Over the past year, the Emerging Stronger team have developed a series of tools to make it simple for L&D professionals to embrace evidence-informed tactics that improve business impact. In the Fourth of this series of “Making it Simple to Do the Right Thing”, Laura Overton dives into the benefits and steps to the Communication Plan Launch Tool.

Building awareness and setting expectations

According to LinkedIn’s latest Workplace Learning Report 2022, 7 in 10 learning leaders agree that over the last year they have become more strategic, are breaking down silos by working cross functionally and have their primary focus on skills.

This is great news! The challenge is that not everyone in their organisation is aligned with the L&D leader's focus! During the same time, 35% of L&D lamented that leaders still have traditional expectations about L&D that are difficult to change, and 42% of manager’s just aren’t making time for learning. What’s more, during covid, when individuals were hungry for online learning opportunities, 10% of remote workers  couldn’t find the learning that they needed.

It seems that the harder we work to become a better business enabler, the harder it is to be seen and heard!  

We may be on the way to becoming more market savvy, aligned to business and addressing mission critical requirements, but now is the time to become more marketing savvy. 

We need to be smarter and bolder at getting our message out! But at a time when we need them the most, fewer L&D teams possess the marketing skills we need (down to just under 2 in 5 in 2022) and only 1 in 3 organise resources so that they are easy to find!

The best time to hone and develop those marketing skills is at the start of something new! Your latest L&D project deserves to be seen and needs engagement if it is to deliver impact, But in the battle for attention, you are going to need a battle plan!

This is where the Communication Launch Plan Tool comes in. Who needs to hear your message, what do they need to do, why should they care and who do they listen to the most? These are all questions at the heart of this tool. Work on those and you’ll soon be capturing the hearts, minds and engagement of your toughest audiences.

Here we will guide you through the benefits of using the Communication Plan Launch Tool – with some handy hints on how to best incorporate this tool into your and your manager’s toolkits.

Communication Plan Launch Tool: Emerging Stronger

This tool uses proven marketing techniques to help you raise participant awareness and adoption of your new L&D initiatives. It helps you plan launch communication that:

·       Increase motivation by clarifying the ‘What’s in it for me’

·       Improve adoption by simplifying the getting started process

·       Increase credibility by harnessing the influence of stakeholders

·       Create energy and excitement by bringing the right message, in the right place, to the right people at the right time

You have implemented a state of the art  learning offering, curated the most helpful content resources and designed the best learning experiences to support learning transfer. But this detailed effort will not deliver results if  your workforce doesn’t know what’s available, why it’s important or how to get started. 

That’s why implementing a robust communication plan is an essential element of success. That’s where this tool can help.

The tool has templates to take you through 3 parts:

Part 1 – Target your audience and objectives

Target audience - capture who you need to talk to for this plan to be successful and the goals each audience has 

Use your audience’s goals to develop the right objectives for your communication messages

Message outline -  explore the value and relevance of your program for each of your audience (note what is important to you probably isn’t important to them!)

Plan the resources you need to connect to each audience

Establish the call to action – specifically what you need each audience to do!

Delivery method: - outline the communication routes that will  resonate the most with each audience

The communication frequency – what’s needed for message to stick?

Download the tool for guidance notes and templates for each part of Communication Plan Launch Tool. 

The Communication Plan Launch Tool isn’t just for launching a great program, it’s a framework of thinking to ensure that you work with the right message and the right teams to achieve the results that you need.

The Communication Plan Launch Tool keeps us focused on the messages that will grab attention and build engagement. A great communications plan can also remove the friction of engaging busy individuals with the right learning opportunities at the right time.

With this tool, it’s best to think like a marketer. This means not being afraid to experiment with the way that you connect and communicate but to use data to adapt and refine. Watch the engagement data on your dashboard and tweak your communications plans as the data dictates. Remember that repeating the communication successes of one initiative does not guarantee success of your next one. 

In this series we have seen that most of the tools we’ve discussed work at their best when combined with other complementary tools. Remember the fertilizer analogy from our defining needs tool? But they all work just fine on their own as well. 

