Message of the Week 6 - 10 September 2021

Smarter Workspaces and Remote Teambuilding

In February this year, Kyocera Document Solutions South Africa sent encouragement to businesses to continue rethinking their workspaces to survive the current economic climate.

7 months later, hybrid workforces continue to morph and grow, as organisations establish smarter ways of working that enable employees to be productive at any time and any place.

This “forced evolution of the workplace” meant that the workspace strategy needed to change to: Equip your team, connect your people and optimise your processes.

Whilst we may all be back in the office, we may not be able to pack our bags for a team breakaway this year. There are however plenty of online teambuilding activities that boost moral ~ which is key to driving productivity and workplace satisfaction. Take a look at this list of Virtual Teambuilding Activities for some amazing ideas.

The challenge to foster team enthusiasm is ever present, and collaboration from different locations will remain a reality for a while. There are a lot of articles on how to do this (How to Improve Remote Team Engagement or Managers: Here's A 7-Step Practical Guide To Leading A Remote Team, for example), for me it boils down to good basic human interaction:

Get to know each other better

Find points of personal interaction that allow you to get to know your colleagues a bit better. By creating a Teams channel related to sport or a virtual movie club can help to bring remote workers (or even workers too busy to connect in the office) closer together by sharing common interests. 

Figure out what works for the team

While sports groups and online ice breakers might work for some, it might not work for everyone. No team is the same, but it usually stands to reason that the people who have chosen to work in a company with a particular culture will have at least a few shared values. Experiment and encourage open communication, the key is to foster fun and engagement so that employees have a more holistic sense of work than just showing up to the next Teams or in person meeting.

Remember, if you are feeling disconnected, the probability is high that your colleagues are too. This new normal comes with challenges. But as they say, every challenge comes with opportunity too. 

Michelle Frenzel - HR Manager - KYOCERA Document Solutions South Africa