Making the potential of virtual collaboration real

The pandemic showed us the potential of remote work but also that we lose interpersonal connection over time. Many companies are therefore looking to establish a hybrid work model that combines the best of both worlds.

Even though the internet is full of advice on leadership, processes, and structures, for most companies, these prescriptions and models do not fit their reality. How do you find the right model between fully remote and fully in the office?

What is “New Work”?

We like to think about these new work model as enablers for a better way to get work done.

New Work” models – whether fully remote or hybrid – are characterized by

1. An increased flexibility of work hours and workplace which enables and promotes more autonomy for all employees.
2. Communication and collaboration processes that are more and more virtual and online tool dependent.
3. The need to review how work gets done and is managed. This includes the need for a new leadership style and new synchronous and asynchronous work processes to optimize collaboration.

Making “New Work” a success requires us to work at all 3 levels of an organization: The individual, the team, and the organizational levels.

At an individual level, we need to include personal expectations around wellbeing and motivation, and at an organizational level, we deal with questions around regulation and synergies.

Yet, the biggest success factor for “New Work” is the redesign of work processes at the team level. It is at that level where the individual expectations are confronted with the needs of their colleagues and the needs of the company, and it is there that we can leverage remote work to achieve productivity goals of the company AND fulfill the productivity and wellbeing needs of the individual employees.

What support does Radical Inclusion offer?

We support organizations in the development of a remote or hybrid work model that works for them. Together we explore how distance is affecting your people and your business results, and help you outline a process to define the hybrid work model that works for you.

We take an in-depth look at the success factors for remote or hybrid teams and guide you through a reflection process that aligns individual needs and preferences with organizational requirements to create effective collaboration at the team level. In addition to finding alignment around key performance factors, this process will deepen interpersonal connection, and strengthen team cohesion.

In this process we take you through the following phases:

Understanding Virtual Distance

• Distance analysis: how perceived distance influences collaboration
• What is the optimal distance for my team? How much closeness and connection, how much autonomy and self-organisation do we need?

Creating effective team agreements

• Understanding the purpose of a team agreement and how it can create the conditions for high team performance
• The elements of the team agreement: (1) Task Management, (2) Decision-Making, (3) Availability, (4) Learning and Support
• Designing and facilitating the development of team agreements for your organization’s teams

The Virtual Office: Defining the right tool-stack

• Introduction to the virtual working environment
• Aligning individual and team needs for optimal productivity and collaboration

Leadership and collaboration principles for New Work

• The case for self-organization and principles for distributed leadership
• Training and Coaching Support to enable your leaders to assume responsibility for this process.