Offering remote working options to employees allows them to work globally and achieve a better work-life balance. For companies, this means tapping into the global talent pool and finding top candidates. Thus, hybrid workplaces, which combine office and remote work, are becoming increasingly popular. However, managing such environments comes with unique challenges. Leaders must use innovative approaches to maintain team cohesion, support well-being, and leverage technology for optimal productivity.
At Databox, we’ve been using effective strategies for managing our hybrid workplace. Learn more about how we navigate our diverse team structure.
A hybrid workplace combines in-office and remote work, with some employees working remotely and others based in the office.
This model allows for flexibility in team structure and can accommodate different work preferences and needs. It aims to balance the benefits of remote and in-office work, enhancing overall productivity and employee satisfaction.
Hybrid workplaces have positive effects on work-life balance, employee satisfaction, and productivity. They also enable companies to hire talent from a broader geographical area, reducing overhead costs and promoting environmental sustainability. Having a hybrid workplace ensures business continuity and better health outcomes for employees.
A hybrid team is a group of employees who either work in an office or remotely.
This team structure allows members to work from different locations and offers flexibility in where work is performed.
Generally, hybrid teams rely on technology to maintain collaboration, communication, and productivity at a high level. By doing that team members can balance the benefits of remote work with the advantages of in-person interactions.
At Databox, we describe our workplace structure as a hybrid. Some teams work entirely remotely, while others are hybrid and blend both environments.
This setup allows us to access the best talent regardless of location, maintain a diverse team, cover all time zones for customer support, and offer flexibility to our team.
Our teams’ work is interconnected and relies on cross-team collaboration. We use communication and work management tools to keep things efficient and ensure everyone is on the same page.
Our hybrid teams blend working from home with working from our head office in Ptuj, Slovenia. Every Wednesday is a designated remote day for all team members, with the flexibility to choose an additional work-from-home day each week.
This approach enhances work-life balance and flexibility, allowing team members to focus on tasks that require deep concentration while working from home. Additionally, having a dedicated remote day ensures that everyone can participate in virtual meetings, fostering better connectivity and collaboration among teammates.
Managing a hybrid workplace involves balancing the needs of remote and in-office employees to maintain productivity and engagement. This means having a fancy office and free coffee is not going to cut it.
Effective hybrid team management goes beyond premises, technology, and processes; it requires cultivating a positive culture that promotes collaboration, belonging, communication, trust, continuous learning, and the well-being of our people, or as we like to refer to them, Playmakers.
It is crucial for leaders to take on the role of guiding their teams in utilizing asynchronous communication, designing optimal workspaces, and recognizing the significance of self-directed learning.
The key to a strong, healthy, and effective remote culture at Databox is creating an environment in which employees feel engaged, connected, and part of the team. We use several strategies to achieve this.
According to Harvard Business Review, a manager’s primary responsibility should be supporting employees. Successful leaders of remote teams must establish a foundation of trust within the team. Trustworthy leaders consistently provide feedback, making team members feel included, valued, empowered, and respected. This is especially important for a hybrid workplace.
Building trust relies on maintaining transparency, sharing important company information, frequent and open communication, and ensuring a secure working environment. Utilizing quick daily standups for syncing operationally and weekly 1-1 meetings to discuss challenges and areas of focus helps build trust and foster success.
Our approach emphasizes asynchronous work, which means tasks are completed independently rather than meeting-dependently. This efficient and flexible working method emerged post-COVID and has proven highly beneficial for us at Databox. However, it did require us to rely on technology to collaborate seamlessly without the need for constant meetings.
We invest in reliable tools and infrastructure that support hybrid work and allow us to collaborate successfully and efficiently. Communication and work management tools help create seamless collaboration between remote and in-office employees. Our tools include Asana, Confluence, Blogin, Slack, Zoom, Avoma, Hubspot, and more. Keeping things organized, transparent, and accessible to everyone on the team is essential for transparency.
Training our leaders is crucial since they have an important impact on our company culture.
Managers who lead hybrid or remote teams undergo several trainings per year, some focusing on leading in a remote environment. Our goal is for all our leaders to understand and use our leadership principles and guidelines for leading remote teams, which we regularly discuss in workshops and learning circles.
Additionally, we educate our leaders on challenges that can come up in a hybrid work environment and work with them so they know how to address them accordingly. We talk about approaching challenges a bit later on in this blog, but here are some general guidelines we emphasize when leading remote teams:
Scheduling regular check-in meetings in the form of standups and reporting on our tasks and projects keeps our teams aligned and addresses issues promptly.
We do check-ins on all levels:
This multi-tiered approach ensures effective communication, timely issue resolution, and cohesive progress across the entire organization.
We use clear metrics and objectives to track the performance and productivity of our team members, teams, and the company as a whole.
To track individual performance, we have each of our employees create a Personal Career Development Plan that sets the path to future growth and professional development. We also perform regular self-assessments and manager assessments that help both team members and managers align goals, provide sufficient feedback to move forward purposefully, identify potential challenges, and provide motivation for the team members to stay engaged.
To track our company’s performance, we put our own product, Databox, to work—because if anyone’s going to keep tabs on our goals, it might as well be our own tool. Our metrics are always visible in our internal Databox account, ensuring the team is continuously updated on how we’re performing against our goals. This practice not only sets us apart from companies that don’t offer such visibility but also embodies our commitment to transparency.
After all, if we want our teams to embrace transparency, we must lead by example and share our results openly. Using Databox not only enhances our internal operations but also helps us manage our hybrid work environment more effectively. Talk about a full-circle moment!
