily just the burden, but share the work, share the obstacles, do it together. You mentioned earlier too, Ren, that people don’t thrive solo. So, whether you are remote, or hybrid, or in the office, we do know that people thrive together, in whatever way that looks like at your workplace. So, Ren thanks for the conversation. Any lingering thoughts? Ren: I’d just say, the thing that you said earlier is still sticking with me, and if I could encourage all of us to try this, is reach out to someone and see if they’re feeling isolated or alone, and then maybe help them find connection where they live and not necessarily through the office. I don’t know why that’s such an a-ha for me, Alison, but I think maybe it’s because I so much and so frequently compartmentalize my work and my personal and they don’t intersect. But wouldn’t it be such a virtuous cycle if someone cared about me enough at work to help me have a better personal life? And then, who would imagine, a better personal life makes me more effective at work? Shocker. So, I don’t know, just a restating for that. I was like, if I could challenge any of you today, I’d say reach out to someone, see how they’re feeling, and if someone’s feeling lonely or isolated, partner with them to feel connected in their community where they live before you say, “Well, let’s get a virtual happy hour going.” I mean, unless that’s your bag. But yeah, so that one for me, that’s really sticking with me. Thanks though. Allison: Yeah, I love that. And I think we can probably leave it at that. I mean, we spent the past 10 minutes or so talking about steps that managers can take. And I like the idea of leaving it at that because I admit I’ve never heard anyone say what you just said. And so, I think that’s a unique leadership tool that any leader can walk away with, which is helping people find community where they live. Regardless of where you live, you can still support people in finding community. So, thanks for the conversation, Ren, as always, and to our listeners, thanks for tuning in. You can find all of our show notes and additional podcasts on ccl.org. And a special thanks to Emily and Ryan who are always working diligently behind the scenes to make our podcasts happen, and find us on LinkedIn, tell us what you want us to talk about and we’ll look forward to tuning in next time. Thanks Ren. Ren: Thanks Allison. Thanks everybody. Find Allison on TikTok. You thought I forgot. Allison: Thanks, Ren.

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The post Lead With That: What Inclusion for Remote Employees Can Teach Us About the True Value and Meaning of Community appeared first on CCL.

Trust is a core human need we all share, and relationships built on trust are what people want and need most at work. But learning how to build trust as a leader — and sustain those relationships long term — is difficult, especially in today’s hybrid work environment. According to recent surveys, less than half of leaders report that they definitely trust their direct manager to do what’s right, and less than a third say they trust senior leaders at their organization.

Research shows that employees perform best when they trust their leaders. Effective leadership requires knowing how to build trust as a leader — and keep it — with individuals, on teams, and across organizations. But building trust isn’t a one-off initiative. It requires a continued, collaborative effort from all team members to strengthen relationships by modeling compassion and prioritizing psychological safety. When employees trust their leaders, they step forward and do their best work together and more effectively.

What You’ll Learn

In this webinar, you’ll learn:

• What recent research suggests about building trust, especially with senior leaders and remote workers
• Key behaviors for how to build trust as a leader and make it last long-term
• Ways individuals and organizations can cultivate a culture of trust and compassion

The post How to Build Trust as a Leader (and Keep It) appeared first on CCL.

In today’s hybrid world of work, where teams and organizations are spread out physically and often geographically, conversations are truly the foundation of culture. Conversations are how managers build trust, resilience, psychological safety, engagement, inclusion, and agility. That’s why better conversations are the foundation of a coaching culture.

At CCL, our research has found that leaders who practice 4 core conversational skills — listening to understand, asking powerful questions, challenging and supporting, and establishing accountability — are rated as more effective by their superiors than those who don’t.

Watch this webinar for specific stories and practical examples of how these 4 behaviors can serve as a foundation for scaling an enterprise-wide change towards a more effective coaching culture.

What You’ll Learn

In this webinar, you’ll learn how to:

• Break down silos and communication barriers by addressing issues with openness and respect
• Develop a common language for cultivating and accelerating coaching skills at every level
• Establish a framework for using coaching as an organization-wide culture change initiative
• Foster a coaching culture through a foundation of better conversations

The post A Coaching Culture’s Foundation Is Better Conversations appeared first on CCL.

And though virtual collaboration isn’t the same as sitting together in person around a conference table, it has its benefits, and it isn’t going away anytime soon. In fact, it’s becoming increasingly clear that compelling and effective virtual communications will remain paramount going forward — for individual leaders, teams, and overall organizational success.

