An opportunity to build a culture that is flexible and formidable is rooted in innovation and collaboration.
I recently wrote about the importance of authentic company culture, and I believe that virtual leadership is the foundation for how to center and direct culture in a 21st-Century enterprise. You can accelerate the efficacy of your virtual leadership with these three actions.
Action #1: Emphasize Interpersonal Interactions
Replicate the best of office culture into a rich online environment that keeps dispersed workforces connected and communicating. Gather team feedback and information through conversations like 1-on-1’s and skip-level reviews to continuously improve employee engagement. Inclusive practices across the organization will align your associates to a common vision, and enhance the productivity of the enterprise.
Action #2: Create Stable Virtual Environments
All virtual processes must be mapped by the employee-owners and done in a way to improve the flow of information. One should not automate a bad process. Therefore by improving the existing workflow virtual environment becomes more seamless.
Documentation and processes should be flexible enough to accommodate new opportunities while also proactively addressing anticipated issues. A virtual teams prep article by HBR recommends centralized oversight or enforcement for team stabilization, as well as leadership consideration towards “how to make team staffing and allocation rules clearer and more transparent.”
Action #3: Look Forward and Focus on Long-Term Vision
Two years ago, virtual leadership (video conferencing) was a modern problem with minimal movement or expediency. It was more of a luxury for tech conferences than a necessity. The disruption caused by a pandemic and the need to move to virtual forced many senior leadership teams to confront the reality of a vastly different world and work environment.
People have become more comfortable with technology and that technology has enabled workers to be more productive with their everyday work by limiting travel and in-person meetings. Your long-term vision should include strategies for maintaining and growing influence through the use of technology.
Reference article: https://hbr.org/2020/05/how-to-prepare-your-virtual-teams-for-the-long-haul