Working remotely affects people differently. Some may thrive in a remote or hybrid environment, while others need face-to-face contact to feel engaged or efficient.
Communicating purely remotely without a chance for face-to-face communication can be challenging, especially in the area of building trust and creating a personal relationship
How Databox Overcame This ChallengeKeeping in regular contact with team members and building relationships beyond just work tasks helps everyone feel more comfortable, and fosters trust.
To encourage this, we organize a range of team events that cater to both specific locations and the entire company. We host virtual team-building activities a few times a year, which are all about having fun. These events mix people into different groups so they can get to know each other better in a relaxed setting. In 2023, we took things up a notch with an all-company retreat in Tenerife, Spain, where over 100 of our team members from across the globe came together.
We also make sure to celebrate the holiday season with Christmas parties at our HQ and encourage teams that can’t make it in person to set up their own festive gatherings.
Employees who are never in an office setting or work from home occasionally may experience a drop in motivation when not in the office.
How Databox Overcame This Challenge
To address the drop in motivation among remote employees or those who work from home occasionally, fostering regular check-ins and using structured communication channels are key. Maintaining connection and inclusivity through consistent feedback and recognition of accomplishments is crucial for motivating remote teams. Additionally, setting clear goals and expectations, along with providing opportunities for professional development, are essential practices we emphasize from the start of a career at Databox.
The initial weeks can evoke feelings of isolation or loneliness for people who need social interaction or are transitioning from a traditional office setting to a remote role.
Leaders of remote or hybrid teams should have high emotional intelligence, self-awareness, and empathy. They should proactively seek feedback, make good use of coaching, and show interest in developing relationships with each team member. Prioritizing informal communication, such as scheduling coffee chats and social calls, can help build relationships.
For new team members, we make a concerted effort to integrate them into our team and foster social connections early on. To facilitate this, we assign each newcomer a Buddy who offers informal support during their first 90 days at Databox. The feedback we receive is overwhelmingly positive, and this program helps our Playmakers feel a strong sense of belonging and comfort, regardless of their work location.
Not using written documentation or communicating only verbally or privately may reduce productivity and effectiveness.
Establishing a clear and structured communication plan for remote collaboration can help overcome communication struggles. We encourage our people to make a habit of documenting and writing things down, such as 1-1 agendas, tasks, and commitments. Communication and project management tools are a good way of keeping everyone on the same page and increasing transparency inside the team.
At Databox, we streamline our workflow with a suite of tools: Confluence for documenting processes, BlogIn for staying updated on organizational changes, project plans, and product improvements, Slack for daily communication, Asana for tracking projects and tasks, BambooHR for managing HR and operational tasks, and Avoma for documenting and sharing important calls or presentations.
Aligning everyone on company values and priorities is crucial for creating a company culture in which everyone feels like they belong, values the same things, and strives for a common goal.
Our primary mission in building a people-first culture is to continuously invest in creating an environment in which everyone is excited to join, motivated to grow, and inspired by the company’s mission. That being said, our six values help us bring together and preserve our team culture, no matter if our team members work fully remotely or in the office. By weaving them into every communication and activity, we are creating an environment in which everyone feels a sense of belonging and support from other team members.
One of our initiatives that combines learning with fun is the Databox Book Club. Each month, we read a book (or listen to it on Blinkist—no judgment here) and then discuss its insights in a virtual workshop. This activity allows us to bond, share perspectives, learn from each other, and build relationships with colleagues who share similar interests. It also helps bring our remote team closer by fostering a sense of community and connection, bridging the physical distance with engaging and meaningful conversations. To date, we’ve hosted nearly 30 book club workshops and have no plans to stop anytime soon.
By organizing virtual team-building events or workshops, you are encouraging your team to connect on a more personal level, share a laugh, and improve social relationships. At Databox, we strive for one virtual team-building activity per quarter and usually opt for online games that help us connect and relax.
We strive to create team-wide challenges that everyone can participate in. Our latest initiative, “Databox Moves,” features monthly challenges promoting physical activity and healthy competition among our Playmakers. Each month, we either count our steps, run, cycle, or engage in other activities, fostering both fitness and building bonds. By giving the entire team the option to take part, brings us closer and diminishes the distance between us.
Our quarterly All Hands meetings always include recognizing the extraordinary efforts of team members and selecting team champions. We celebrate these individuals, emphasizing that excelling in their role is not tied to their work location. Additionally, we use a Slack channel called “Quick Wins” to showcase examples of Playmakers going above and beyond.
Each holiday season, we organize a virtual activity that embodies our core values and strengthens team connections. For instance, our virtual gratitude wall allows team members to share what they’re grateful for, aligning with our value of showing gratitude and fostering a sense of connection among everyone.
We encourage our team to create informal Slack channels based on their interests, such as sports, cooking, traveling, or pets. This gives members of various teams the opportunity to connect over shared passions and forge stronger bonds. Making friends is easier when you have common interests!
Managing a hybrid workplace efficiently requires a blend of technology, trust, clear communication, and strong leadership and culture.
At Databox, we continuously strive to create an inclusive and engaging environment where our Playmakers feel connected and valued, regardless of their work location. By leveraging the right tools, fostering trust, and promoting continuous learning and well-being, we ensure our hybrid workplace thrives. Embracing these strategies can help other organizations navigate the complexities of hybrid work and achieve success. For us, these practices have bridged the gap between remote and in-office work, creating a cohesive, motivated, and engaged hybrid workforce.
Content writer at Databox
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