The Communication Plan Launch is one tool in your toolkit that we do not recommend being used in isolation. The best communication plans are guaranteed to fail when the offering is poorly conceived or just isn’t relevant to the audience concerned. 

Successful marketing strategy involves balancing all the P’s: People, product, place , price, proof points and process. These have to work together if promotion is to deliver its magic.

We absolutely recommend that you use the other tools in this series to create the foundations that make your communication plans fly!  

Use the Communication Plan Launch with other tools in this series:

Needs Analysis Tool: Use this to clarify the pains and gains that you need your learning offering to support – vital insight for tapping into the what’s in it for me of your audience.

Curation Decision Tool: Your one stop shop library may seem attractive on paper but can be overwhelming to busy workers. Use the curation decision tool to target your solution to meet the needs and hone your communication messaging.

Power Hour Tool: Managers are our biggest influencers! Use this tool to bring them into the process, sustain momentum and maintain communication.

Workplace Communities Tool: These are the spaces where conversations continue and movements are born – Use this tool to build them into your launch plan and reshare the stories shared here to keep your communications plan alive.

You may also be interested in the other blogs in this series:
Making it simple to conduct a needs analysis conversation, where Shannon Tipton covers delivering valuable content with the Needs Analysis Tool.
Making it simple to curate with impact, which dives into moving beyond learning aggregation with the Curation Decision Tool.
Making it simple to engage with managers, Laura Overton talks through improving engagement with managers with The Power Hour Tool.
Making it simple to improve impact, Laura Overton walks through a powerful and adaptive resource, the Improving Impact Tool.

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Ready to elevate the marketing reach and engagement of your learning? L&D expert, Laura Overton explores the Communication Plan Launch Tool.

Making it simple to market learning and increase engagement

Making it simple to market learning and increase engagement

Creating a healthy school environment. Managing data and processes. Cultivating high expectations, quality teacher instruction and leadership in staff. Sound familiar? These are just some of the facets that educational leaders focus on to maintain the success of a school. 

Our wonderful content partners have brought the goods this month, with quality and engaging learning for teachers and leaders to learn valuable processes, understand new mindsets and implement frameworks and successful methodologies in schools with key takeaways and effective pedagogy.

Which awesome content partners have we added to the platform? 

Tracey Ezard is a keynote speaker, author and educator, who is dedicated to inspiring educators to collaborate and thrive in the workplace. Her course, Ferocious Warmth: School Leaders Who Inspire and Transform is based on her latest book and uncovers strategies for becoming a balanced leader who can positively influence schools, and teachers, to change and improve their practice.

HundrED is a global education non profit that advocates for a child-centric approach to teaching and personalised, passion-based learning. They believe that visionary leadership at every level of the education system is essential. HundrED have released a series of videos from influential educational figures including Sir Ken Robinson, Andy Hargreaves and Sugata Mitra covering topics from assessment to the learning environment.

Adam Voigt, the founder of Real Schools has developed a series of videos for leaders to insight a positive culture within their school setting. Adam’s stories and genuine nature will surely inspire you to transform and enhance your school culture through a focus on what really counts. 

MEG Languages focusses on the practical steps schools can take to become Globally Competent, to develop Global Citizens and to offer engaging Global Education. MEG has released two engaging courses on global competency and leaders can utilise the MEG whole school framework within the course to develop Globally Competent staff and students.

Which great content partners are coming soon to EC Premium?

Nicole Dyson at Future Anything has built a ‘future ready’ framework which supports youth in schools to turn their passions into innovative ideas. She is currently creating a course for teachers to lead authentic learning experiences that are Australian Curriculum aligned and connects students to the real world.

Sisters Bianca and Kritz at The Big Sister Experience offer school workshops and professional development for teachers with the goal of becoming the lead providers of life-education and wellbeing support pre-teen and teen girls. In their course, you can expect to uncover ethical and moral issues as well as tools and strategies for ensuring girls  live a happy and healthy life.

Story Factory is a not-for-profit creative writing centre for young people in under-resourced communities across NSW. In their two upcoming professional development courses, they will uncover practical and versatile techniques for implementing effective creativity in the classroom and strategies to engage disengaged learners.

