How have you experienced community recently? I’ve seen it play out in several amazingly supportive ways, as well as one instance of it being wielded as more of a threat. I hope your experience has been more the former than the latter.
Last week, I co-facilitated a team building program for a group of 30 federal employees in the environmental sector. The program had been booked for a while, but with sweeping changes happening at the federal level, there was some nervousness the week of. Sure enough, the day before the program, every single employee in the group received their deferred resignation offer. It was unclear to any of them if their department would even exist in the coming months. Needless to say, team building felt pretty far from their minds the night before, and there was a lot of conversation about canceling. But since the group was traveling from around the country, including many who work for long stretches of time in the ocean itself, they opted to move ahead; “we may as well go through this together than alone,” one of the leaders said. What resulted was remarkable. Simply by being together in the same room, they were able to share, process, and grieve in ways that would not have been possible apart. In all our activities, there was more laughter, joy, and camaraderie than I would ever have imagined being possible given the circumstances. Resilience was a major theme for them in all our discussions. Without knowing what the future will bring, this time together is what they could focus on, and doing so together gave them great strength. As were closing the program, they received some news – the verdict came in for a court case they’d been fighting to protect a section of the North Atlantic from overfishing. After 18 months, they won the case! In the midst of major challenges, it was wonderful to see them celebrate a joyful moment together.
Similarly, I’ve seen others this week who have been affected with job loss from the federal changes, and from other major work or life changes, who’ve been buoyed by friends in their community, with long conversations, and people going above and beyond in friendship and support.
Our experience of community is vital to our experience of life. Harvard professor Robert Putnam, author of Bowling Alone, and subject of the documentary Join or Die (also mentioned in last week’s article), has written extensively about our increased isolation over the last 50 years, and outlines the surprising health benefits of being part of a group or community: “Your chances of dying over the next year are cut in half by joining one group,” he says. His research talks about this primarily outside of the workplace, but the key takeaway of a group that cares about each other experiencing the ups and downs of life together – especially the prospect of whole department layoffs – is transferable, and, in many ways, life-changing.
Which brings us to the question of in-person vs. remote or hybrid working environments, and the instance I mentioned at the beginning about community as a threat. Following the federal government’s lead, more companies have begun reinstituting a full-time in-office mandate for the first time since Covid. But, of course, the work world has changed dramatically in the last five years, and it’s almost impossible to put that toothpaste back in the tube. For at least one person I spoke to this week, this mandate would result in a multiple-hour commute, only to sit in an office to be on calls with colleagues in different offices around the country; the end result will ultimately be a skilled employee leaving to seek employment elsewhere. While there is clear value in in-person time together – on a regular scheduled basis – there is no additional value in terms of productivity by forcing a full-time in-office mandate; the results are decreased employee job satisfaction, and a higher rate of turnover. While community is essential, forced community is detrimental.
So how can this help you and your team this week?
This Week’s Tip:
- Prioritize community… If your team works remotely and you haven’t met in-person for a while, plan an in-person gathering. This might involve a mix of reporting, strategic planning, team building, and informal low-key hangout time. Building Bridges Leadership is always available to help you plan – and to facilitate – your meeting. Also consider other communities you are a part of: houses of worship; neighborhood groups; activism and social justice groups; hobby groups and more. If you’re not part of any groups outside of work, consider groups that might be of interest to you, and make a step to check out a group this week.
- …But not forced community. If you have influence over in-office requirements, read the research that’s out there about the pros and cons of full-time in-office mandates and hybrid models of remote work. Don’t allow the forced work community at the cost of employees’ satisfaction and happiness, and ultimately their benefit to the organization. If you’re not sure how your team feels, check in with them, and take their responses seriously but also with a grain of salt; more than likely there are power dynamics in play, and they may be more dissatisfied than they want to say out loud.
Try these out this week, and let us know how it goes. We’d love to hear from you!
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