Fostering a Welcoming Workplace in a Hybrid World

Insights

Fostering a Welcoming Workplace in a Hybrid World

This article written by LINC President, Katelyn Mack, was originally published in the Fall 2024 Edition ofNetwork Magazine.

Our businesses are going through a crisis of connectivity. This isn’t the kind of connectivity related to ChatGPT or internet security breaches; it’s about social connectivity. A 2022 Microsoft Work Trend Index report revealed that 51% of employees felt their relationships outside their immediate work group had weakened. Then, a 2023 HubSpot study showed that 66% of employees lack a strong connection with their co-workers.

These statistics would make any leader pause. After all, disconnection among colleagues often relates to a lack of connection to the company itself.

In talking with corporate leaders, there is little indication that collegial or company connection has improved in the ‘back to office’ transition. Many companies are still searching for an effective approach to remote, hybrid, and in-office work. The result is myriad experiments happening simultaneously at scale.

During the back-to-office transition, many employers have astutely focused on social connectivity with co-workers as a reason for returning to work. Building team bonds and socializing with co-workers were strong motivators for employees in the 2022 Work Trend Index survey. But is an “everyone-in-on-Wednesday “schedule enough to build trust between colleagues? Will it enhance collaboration and facilitate high-stakes problem-solving?

At LINC, we specialize in fostering social connections. We believe organizational leaders can learn from our approach to creating a welcoming community in the workplace.

What Is a Welcoming Community?

A welcoming community goes beyond being merely friendly. It’s a place where employees experience a culture of inclusion, belonging, and fairness—not just in how they are treated but through the organization’s policies, structures, and norms that uphold these values.

Drawing from the concept of a welcoming community, which includes qualities like educational opportunities, affordable housing, and positive attitudes toward immigrants, a welcoming workplace should embody these principles in its own context.

Taking inspiration from the welcoming community playbook may be the next step in addressing your hybrid work and social connectivity challenges.

Steps to Move toward a Welcoming Workplace

Create and Communicate a Culture Code of Conduct

According to a 2022 Edelman Trust report, 69% of employees view their co-workers as a significant source of community in their lives. A welcoming workplace clearly outlines norms and expectations for respectful, productive employee interactions. The Corporate Racial Equity Alliance provides a framework for a culture code of conduct in its draft Business Standards for 21^st Century Leadership report, which can serve as a starting point for discussion.

Mentor, Coach, and Train Managers to Model Inclusive Leadership

In a hybrid model, team leaders and people managers play a critical role in signaling organizational values and priorities. McKinsey & company identified 17 key factors that result in an inclusive workplace environment, and among the leadership qualities are: participative decision-making, team building, and impartial treatment.

Incorporate these leadership qualities into managers’ performance reviews and regular check-ins to identify strengths and areas needing sustained attention.
Encourage employees to engage in ongoing professional development through events like LINC’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Roundtables, which cover topics such as generational bias and neurodiversity in the workplace.

Enable Employees to Raise Issues Anonymously

The negative effects of a toxic culture, discrimination, and misconduct are well-documented and continue to pose significant challenges despite their ties to employee attrition and financial costs (MIT Sloan Management Review, 2022). A welcoming workplace ensures employees can report unsafe working conditions, bias, and harassment without fear of retaliation. Consider ways for employees to report incidents anonymously and then act on what is learned.

How will talent attraction services improve my company?

There are a multitude of ways that talent attraction services can make a positive impact on your business, reduced job turnover being one of them. Providing employees with support and solutions makes them more likely to stay longer. Additionally, if their lives outside of work are taken care of, they will experience less burnout and more fulfillment on the job.

Taking inspiration from the welcoming community playbook may be the next step in addressing your hybrid work and social connectivity challenges.