Located just above the Central Coast in NSW, Tuggerah Lakes Berkeley Vale Campus is a 7-10 school which has partnered with EC for four years. EC supports several teams within the school, focussing on classroom collaboration, differentiation of student learning, school attendance and supporting Aboriginal education through cultural awareness and data insights. 

The co-creation of ‘The Drop’ has been one of the major successes of the partnership. The Drop is a bus that is used to take students to and from school, and it has been designed to be an engaging, exciting and supportive journey for students with the aim of improving attendance across the school.

With 100 staff online and an outstanding engagement rate of 83% so far into their first month of launch on EC Premium, we are ecstatic to have this amazing and forward-thinking school on our platform!

Gabbi brings years of education campaign and communications experience to the EC team. She has served as the campaign manager of Microsoft’s Imagine Cup Junior, she has managed a range of future-focussed education initiatives and now works to support schools to succeed with the EC Premium platform. Gabbi holds multiple degrees with distinction across International Studies, Communications and Media from the University of New South Wales and Madrid’s Universidad Carlos III. When she’s not supporting schools and social campaigns, Gabbi loves all things sport, reading and cooking! 

EC Premium gives you unlimited access to world-class PL for K-12 educators, by subscription.

With a school or organisation subscription to EC Premium your entire staff can access online content and courses from the best K-12 provides and thought-leaders anytime, anywhere.

In September we are taking a deep dive into the fundamentals of educational leadership, and uplifting educators to become the inspiring leaders we need in our schools.

The EC Premium Content Insider – September 2022 edition

Whether you admire their ability to cope with change during the chaos of a global pandemic or are confused by how on earth they determine what’s ‘funny’ online, Gen Z are undoubtedly becoming more influential in all aspects of culture, including the workplace. 

You may find yourself thinking, “aren’t Gen Z mostly just young kids?” And sure, the youngest members of Gen Z are only 10 years old. However, the oldest members are turning 25 in 2022 and are already well acquainted with the workforce. In fact, according to recent data by McCrindle, Gen Z will make up a huge 27% of the workforce by 2025. 

So, why would you want members of Gen Z as part of your workplace? What do they have to offer that previous generations can learn from?

Everybody knows how much Gen Z loves sharing their thoughts online, whether it be a daily activity log or in-depth movie reviews. Typically, previous generations are reluctant to leave a formal review unless something is either particularly good or particularly bad. However, members of Gen Z famously share almost every aspect of their life online, including their thoughts on products and experiences, whether good, bad, or simply mediocre. This attitude extends to their experiences in the workplace too. 

Businesses can use this ‘review everything’ mindset to their advantage. In other words, Gen Z leaving reviews or talking about a business online can be free publicity. It’s just about impossible to ensure every bit of publicity is good. However, by embracing the ideas and workplace desires of Gen Z, rather than condemning or ignoring them, the public relations pendulum is much more likely to swing in your favour. 

Gen Z also have the potential to bring an incredible work ethic and dedication to employers. When they feel valued in the workplace, Gen Z then values the business in return; not just because they get paid to, but because they believe and trust in that organisation’s goals. When this happens, business-changing ideas and exciting new projects are born. 

Before you bring out the brand-new pool table for the lunchroom and organise elaborate flower deliveries to their desks, remember: the most effective ways to become an employer for choice for Gen Z do not revolve around trivial things. The keys to the hearts of Gen Z workers are right in front of workplace leaders and have the potential to positively affect all members of your team, no matter their generation. 

With this in mind, let’s take a look at some practical steps workplace leaders can take to become an employer of choice for Gen Z. 

At first glance, it may seem logical to assume that the more a job pays, the more appealing it is for potential employees. While fair pay is certainly important, there’s something that Gen Z crave much more: company values. In fact, data from Aurecon revealed that 49% of Gen Z respondents said “serving a purpose and leaving a positive legacy for future generations” was in their top 3 characteristics they look for in a workplace. 

One of the easiest ways to make your values known to current and potential employees is to feature them on your website and social media. Displaying your company’s values in a location where everyone who comes across your content is likely to see them, creates an impression that you have nothing to hide and are dedicated to living those values. 

