We're not as reliant on employees being actively present in the office anymore. Instead, we've found that people can work together just as well at a distance, provided that they have the right tools. In today's age of remote and flexible working, business leaders need to find the right way to encourage effective virtual conversations.
According to a UNC whitepaper, when collaboration and communication practices are embedded into the heart of an organisation, the results are enormous benefits to your bottom line, including more engaged employees, better retention, and easier attraction of talent.
I spoke to Lyndsay Cook, SVP Marketing at PGi, about what you need to know about communicating effectively at work.
1. Centralise your Communications
In an environment where employees aren't always actively working in the same location, it's essential for communication and collaboration to be as centralised as possible. That's one of the reasons why team collaboration tools are becoming increasingly valuable, and why unified communications is at the heart of most teams.
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Lyndsay Cook[/caption]
Make sure that you have an environment in place that supports communication between internal and external team members through a variety of channels, from video and audio to instant messaging. What's more, ensure that your users don't have to waste time switching between apps when they need to accelerate a conversation.
Lyndsay commented “Communication should be as simple and streamlined, as if it was happening in person”
2. Gain Executive Buy-In
Implementing a new communication and collaboration strategy into the heart of your business culture requires your entire team to be invested in the latest technology - including business leaders. The Harvard Business Review found that 75% of cross-functional teams are dysfunctional, in part because they're unable to maintain alignment with a company's corporate goals, adhere to specifications, or stay on schedule without assistance.
However, when those teams are overseen by supervisors and executives, their success level rises to 76%. Good leadership will always be crucial to any evolution in your company. Before you start rolling out new UC tools, make sure that your business leaders are ready to help your teams embrace each new solution.
3. Embed Communication into the Company Culture
For teams to perform well, the people on those teams need to be able to trust each other and feel connected - no matter where they are located. It's essential to strengthen the bonds between your team members wherever possible. For instance, you can:
