Leading a Hybrid Workforce? 5 Ways You Can Help Your Team Succeed

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In the coming weeks and months, companies will reopen their offices and allow employees to return – with a few key differences. Many firms expect to adopt a hybrid approach in which employees split their time between the company’s facilities and their home offices. Here are five effective strategies for leading your teams…

1. Build a Healthier Culture

Blending time in the office with work at home, employees may benefit from a better balance, finding it easier to log off on remote days and finally getting that social connection on in-person days. Managers can improve workplace culture by actively fostering positive connections and relationships with and among team members, further helping to reduce stress levels.

2. Eliminate “Proximity Bias”

Managers and employees are both at risk of falling into the same trap of relying on or trusting those they see most often. This “proximity bias” can be overcome in several ways:

  • Create and set expectations about how team members will communicate with each other. For instance, set guidelines for who should be invited to each meeting.
  • Pay attention to how you spend your day and be sure you give all team members a fair shake.
  • Set a basic rule that all meetings should be held on videoconference – whether employees are in the office or not.

3. Ensure the Right Tools are Available

Videoconferencing, webchat, and other collaboration tools will retain their importance in the hybrid environment. Some upgrades to the company’s office space will be required to manage the needs of both types of workers. Businesses may need to improve the video and sound quality of conferencing technology, as well as provide the right resources for hoteling. Remote working technology should enable employees to switch between the company’s workspace and their home offices seamlessly.

4. Reconsider Productivity Metrics

In the pre-pandemic world, managers often drew a direct line between an employee’s time in the office and their productivity. A better approach post-pandemic is to manage productivity rather than measure it. Strategies include:

  • Inspire your team by focusing on your organization’s mission and purpose.
  • Support and care for your employees, and they’ll go the extra mile for you.
  • Communicate more, and when you do, be more transparent.

5. Focus on Mentoring

Coaching and cultivating employees can be achieved by holding more one-to-one meetings and using the time to discuss both work and personal issues. As it becomes harder to separate work from personal life, creating an understanding of individual pressures can lead to collaborative solutions that help relieve stress. In addition, using tools like screen-sharing will increase efficiency, effectiveness and buy-in.

The new technology and world of hybrid work may seem daunting and challenging, but TCI has the solutions and expertise to help you lead a successful transition. Contact us today at (703) 321-3030 or info@tcicomm.com.

 

Is an Aging Phone System Slowing Your Business? Adopt a Cloud-First Mentality to Boost Your Communications

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It’s going to happen… After years of faithful service, your premises communications system will eventually reach the end of its useful life. Maintaining and upgrading the hardware may become difficult or just won’t make financial sense. Updating the software may no longer be the path to all those advanced features you need to maintain efficiency and productivity.

Charting a New Path

The reality of diminishing returns will kick in and you’ll find yourself considering a new system. You’ll be faced with two potential paths to follow. You could replace the aging communications system with a new premises solution and go through all the deployment, configuration, and adjustment processes that go with it. Or you could chart a new path with a cloud-based communications solution.

Flexible and agile cloud infrastructure makes it easier to adapt to an ever-changing market environment. The pandemic has demonstrated the ease of access and speed to activation that cloud technologies provide. Enterprises that were already leveraging cloud-based communications systems were able to easily make the transition to remote work. Those without some form of cloud technology were left playing catch up.

A cloud-based communications system streamlines interactions between employees and partners and suppliers. With unified communication and collaboration tools, it can increase efficiency and improve customer service. It can also be the anchor of a digital technology strategy that leverages a variety of Software as a Service (SaaS) offerings.

Look Beyond Immediate Requirements

Consider the big picture by looking beyond immediate needs and factoring future evolution into your thought process:

  • A purpose-built cloud solution provides unified and scalable communications to anyone, anywhere, and on any device.
  • It enables more mobility, rich enterprise and team collaboration, and exceptional customer experiences.
  • The cloud can provide the flexibility and scalability to integrate with a variety of SaaS business support and productivity tools to further transform business processes.

TCI can help you migrate to a cloud communication solution that is customized for your business needs. Contact us today at (703) 321-3030 or info@tcicomm.com.

 

Looking for Unbiased Corporate Real Estate Services? Our Trusted Partner, Dan Shapiro, SVP of Cresa Can Help

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Dan Shapiro supports TCI’s real estate needs and specializes in providing comprehensive services to every client. We highly recommend him if you need help with your corporate real estate.

