Employees can build strong relationships with co-workers even when everyone is remote

"A year and a half into the pandemic, remote work remains popular, and a recent survey found that 76% of those who work outside of the office want to continue doing so at least part of the time.

But remote work also poses challenges, one of the biggest being that many employees report having a harder time building relationships with colleagues when using videoconferencing platforms such as Zoom.

But there is some good news: Research demonstrates that colleagues who work remotely can develop the same levels of trust as those working face-to-face -- it just takes longer.

"You have to be very intentional about how you engage, paying more attention to the content and frequency of your interactions, as well as the tools you use," says Tsedal Neeley, a professor of business administration at Harvard Business School and author of the new book "Remote Work Revolution: Succeeding from Anywhere."

Here's how to apply insights from the latest research into your own virtual work situation.

Seek the full picture

Employees who work remotely tend to know less about the work and life situations of their colleagues than employees who work side by side in an office. That can create misunderstandings that affect work relationships.

To counteract this, you need to make an extra effort to learn about your remote teammates' work and life contexts, and to share things that might be useful for co-workers to know -- such as you leave early on Thursdays to care for a family member.

Research by Dr. Neeley and her collaborators demonstrates that remote teammates who understand where their colleagues are coming from can act with empathy and build better relationships.

Share sad experiences

Research by Anita Woolley, an associate professor of organizational behavior and theory at Carnegie Mellon University's Tepper School of Business, indicates that virtual teams can improve their connection and performance by talking about personal, sad experiences.

The research suggests that to improve relationships, remote workers should structure time to disclose meaningful things to one another.

Potential questions might include: What types of events have happened at work recently that made you feel a great sense of sadness? Has anything happened in your personal life recently that made you feel depressed?

Post frequent, specific status updates

Uncertainty about what your co-workers are doing can become a significant barrier to developing loyalty in remote-work relationships. "If you are sitting at home and not really sure whether people you work with are doing their jobs, you start to think, 'If we are not all working for the good of the team, I am just going to work for myself.' Instead of a cohesive group, you become five individuals," says Russell Haines, associate professor of information technology and decision sciences at Old Dominion University.

Though many virtual teams have daily check-ins to tell each other what they are working on, a study by Dr. Haines indicates that posting much more frequent status updates online helps build team loyalty.

Ask for and give help

Research shows that asking for and giving help strengthens work relationships. Unfortunately, most people aren't very good at asking for help, and the isolation of remote work can make it even harder, says Wayne Baker, a professor at the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan and a faculty director of the Center for Positive Organizations.

Managers can incorporate help practice into daily meetings. Each person could share what they worked on yesterday, what they are working on today and what they currently need help with.

"In the beginning, people will feel a little uncomfortable," says Dr. Baker. "But they get better at it, and you get better engagement."

Notice nonverbal clues

In a study currently being reviewed for publication, Xiao-Ping Chen, a professor of business administration at the University of Washington Foster School of Business, and her co-authors surveyed 382 U.S. employees who had switched from primarily face-to-face to meetings to primarily videoconference.

While respondents said relationship-building was more difficult on videoconference, those who worked harder to listen and notice nonverbal cues such as facial expressions and hand gestures during virtual meetings reported feeling closer relationships with their teammates." [1]

1. Workplace Technology (A Special Report) --- Close Colleagues, Even on Zoom: Employees can build strong relationships with co-workers even when everyone is remote
Oliver, Suzanne.  Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y. [New York, N.Y]. 29 Nov 2021: R.3.