Behaviour

Leadership, communications and engagement

Behaviour is the most-overlooked aspect of new ways of working. If you have the ambition to develop into an organisation of the future – attractive to today’s and tomorrow’s employee – you will need to take a fresh look at leadership, engagement and productivity. It is the heart of the change process: focusing on flexibility and agility, resilience and trust.

Buildings and IT facilitate the change. Changing the way you interact with one another – your behaviour – is where the true gains are made.  

Cooperation in teams increasingly important

Agile teams. Scrums. Redundant hierarchies. By introducing new ways of working, we are facilitating new forms of cooperation. And we are increasing mobility between teams, which leads to knowledge sharing, coaching and greater creativity. The challenge: trust and leading these fluid teams effectively.

Coaching leadership and a culture of trust

This is possibly the most important aspect of new ways of working. More autonomy for individuals and teams calls for a new form of leadership. One that facilitates the work of team members.  Managers are responsible for retaining the cohesion of the organisation and the focus on strategic objectives.

Working independently of time and place also calls for managers to steer on output, and preferably on outcome. This in turn means setting clear objectives, agreements as to results and expectations, and allowing autonomy. The underlying currency from both parties, however, is trust.

Communications

As you develop your new way of working, support functions are going to disappear. Especially middle management – where traditionally there is a lot of control – will feel the challenge of finding new roles.

You’re going to have to engage with your organisation in serious, extended dialogue. Different groups will form with their own sensitivities. It is up to the organisation to recognise and appreciate diversity. Some people need a strong management hand while others like freedom. Older employees may struggle to adapt to new routines. Managers will have to stay more on their toes as to the atmosphere and engagement in the team. You are going to need strong internal communications.

Involvement and engagement

The final aspect of behaviour, and the reward for all your effort, is involvement and engagement. Often confused, engagement in this context relates to one’s work – how motivated you are by the job itself. It’s about craftmanship and the pride people feel when they have achieved something. Involvement relates to the bond you feel with the organisation for which you work. People who are involved are motivated because they relate to the objectives of the organisation and are proud of what it achieves.

In new, hybrid ways of working, it is all the more important to be aware of people’s involvement. It is your task to ensure you take that extra step in terms of involvement. The work needs to be interesting and challenging, and with purpose. Leaders need to facilitate and coach. Staff want to be recognised for what they do and work in teams in which they feel their role suits their development.

Organisations in which this happens and where there is genuine interest in the ups and downs of its staff are almost always more successful in all areas.