Of course, there’s more to workplace values than just saying what they are. Workplaces must follow through with them if they want to become an employer of choice for Gen Z. Does your company value work-life balance? Show your employees by providing opportunities for them to take reasonable time off. You can also lead by example and take that time off yourself as a workplace leader. 

Furthermore, Gen Z also appreciate flexibility, authenticity, and agency in the workplace. In fact, they thrive at work when they are trusted to do their jobs well without being micro-managed by workplace leaders. 

Does your company have close ties to a particular social cause or charity? Provide statistics about exactly what your company has contributed or discuss the ways in which you’ve actively brought attention to these causes in the workplace.  

When potential employees as well as current employees can see that a company cares about something other than creating the most revenue possible, it creates a sense of psychological safety at work. Employees are much more likely to approach workplace leaders with honesty if they feel assured that they are already valued. 

One of the things that defines Gen Z is that they are the first generation that doesn’t remember what life was like before the internet was commonplace. Being surrounded by ever-evolving technology has meant that members of Gen Z have naturally evolved to become quick learners and early adopters of technology. Technology is important in their everyday lives, so it’s only natural that technology is important in their working lives too. 

At some stage in our lives, most of us have probably had to deal with the annoyance of having a slow computer that doesn’t quite do what you need it to do. It’s annoying enough in everyday life, but even more so in the workplace. Tasks that should take 15 minutes, suddenly take double that or even longer. That’s no way to work! 

While investing in up-to-date technology in the workplace may seem like quite a costly endeavour at first glance, the benefits far outweigh the costs. Most obviously, when employees have access to technology that works consistently and efficiently, they’re able to be more productive in the workplace rather than sitting around waiting for something to load.  

Providing up-to-date technology can also act as physical proof for employees that their workplace cares enough to invest financially in them outside of their salary. Employees are far more like to stay with an employer they can see cares about them, rather than one that just says they do.  

Provide opportunities for continuous learning

Members of Gen Z have grown up in a competitive environment and are also entering the workforce at an extremely competitive time. How exhausting! It doesn’t have to be though. What Gen Z are really seeking during this time is stability and security.  

How can they be sure they’re keeping up-to-date with industry knowledge and trends? What can they do to gain a competitive edge that might just help get them over the line for that highly sought-after promotion? 

When workplaces provide tools for employees to continuously learn in the workplace, whether it be through in-person presentations or an online learning portal, they help to provide the stability and security that members of Gen Z so desperately desire. 

In addition to providing the tools for continuous workplace learning opportunities, you can also encourage employees to complete this learning during quieter times. Or, you could dedicate a specific time for employees to participate in workplace learning. By doing so, you are demonstrating a level of commitment to employee learning that is impressive to members of Gen Z. 

Another way for workplace leaders to further encourage these upskilling opportunities is to actively participate in workplace learning themselves. When employees see that their leaders participate in continuous learning, it demonstrates that learning is valuable to leaders and the company overall, rather than just being something they say is valuable. 

Gen Z are already becoming game-changers in the world of work and this trend shows no signs of stopping anytime soon. Members of Gen Z bring a refreshing tenacity and hunger for knowledge that makes them an asset to any workplace. Their desire to ask for what they deserve and their ability to champion their workplace’s values and ethics is something from which all generations can benefit. Why wouldn’t you want to be an employer of choice for the generation that will make up the future of the workforce? 

For more insights, be sure to subscribe to the Go1 newsletter to stay on top of all the latest L&D trends. Or, you can book a demo today to find out how Go1 can help with your team’s learning needs. 

Gen Z are undoubtedly becoming more influential in all aspects of culture, including the workplace. But what have they got to offer and what do they value? Here, we dive into some practical steps workplace leaders can take to become an employer of choice for Gen Z. 

How to be an employer of choice for Gen Z

A learning management system (LMS) is a great tool that allows you to create, manage, distribute and monitor all of your business’s training materials and eLearning courses. It allows both your business and your employees to organize and access training quickly and easily, making it an invaluable tool for employee development.

But how do you calculate the ROI of a learning management system so you can be confident it’s worth investing time, energy, and money into one? In this post, we’re going to take an in-depth look at LMS ROI, including what you should consider when making calculations and how you can maximize the ROI of your LMS.

