When everyone worked in the same place, a lot of what kept teams in sync happened easily.
You could walk past a person’s desk to get an update, compare notes on the walk back from a meeting, or pull everyone together for an impromptu huddle.
None of it was scheduled. It just happened.
In today’s hybrid work environments, managers can’t assume any of it will happen on its own.
Insight: Sometimes the conversation before and after the meeting is as valuable as the meeting itself
Hybrid work gives people greater flexibility in where and how we work. But it has also changed some of the daily interactions that helped managers understand what was happening across their teams.
Think about how much information gets exchanged outside formal meetings. It’s a lot.
A colleague mentions something useful over coffee. A meeting ends and a couple people stay behind to continue a conversation. Someone looks frustrated and you ask what's wrong.
These moments seem insignificant. But collectively, they help people stay informed, build relationships, solve problems and learn from one another.
The challenge with hybrid work is that managers can no longer rely on those moments happening on their own.
Real Leadership Story: The conversation before the meeting
Someone I used to work with once told me about a conversation she had an hour before an important client presentation.
A client had tasked her team with building a program to encourage existing customers to upgrade to a new credit card. The client's advertising agency wanted them to build the recommendation around a particular customer insight.
Her team didn't agree. They believed another insight gave them a stronger story to tell, so they built their recommendation around it, knowing there might be pushback but confident in their approach.
About an hour before she was due to leave for the presentation, one of her colleagues stopped by to wish her luck. They offered one piece of advice.
“If the advertising team pushes back, just remind them that we need to focus on where the richest storytelling opportunities are.” It gave her a simple way to explain the thinking behind their recommendation if it was challenged.
The thinking was fresh in her mind when she walked into the meeting. And when the recommendation was challenged, she felt confident explaining not only what the team was recommending, but why they had made that choice.
It was probably a five-minute conversation. It wasn't scheduled. There was no meeting invite or agenda. Someone simply stopped by her office at exactly the right time. And it changed how she walked into the room.
In the Moment: Make room for what isn’t scheduled
You can't schedule spontaneity, but you can make space for it.
When your team is together, think about how much room you've left for the conversations that aren't on the agenda.
When they're working remotely, be intentional about creating opportunities for those conversations to happen.
Consider:
Making a point of connecting with people informally, whether through Slack, picking up the phone, or scheduling a quick check-in.
Encouraging your team to come together to work through problems rather than always working independently. Zoom, Teams or even meeting for a coffee can make a big difference.
Managers need to create the conditions for people to connect, share what they know, work through problems and learn from one another.
Question to Sit With This Week:
What conversations might your team be missing?
Got a leadership challenge? Email me at [email protected] and I’ll tackle it in a future issue of The Present Leader.