The Importance of Leadership in a Hybrid Team Environment

There has been a significant increase in remote working which has been caused by the pandemic. Despite the increase in remote working, the requirement for communication within a business has not reduced, and it is more important than ever to maintain communication primarily for the sake of team morale, as well as for business purposes.

The usage of applications such as Zoom, Teams, and Skype has skyrocketed in the last year and a half. It is now more important than ever that leaders stand up and take ownership of their ability to lead teams through productive periods of time. However, to do that they need to fully understand the dynamics of a hybrid working environment.

Leading Remotely

When the pandemic hit and people were confined to their homes for remote working, many managers around the world became wary of the potential challenges of remote working. There were aspects they had not experienced before – a lack of supervision, lack of information transparency, and employee isolation.

Company culture became a big aspect of how leadership teams responded. Companies whose cultures dictated an attitude that lacked trust in employees meant that they were not willing to gauge performance through results alone. Many managers felt the need to schedule many meetings throughout the day in order to keep tabs on their employees. Unsurprisingly this method of leadership does not work, and employees found management teams to be forceful and micromanaging.

To successfully lead remotely, trust is an incredibly important aspect of your role as a leader. There is an element of balance as well. Balancing connectivity, team building, mental health, and management of people. They are all essential cogs within the wheel of hybrid working, and it is incredibly easy to have one cog out of balance with the others.

Remote Empathy

Empathy is an important skill as a leader. However, with employees working remotely, that requirement has become more difficult, as you lack the personability of being able to discuss problems and challenges with people in person. Employees can naturally become more closed up over the phone or a video call, rather than a discussion in person.

As a leader, you should acknowledge the challenges that your colleagues may be facing, display empathy and support to them, and show that you are willing to help no matter what. The key in this day and age is to be able to display that level of support and empathy through virtual mediums.

Expanding your Leadership Skills

Sometimes it is worth looking to an expert in leadership and team management, such as Lucy Escobar who is a certified John C Maxwell Coach. Lucy provides DISC assessments, which are the most popular behavioral assessment offering a simple solution with profound results. This allows you to identify the behavioral styles of others and adapt your communication to develop yourself as a leader. Lucy has over 20 years of experience in this field and has worked with many entrepreneurs and leaders to guide them down the path of leadership success.