When it comes to assessing the ROI of an LMS, there are three main areas to consider:

Does it contribute to improving business performance?

Your LMS should enable you to answer “yes” to each of these questions, with the first area also contributing toward the other two.

Most business decisions are swayed by whether or not something will make your business money - and utilizing a learning management system is no different.

An LMS provides your business with a fast, simple, and convenient way to offer your employees the chance to develop their skills and grow within your organization. When employees grow, they are more likely to find new ways to help your business make more money.

Every business needs to watch how it spends its money, so long as it doesn’t come at the expense of growth and development - nobody appreciates it when corners are cut and standards slip.

However, that’s not to say that money can’t be saved on top of training and learning. Not only can the process of learning via an LMS save your business money over in-person training, but the skills and knowledge learned can contribute toward your business saving money in other ways. Even when you take into consideration the cost of learning management systems, this money can be recouped by saving money elsewhere.

eLearning is also a valuable time-saving resource and can help train multiple employees and new starters all at the same time, from anywhere, at different stages of their careers.

When your business utilizes an LMS and enables your employees to learn via affordable and convenient eLearning courses, it benefits your employees in many ways - which in turn also benefits your business.

Key business benefits of an LMS include greater productivity thanks to employees’ improved problem-solving skills, proactivity, communication, and strategic thinking. These all combine so you can improve procedures and processes, and ultimately deliver a faster, more high-quality service to your customers.

Calculate time savings over traditional training

In any business, time is a valuable resource - one that many employees don’t have in abundance. For that reason, anything that can save time should be seriously considered.

Training can often interfere with employees’ productivity, because it takes them away from their day-to-day responsibilities. However, it can be a two-edged sword, because training is also critical to employees’ development.

In-person training can take up a lot of time. When you consider travel costs and time away from their daily work, the hours (or even days) soon add up.

However, with an LMS, self-directed learning allows employees to fit learning around other responsibilities. That means learning can be done during periods of downtime, during short self-appointed sessions, or even during the morning commute. That way, productivity isn’t affected and there is no impact on the day-to-day running of your business.

Consider savings vs traditional tutors/lecturers

As well as saving your employees time, eLearning also saves your business money. With online courses, the course materials have already been produced by industry experts, so there’s no need for a traditional tutor or lecturer in a traditional classroom environment.

eLearning is also easily scaled, so whether you need to provide training to five employees or five hundred, this is much easier to orchestrate - and can also come with additional cost-saving.

Not only is an LMS a useful tool for employee development, but it also helps improve retention rates. When an employee feels like their career is beginning to stagnate and there is little chance for growth and progression, they’re far more likely to seek alternate employment and leave the business.

Investing in your employees enables them to feel valued and increases productivity. This provides them with a greater level of job satisfaction, which means they’re unlikely to want to move on. Recruitment is a long and expensive process, but losing top talent can cost a business in so many other ways. Developing your staff with the help of an LMS contributes toward holding on to top-performing employees.

It’s important to consider that certain learning management systems may come with limitations that means they’re not compatible with other tools or software. Because of this, the LMS you select may cost you additional time and money to ensure compatibility.

Before you decide on your LMS ensure it integrates well with your other processes. Or, if it doesn’t, does the value the LMS provides outweigh the additional costs that may come with it?

Look at KPIs and productivity following training

One of the biggest points to consider when calculating your LMS’s ROI is how it contributes to employee productivity and KPIs. It’s vital that, in order for your business to see value in an LMS, that training is effective enough to contribute toward improving delivery.

Consider the following questions and whether the answers can be attributed to the LMS:

Has there been an increase in productivity?

Have there been fewer issues and mistakes?

Have there been fewer missed deadlines, or shortened timelines?

Are customers and clients more satisfied?

If yes, then which training modules have resulted in these successes? If there have been improvements in some areas but not others, what additional training can employees take to continue their development?

For more information check out our blogs on measuring the impact of employee training and improving ROI metrics to showcase L&D’s value.