“Today’s leaders at all levels must be able communicate effectively, without a continuous physical presence,” notes Jerry Abrams, who serves on our Partnerships & Innovation team and who developed much of the content in our leading remote & virtual teams training.

Your audience’s perceptions of your virtual persona matter, he notes, because your virtual persona reflects your priorities and values, and shapes your personal leadership brand, which can help you build relationships, influence others, achieve goals, and sustain partnerships. These are all especially important when you’re geographically separated from your colleagues, leading a hybrid workforce or a fully remote team.

“The way your ideas land on others is shaped by the medium, and no one who strives to be a great virtual communicator can afford to ignore their virtual persona.”

“As a telecommuter myself for almost a decade, my biggest fear — and I suspect I’m not alone — is that I’m losing my audience, that I am not engaging them,” says Abrams. “And let’s face it; in the virtual world, if you lose your audience, you’re done.”

Strengthen Your Virtual Persona With Our Virtual Communications Tips

Just as leaders can work to improve their communication in general, there are a number of simple improvements you can start making today that will have a big impact on your virtual persona.

The result? More effective virtual communications leads to an increased feeling of connectedness between you and your audience.

3 Steps to Ensure Your Virtual Communications Drive Engagement

Our virtual communications tips can help you drive greater engagement with your audiences. Just focus on these 3 steps to improve your virtual persona, in this order:

1. Create immediacy;
2. Increase receptivity; and
3. Build composure.

(Note: Many of the following virtual communication tips presume that you’re able to stand and move freely within a reasonable area in front of your computer, and that it has a functioning camera, microphone, and speaker.) 

1. First, create immediacy with your virtual communications.

Immediacy refers to the presence, attraction, and warmth your audience perceives when you’re engaging in virtual communication. In other words, what is the impact you have on your audience? The following actions will improve your immediacy by demonstrating an intense involvement in the conversation:

• Convey enthusiasm about the topic you’re presenting. If you’re bored, your audience will pick up on that.
• Vary the pitch, volume, and pace of your speaking.
• Be “animated” when presenting to and interacting with the audience.
• Speak with your hands too, using gestures to reinforce your words.
• Be aware of and use facial expressions to reinforce your points.
• Increase your use of present tense verbs and inclusive pronouns like “we” and “our.”
• Look directly at the camera for several seconds at a time when speaking.
• Lean in toward the camera to reduce the sense of “distance” between you and the audience.

2. Increase receptivity to your virtual communications.

Receptivity refers to a mutual sense of interest, openness, and trust. Convey a willingness to really listen to your colleagues in the virtual space, as well as an openness to their ideas and suggestions, through the following actions:

• Smile when interacting with a member of the audience.
• Look directly into the camera when listening and responding to a member of the audience to create the impression that you are “facing” them.
• When appropriate, don’t be afraid to laugh along with others, as it signals receptivity.
• Use nods appropriately to acknowledge others’ feelings and thoughts.
• Be honest and authentic.
• Ensure you’re using active listening techniques and affirming the experiences, problems, and stories of others.

The benefits of a focus on receptivity? You’ll improve your team’s morale while also strengthening your own leadership image, which will ultimately lead to greater success at landing your message and achieving your goals.

3. Build composure for more effective virtual communications.

If you feel calm and relaxed when engaging in virtual communication, your audience will sense your composure. Alternatively, when you’re visibly paying attention to yourself, your appearance, or your own thoughts, your audience will sense your distraction and feel a lack of confidence in your authority. The following behaviors convey to your audience that you feel relaxed, confident, and composed:

• Be aware of your body language. Avoid holding your posture rigid, frequently shifting, or appearing tense.
• Refrain from “nervous” actions like playing with your hair or fidgeting.
• Maximize your speaking fluency by eliminating repetitions and pause-fillers like um, er, ah, etc.
• Speak at an audible, but not extremely loud, level so that your volume doesn’t detract from your message.
• Be appropriately “animated” by tailoring your nonverbal behaviors to reinforce your message and content.

It helps to think of building composure as simply increasing your “stage presence” through rehearsal. After all, there are several parallels between the performing arts and virtual communications — one of them being, the more you practice, the better you’ll get and the more comfortable you’ll feel.

“Several coaches put it this way — amateurs practice until they get it right. Professionals practice until they can’t get it wrong!” adds Abrams.

So if you really want to take your virtual communications to the next level, try recording yourself and then honestly evaluating your performance. Whatever you notice most, start working there to improve.

One additional virtual communication tip to help you build your composure: Before performers go on stage, they’ll often take a moment to close their eyes and visualize an experience that brought forward an emotion they want to project. This trick works in a virtual setting, as well.

