How to Build Relationships Within the Team in a Hybrid Workplace

Our mood, stress levels, productivity, and general well-being can all be enhanced by promoting positive relationships at work. Working together in a hybrid office and developing meaningful relationships, however, can be difficult.

Whether you work in-person or virtually, you can use these tips to develop deep team relationships.

All staff and faculty

Exercise endurance. Every relationship requires patience and constancy. The pressure or anxiety may hamper our ability to build deep, lasting relationships we may feel to connect with people right away. Recall that it is acceptable to look for communities or groups outside of the university if you are struggling to build relationships at work.

Take responsibility. We will never get along with everyone we work with or meet. But it’s critical to own up to the attitude, transparency, and grace you extend to your coworkers as well as to yourself. Own up to your unpleasant or biased feelings if you find yourself thinking only about a coworker. Determining whether these emotions call for action—such as having a crucial, if possibly challenging, talk with them—is also a smart idea.

Acknowledge achievements. Communicating gratitude, empathy, and appreciation to our coworkers can improve our team dynamics and how we all present ourselves at work. On the other hand, when we’re stressed or busy, we sometimes forget to give acknowledgment and expressions of gratitude. Going forward, make it a point to acknowledge and appreciate other people’s accomplishments both in public and privately.

Supervisors

Describe the channels of communication. It’s critical to specify the channels of communication your team will use for work-related tasks if any of your employees work remotely or in a hybrid environment. You might depend on Teams, Outlook, the calendar app, or other channels, for example. By standardizing your communication methods, you can make sure that both your on-site and remote staff feel included, informed, and capable of working together. If staff members lack confidence using certain platforms, it may also be helpful to assist them in getting training or support.

Establish fair and impartial conditions for all. Office cultures can be challenging to navigate, particularly in remote or hybrid work settings. But it’s crucial to make sure that every one of your staff members receives the same treatment and is in agreement. Building a culture of trust requires a strong sense of fairness, particularly when face-to-face meetings are infrequent. Here are a few strategies you can employ:

• Recognize the value and productivity of both in-person and remote work. Should they not already be in place, you might need to develop productivity metrics.
• Recognize each employee’s growth and efforts with specificity and promptness.
• Communicate to your team what is expected of them in terms of work schedules, workloads, and other aspects.
• Encourage employees to communicate openly and continuously with you and other employees.
• Avoid letting rules vary from employee to employee. Consider this: “If I can be flexible with this employee, can I do the same with all of my other employees?” Before making a choice, it’s a good idea to get input from HR, leadership, and peers in your level of experience.

Pay attention to the policies of the university. It’s crucial to get advice from HR before giving an employee flexible scheduling or making changes to their planned schedule. By doing this, you’ll be able to adhere to university regulations, stay away from sudden adjustments, and refrain from overpromising.

Determine whether burnout is possible. It is detrimental to the development of positive workplace dynamics when someone is burned out. If you don’t already have a system in place, find and create ways to monitor how work is distributed among staff members who perform comparable tasks. This can assist you in making sure that each employee’s workload is balanced. It’s also critical to keep in mind that while complete workload parity might not be achievable, we can strive to minimize significant disparities in our operations. You should ask your staff two easy questions: How will I know when you’re stressed? When you’re stressed, what do you need from me?

Inform them that while you might not always be able to meet their needs, it’s still critical to learn how to support them more effectively.

On-campus employees

In meetings, practice inclusivity. Steer clear of side chats and speaking at the same time as a colleague if you’re in a hybrid meeting. It could become more challenging as a result to hear what other callers are saying. Furthermore, it can be beneficial to periodically confirm that distant participants are hearing the conversation. Attendees in person should be careful to speak up and communicate clearly on Zoom or Teams. If the materials are only available in person, explain them or show what you are seeing using built-in features.

Add workers who work remotely. Be willing to involve remote workers in discussions, brainstorming sessions, and projects. Ask your remote colleagues if they would like to join you if you’re getting together with other colleagues in person. If they say yes, come up with a novel way to make them feel more involved.

Remote employees

Be consistent in your communication. You run the risk of missing out on office conversations when working remotely. It’s crucial to keep your team informed and to communicate with them regularly via authorized channels. By keeping your calendar and Team status updated, you can make sure that your team is aware of when and how to contact you.

Do not forget to socialize. Office dynamics frequently provide opportunities for casual interactions, such as group lunches, idle chats, and other get-togethers. One of the dangers of working remotely is that relationships could become transactional since there isn’t as much chance for cohesion as there is for in-person staff. When working remotely, make an effort to actively look for opportunities for virtual get-togethers or non-work-related walk-and-talk breaks with coworkers.

Look for chances to work together. Especially if we work alone on projects a lot, working remotely can occasionally make us feel alone in the team. If any of this describes you, make an effort to actively look for chances to work together with people in your department or unit. This could entail working in groups on projects or asking for assistance from others when brainstorming.