Dan covers all the bases. He utilizes a strategic planning method that includes analyzing leases, providing sound market advice and managing negotiations of lease alternatives. By providing strategic real estate planning and comprehensive market coverage for you far in advance of your lease expiration dates, Dan has a track record of facilitating the best possible lease terms so you can get bottom-line savings for every project.

Dan’s Contact Info:
Daniel Shapiro, Senior Vice President, Cresa
dshapiro@cresa.com
301.841.6542 direct
240.485.4800 mobile

More about Cresa

Cresa is the world’s largest real estate provider exclusively committed to serving occupiers. Currently, Cresa services over 1,800 clients spanning 60+ industries in over 1,300 cities around the world. Cresa has 55 offices in North America alone and an additional 30 offices globally. Cresa was founded in 1993 by professionals with executive experience in corporate real estate. After years in the industry, their founders recognized that the existing commercial real estate model was broken and inherently unfair to occupiers. They set out to level the playing field, acting as unbiased advisors exclusively for corporate space users.

Cresa’s Differentiators in the Real Estate Marketplace

  • An unbiased advocate – Cresa was founded by corporate real estate executives who designed our services solely with the occupier’s needs in mind. We’re unbiased, uninfluenced by landlords. Everything we do is from your perspective – and to your advantage.
  • Structure – As a privately-owned firm, we can make adjustments quickly, easily scaling project teams or service offerings to suit your needs. To ensure excellence in service delivery, all projects are led by senior-level managers from beginning to end.
  • Integrated platform – Our service lines, each led by specialists in their field, are interconnected to enhance each part of your business. This ensures seamless delivery and, since we offer a complete package of talent and tools, eliminates the need to source multiple partners.
  • Transparency – The cornerstone of how we do business. In fact, our delivery model requires it. Transparency is what allows us to foster lasting, meaningful relationships with each other and with our clients.
  • People – Our greatest asset is our people. Lead by seasoned principals with years of experience, we hire selectively and incentivize continually. We pride ourselves on empowering our employees to act decisively and think innovatively.

    • Again, Dan knows commercial real estate and will look out for you. Once you’ve settled on your new space, keep TCI’s relocation experts in mind. We can help ensure your communications technology and IT infrastructure are ready to connect your business on Day One. Contact us at (703) 321-3030 or info@tcicomm.com.

     

Why Preparing for the Future of Your Communications Technology is Essential

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When the communications systems you currently have work just fine, it can be easy to put off updating them until a later date or even indefinitely. But in a world where communications technology is evolving faster than ever, for growing businesses, the timeline for considering what’s next for your tech may be coming more quickly than you think.

Initially, it can be hard to leave the technology you have come to trust. When it came to smartphones, the new users eventually got more comfortable. They started texting and sharing pictures, and now they’re on video calls with family and friends. New communications technology led to new opportunities for our friends and family using their up-to-date smartphones.

In many ways, it’s the same for business owners. The ways people communicate since the pandemic began have changed. They had to, and businesses weren’t exempt from these changes. Suddenly capabilities that were thought of as “nice to have” became significant benefits to productivity and continuity, and in some cases, a lifeline.

However, people are resilient. Decision-makers found ways to keep their businesses running by adding capabilities for video collaboration, messaging, and mobility. While many plan to keep using them, some business owners have noted that these updates may not be compatible with their existing phone systems, and now have a mix of costly technology and software that isn’t integrated. What’s more, the next time a world or life event occurs that has the ability to disrupt business operations, they’ll have to make quick pivots once again.

Or maybe not, if you begin thinking about the future sooner rather than later.

Cloud communications solutions offer built-in features that growing businesses would previously have had to pay for separately, such as mobile applications, video calls, chat, and contact centers. Transitioning to a modern system allows businesses to streamline current technology needs, save time and money, cut down on complexity and create room to grow for whatever comes next.

Before they switched to smartphones, the flip phone holdouts missed out on a lot of shared messages, pictures and memories. When it comes to your business, does your current communications technology ensure that you won’t miss any of the big opportunities?

TCI is ready to assist you in preparing for the next phase of work with innovative communication and collaboration solutions. Contact us today at (703) 321-3030 or info@tcicomm.com.