“For example, when trying to convey warmth or enthusiasm, take a moment before you start your session to recall a topic, event, or time when you really had a strong feeling of warmth toward others — or felt a strong feeling of enthusiasm for something you were saying or doing,” says Abrams.

“As you visualize the experience, pay attention to all the various feelings and sensations you can recall, including sights, sounds, and smells. These memories help you ground your virtual persona in real experience and add authenticity to your virtual communications.”

That authenticity is key, by the way. We’ve found that creating authentic connections is one of the 3 keys to unlocking the benefits of online learning for leadership development. In our experience, that’s what helps facilitators “reach through the screen” and truly engage participants actively in our virtual leadership programs.

Upskill Virtual Communication Skills for Yourself & Your Team

Start by Assessing Your Own Virtual Communication Effectiveness With Our Quiz

As a leader, you’re responsible not only for your own performance, but also for that of your people — many of whom may also face struggles with virtual communication effectiveness.

As you manage remote or hybrid teams, work to follow best practices for managing virtual teams and meetings and and consider how various online leadership development solutions could benefit your team’s work.

Once you’ve tried our virtual communications tips to strengthen your virtual persona, you may want to get some feedback on how you’re doing, and also take time to reflect yourself.

Use our free Virtual Communication Effectiveness Quiz to assess the effectiveness of your virtual persona’s performance, and continue to develop by following the virtual communication tips and recommended next steps provided.

You may also want to use our easy email template to send a version of this quiz to your colleagues to get their candid feedback on the effectiveness of your virtual communications, too.

Ready to Take the Next Step?

In today’s new world of work, effective virtual communication for leaders is essential. Partner with us to craft a customized learning journey for your team using our research-based modules. Available leadership topics include Authenticity, Communication & Leadership, Emotional Intelligence, Listening to Understand, Psychological Safety & Trust, Self-Awareness, Virtual & Remote Team Leadership, and more.

The post How to Improve Your Virtual Communication: Tips for Leaders appeared first on CCL.

For many of these already-remote employees, the global COVID pandemic was an equalizer: Everybody was calling in from somewhere, and so the meeting experience suddenly felt more inclusive.

With unprecedented levels of virtual team collaboration, more flexible work hours, and less time spent commuting, it’s no wonder that, as has been widely reported, global productivity increased dramatically during the pandemic … although these gains undoubtedly came at a high cost for some individuals and organizations.

Now, as we move into a post-pandemic “new normal,” leaders are facing the new reality of leading a hybrid workforce. While there’s no one-size-fits-all model for a hybrid workforce or team, the term usually refers to a setting where some employees work remotely, some work on-site, and others work a combination of both.

Every business or organization has its own timetable for when, how, or whether to return to in-person work. And on a broader scale, many organizations are eager for a return to normal, yet want to maintain productivity gains and stem the tide of widespread burnout.

Transitioning to the New Normal of the Hybrid Workforce

While the shift to virtual work may have been precipitated by the emergency work-from-home measures in 2020, plans for the new hybrid workforce model are becoming less reactionary and more deliberate now.

The details aren’t clear yet, but one thing is certain: The post-pandemic world of work is definitely going to look different.

According to a recent study from Lattice, nearly 1 in 4 companies say they expect to maintain a 90–100% remote workforce in 2023. The study also indicates that the hybrid workforce is succeeding, as companies with a 90% remote workforce reported being just as happy with manager-employee facetime as those with a 10% remote workforce.

However, this new way of working can be challenging — especially at first.

Leaders must balance differing employee preferences with a desire for continued productivity and collaboration. Some team members may be clamoring to get back to the office, but many others want to continue to work from home.

In fact, the majority of employees say they want flexible and remote work options to remain — a 2021 survey even found that 64% would prefer a permanent work-from-home situation over a $30K pay raise.

That’s why hybrid work policies and how effectively managers can lead hybrid and virtual teams will be key for attracting and retaining talent in many industries going forward.

How to Approach Leading in a Hybrid Work Environment

5 Tips for Managers

How will this shift toward a more hybrid workplace model affect leaders and leadership?

Leading a hybrid team requires adaptability to change and an openness to experimentation. A recent survey found that the leadership skills most needed in 2023 are engaging and developing talent, leading and supporting change initiatives, establishing goals and priorities, and creating a sense of inclusion and belonging.

In this new and changing environment, we believe that leaders will be most successful when they incorporate the following 5 steps into their strategy.

