• Understand how to build trust in virtual teams to create strong work relationships
• Understand how remote teams work together and ways to keep everyone involved and motivated
• Recognize conflict resolution methods that work well for remote and hybrid teams to keep the work atmosphere positive and productive
• Understand strategies for managing work-life balance, preventing burnout, and supporting mental health in remote work settings

Forming Professional Relationships Remotely

The shift towards remote and hybrid environments has fundamentally transformed how we communicate, collaborate, and maintain relationships within professional settings. This transition presents a unique set of challenges and opportunities for individuals and teams striving to foster strong, productive working relationships from a distance.

The essence of building and maintaining relationships in a remote or hybrid environment lies not just in adapting to new technologies but also in reimagining the dynamics of trust, engagement, motivation, and conflict resolution outside the traditional office setting. These virtual workspaces demand a higher degree of intentionality in communication and a strong understanding of diverse team dynamics.

Building Trust in a Virtual Environment

Unlike traditional office settings, where trust can be fostered through daily face-to-face interactions, virtual environments require deliberate and thoughtful strategies to cultivate a culture of trust and openness.

Transparency and Open Communication

Having open lines of communication between team members helps to establish trust and keep everyone informed. Some methods to help with this include:

• Regular communication routines such as a weekly video team meeting to maintain personal connections and ensure the sharing of information
• Leave time during meetings to exchange personal stories or challenges to mirror the informal exchanges that occur spontaneously in physical offices
• Use collaborative project management tools (e.g. Trello, Monday, Asana) to keep tasks organized and promote transparency in sharing information. This allows team members to see the progress of projects, understand their contributions to the team’s goals, and feel more connected to the team’s overall success.

Sunshining at Netflix^[1]

At Netflix, employees have access to company financial information that most companies don’t share. The company’s co-founder, Reed Hastings explained that “sunshining” is about transparency. The goal of shining a light on what is normally kept secret was “to make the employees feel like owners and, in turn, to increase the amount of responsibility they took for the company’s success. However, opening company secrets had another outcome: it made our workforce smarter.”

Reliability and Consistency

Reliability and consistency are important to building trust because team members need to know that they can depend on each other to meet expectations and deliver on commitments. Dependability builds mutual respect between team members. To achieve this, it’s important to:

• Setting Clear Expectations: From the outset, establish clear expectations regarding communication norms, project deadlines, and quality of work. This clarity helps prevent misunderstandings and ensures that all team members are aligned with the team’s objectives.
• Create Accountability Measures: Implement systems of accountability, such as regular check-ins on project progress and peer reviews of work. These practices not only help in maintaining high standards but also reinforce the reliability of team members by showcasing their commitment to the team’s success.

Ohana at Salesforce

“Ohana” in Hawaiian is an idea that family members, including both blood relatives and chosen family, are interconnected and accountable for each other. Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff learned about the concept in the late 1990s.^[2] It was important to him that Ohana was a part of Salesforce’s company culture.

However, when Benioff announced laying off 10% of Salesforce employees in 2023, he rambled to employees for two hours and sent an email to all staff but did not answer employees’ specific questions.^[3] Employees quickly communicated on an internal Slack messaging channel that their CEO’s actions eroded their confidence in the Ohana corporate culture.

Recognizing Achievements

Recognition is important to building trust because it validates individuals’ contributions and efforts. An environment of appreciation and respect strengthens interpersonal bonds and team cohesion. Some ideas for recognizing success are:

• Acknowledging individual and team achievements in virtual meetings or through team communication channels. Recognition can be as simple as a shout-out during a meeting or a written commendation in a team newsletter. This acknowledgment can significantly boost morale and reinforce trust in team leadership.
• Celebrating milestones and achievements at special virtual events. Whether it’s a project completion or a team member’s work anniversary, marking these moments together strengthens team bonds and builds a positive team culture.

Cast Compliments at Disney

Disney makes an effort to formally record compliments that cast members (what Disney calls its workers) at its many resorts and theme parks receive. Customers can share their appreciation of individual cast members by email, in person, or using Disney’s mobile app.^[4] Cast members can see the number of compliments they receive on their work portal and they are taken into consideration for promotions.

---