1. Acknowledge what’s new and different about the leadership in the hybrid work environment.

Leaders should start by acknowledging what’s changed and reassuring people that whether they’re working in person, remotely, or a combination of those, their choice is not career-limiting, and their contributions are valued. They must also set the stage for effective team collaboration in the hybrid work context.

Culture matters now more than ever. In the study mentioned above, the primary challenge for remote and hybrid workforces wasn’t productivity — it was employee engagement and organizational culture.

So leaders should work to create a psychologically safe work environment where people can be open about their uncertainties and frustrations and share reservations and concerns with each other.

And organizations should ensure team members have the skills they need to hold candid conversations with one another, no matter where they are.  It requires truth and courage to develop a coaching culture at your organization, but this will help foster more innovative solutions, boost morale, and improve productivity. (It’s also essential for building a strong organizational culture when some at your organization are remote.)

2. Foster inclusion and shared understand among hybrid team members.

Work to maintain or establish inclusive leadership practices for things like team huddles or group calls. In 2020, at the start of the pandemic when everyone was working from home, many experienced firsthand the challenges of contributing in virtual meetings — something already-remote workers knew all too well.

In today’s hybrid work environment, remember those lessons learned to ensure meetings remain inclusive. Without intentionality and clearly defined processes, it could be easy for those returning to work in-person to fall back into old habits, unintentionally excluding or overlooking colleagues who are working off-site.

Also take time to help your newly hybrid workforce to develop an identity by crafting a set of shared team norms and expectations. Everyone should understand the team’s purpose and goals, work processes, meeting frequency, and how decisions will be made. Consider the following questions:

• If individuals plan to work part-time remote and part-time in person, which days will they come to the office?
• How can team meetings accommodate the needs and leverage the contributions of both in-person and remote participants effectively?
• How will communication tools and technology platforms be used to support the team’s goals and outputs?

Working through these questions allows leaders and employers to foster inclusion and connectedness among members of their hybrid workforce. And agreeing on the use of technology tools and platforms can help remote individuals feel less detached and ensure everyone’s needs are being met. (That’s one of our recommended best practices for managing virtual teams and meetings, but it really applies in a hybrid workforce situation as well.) Leaders of highly effective teams enable full participation of all their members, no matter where they are.

3. Cultivate a mindset of learning agility and focus on wellbeing.

Here’s the reality of leadership in a hybrid work environment: Plans will change. Things will shift.

That’s why learning agility, or the ability to adapt and thrive in new situations, is crucial to your organization’s success with hybrid work. Leaders should schedule time every couple of weeks to talk with their team members about what’s working and what isn’t. In addition, they should connect with other leaders of hybrid teams throughout your organization to discuss successes and challenges.

In this uncharted territory, resilience levels are more important than ever, as burnout continues to be a problem. Leadership in a hybrid work environment requires setting an example of prioritizing mental and physical health and wellbeing. Whenever possible:

• Nurture your personal and professional relationships;
• Prioritize regular exercise and sleep each night;
• Make time for mindfulness; and
• Respect downtime and avoid contacting employees during their off hours.

Read more about why resilient leadership is important and 8 ways to be more resilient.

4. Pay close attention to direction, alignment, and commitment (DAC).

At CCL, we know that leadership is a social process. When it’s working well, individuals collaborate to achieve results they never would have achieved working alone. The DAC model for leadership can help you gauge the success of your new hybrid workforce model, too:

• When you look around, do you see strong direction? In other words, are team members in agreement on the group’s overall goals and strategies?
• Ask yourself whether your group is aligned — whether members with different tasks and roles are coordinating their work.
• Finally, is there commitment, or mutual responsibility for the group? When teams have strong commitment, they feel responsible for the success and wellbeing of the group and business. There’s a high level of trust and psychological safety.

Compare current levels of DAC among your hybrid workforce to pre-pandemic times. (You can use our free tool to assess DAC on your team.) Organizations and businesses that switch into hybrid work mode and see DAC levels hold steady or improve should take it as a sign that things are going well. On the other hand, if DAC has decreased, recognize that your group’s shared interactions aren’t what they should be.

Remember that DAC is ever-evolving, similar to your hybrid model. As you discover what works best for your organization, expect to encounter bumps along the way. The most important thing leaders can do is maintain perspective by embracing change and seeing challenges as learning opportunities.

5. Focus on boundary spanning — within hybrid teams and across the organization’s entire hybrid workforce.

On a typical day at work, leaders must collaborate across boundaries throughout their organizations. They collaborate with peers in different departments and hierarchical levels; they work with external stakeholders; they unite diverse groups. They also traverse geographic boundaries by managing remote employees — one of the most important focus areas when some team members are working on-site and others are working remotely.

In establishing what a hybrid workforce will look like for your organization, think consciously about your individual team’s network within the organization. Ask yourself:

• How is my team connected with other teams off-site?
• How do my team members and I best interact with those teams?
• How is my team currently spanning boundaries?
• How can we foster interaction, better conversations, and effective collaboration between departments in a hybrid work environment?

While a more hybrid team may present new challenges to collaborate and navigate across boundaries, the solutions to today’s most pressing business challenges are often found at the intersection of multiple boundaries.

When members of your hybrid workforce see leaders recalibrate, adapt, and embrace the future with an agile and collaborative mindset, they’ll likely do the same.

Ready to Take the Next Step?

Share these best practices for approaching leadership in a hybrid work environment with others at your organization, and be sure your people are prepared to lead successfully in today’s hybrid workplace context.

Frequently Asked Questions About Leadership in a Hybrid Work Environment

More questions? Our experts are here to help. Let’s have a conversation!

The post How to Approach Leadership in a Hybrid Work Environment appeared first on CCL.

Since the pandemic, a massive evolution of work and workplaces has occurred. From most people working in physical offices pre-pandemic (Work 1.0), to most people working virtually during the pandemic (Work 2.0) — to now, with a focus on finding the “right” balance of in-person and remote in a new hybrid world (Work 3.0).

Not only are organizations and leaders struggling to keep up with the business and digital transformations that the Work 3.0 era requires, but the inability to keep up with people’s changing expectations has manifested in global trends like the “Great Resignation” and “Quiet Quitting” movements sweeping the world.

A major shift is fundamentally changing when, where, and how work occurs — and there’s no turning back now.

Leadership Success in Work 3.0

8 Keys for Leading in the Work 3.0 Era

Our Asia-Pacific (APAC) WORK 3.0 study identifies what leaders must know about the hybrid world. It separates myths from reality; illustrates how leaders must frame the “tensions” and polarities in the new work environment; and explains how they must transform themselves and their organizations for success in the new hybrid — or “Work 3.0” — era.

1. Employees want more from work.

Recent global disruption has caused stakeholders to expect more from corporations. Employees want more meaningful work, higher flexibility, and a better quality of life.

2. Hybrid, or Work 3.0, has emerged as the preferred model.

After being fully remote through the pandemic, most organizations are now testing to see what combination of on-site and remote works best for them. They’re working to balance flexibility for employees on the one hand, and productivity and efficiency on the other hand.

3. Organization context dictates viability and version of hybrid model.

Different versions of hybrid work for different organizations. Organization culture, type of work, leader level, leader age/generation, and national culture are some of the variables that dictate its viability.

4. Success in Work 3.0 centers on people and culture.

While technology is often celebrated as the biggest enabler of hybrid working, the success of the hybrid model actually hinges on people, teams, and organizational culture.

5. Leaders’ success depends on their mindsets and attributes.

Leaders must be dynamic and agile as they align their capabilities with Work 3.0 — and mindset shifts must precede skillset changes. These shifts mostly center on trust, communication, and growth.

6. Some leaders do much better than others.

Leaders’ comfort and success with Work 3.0 exists on a broad spectrum, with those who thrive in a hybrid world and champion flexibility and collaboration on one end, and those who are struggling to find their feet on the other end.

7. Team success in Work 3.0 hinges on 4 key elements.

For teams to deliver on business needs in a hybrid work environment, they must have core agreements about how people work together, collective mindset or team culture, cohesion or intra-team relationships, and connections across teams.

8. Leaders must also play 5 roles to make Work 3.0 a success.

Leaders must lean on their Work 3.0 mindsets and attributes to navigate the tensions inherent in hybrid work. In doing so, leaders must embrace 5 key roles that will dictate whether these tensions act as “springs” or “mines.”

Work 3.0 Requires a Culture Shift

Ultimately, leaders must work toward curating a human-centric culture that puts people at the center of their hybrid work strategy. Excelling in a hybrid work environment requires leaders to build cohesion among colleagues working together from disparate locations, fending off burnout, being intentional about inclusion, and strengthening shared culture.

Based on inputs from 2,200 leaders across 13 countries, our study on Work 3.0 represents more than 8 months of research led by our APAC research team, in partnership with 15 organizations in the region. With this study, we aim to help leaders examine the current status of their collective leadership and look at how they can amplify the longer-term positive impact of Work 3.0 on their organizations, communities, and the societies they serve.

Download the WORK 3.0 Research Report

The post WORK 3.0: Reimagining Leadership in a Hybrid World appeared first on CCL.