Calculate additional work time saved by reducing learning time

In-person training is time-consuming, even if it doesn’t involve any travel. When employees take prolonged periods away from their responsibilities it’s known as lost production time - and this time can add up fast.

eLearning encourages employees to learn as and when they have the time and capacity to do so, and therefore greatly reduces lost production time. Whether this is during quiet periods, personal development sessions, or even on the commute, it has less impact on productivity than other forms of training.

Not all learning management systems cost, but those that do often have a greater range of tools and features that support learning and administration. Because of this, many businesses choose to use an LMS that costs, rather than a free version.

When looking at costs, make sure you consider all the variables and the overall cost of implementation. These include support, data migration, and training.

Calculate the costs of running the platform

The cost of a learning management system doesn’t necessarily stop with implementation. Depending on the size of your organization, particularly if your business has thousands of employees, you may need additional support to help deal with LMS administration tasks.

If your business produces its own training materials, will you need to purchase additional authoring software and someone to write the copy, and produce the graphics and videos?

You should also ensure that costs won’t rise dramatically as your business grows and more users are added to the LMS. Are there hidden costs or add-ons that may mean your chosen LMS may soon not be a viable option? Some LMSs also charge a monthly fee for certain features, so make sure you’re aware of this.

Looking to maximize the ROI on your LMS? Here are a few tips to get the most of your organization’s eLearning:

Make sure it’s easy to navigate and accessible across multiple devices

Make sure employees know who to contact if they have questions about your LMS

Show your employees the advantages of your LMS, and don’t just rely on it for mandatory training such as first aid or fire safety

Show employees the impact their learning has

Make sure your LMS aligns with your company values and includes your branding and tone of voice

Provide a library of content and courses that will increase productivity and upskill employees of all levels

Encourage social learning and collaboration

Incentivize learning and introduce gamification to make learning more rewarding

Go1’s courses are compatible with a wide range of learning management systems

Looking to get the most out of your LMS? Go1 has a wide range of courses available to access right now. For more information, schedule a demo with a member of our team today.

How do you calculate the ROI of a learning management system so you can be confident it’s worth investing time, energy, and money? Dive in to take an in-depth look at LMS ROI.

How to calculate the ROI of your LMS

How do you calculate the ROI of a learning management system so you can be confident it’s worth investing time, energy, and money? Dive in to take an in-depth look at LMS ROI. 

Building strong relationships at work is vital for any team's happiness, togetherness, and productivity. Think back to a job you’ve had where that one teammate would constantly get on your nerves. Maybe they wouldn’t stop talking while you were trying to focus. Or perhaps you had to pick up their slack and take on extra work. Whatever it was, most of us likely have a story of a colleague or manager who rubbed you the wrong way and made you dread coming in to work the next day.  

Ask yourself: did that improve your performance, or were you watching the clock, counting the seconds until you could get out of there? Whereas disconnected teams with poor interpersonal relationships make work feel like a slog, the most connected teams form strong bonds and look forward to logging on each day.

You don’t have to be best friends with your colleagues or think of them as a second family. However, a connected team built on open communication and mutual respect is essential. Fostering this connectivity is something that every organisation should strive for. In a remote work environment, where the threats of isolation, loneliness, and disconnection are higher, strengthening these relationships becomes doubly important. 

With this in mind, we’ll explore the ins and outs of building strong relationships in a remote work environment. We’ll start by analysing the challenges of building strong relationships while working from home, before asking whether remote work has strengthened team relationships, and finally outlining three ways to build strong remote relationships. 

The challenges of building strong relationships while working from home

While working from home has had appreciable, far-reaching benefits for most employees, one of the key challenges of remote work is building and maintaining strong relationships with your colleagues. 

For instance, Buffer’s 2022 State of Remote Work Report found that 52% of people who started working remotely due to COVID-19 feel less connected to their co-workers. 30% say that it has had no impact, while, on a positive note, 18% feel more connected. 

Additionally, Buffer’s report found that 24% of people struggle with loneliness while working remotely, while 17% say that ‘difficulties with collaboration and communication’ is a major challenge. 

A similar study by LiveCareer found that 37% of remote workers think that collaboration and communication are significant challenges. Moreover, research by HowNow discovered that more than two-thirds of workers (67%) feel disconnected from their colleagues when working from home and 42% feel lonely. 

Thus, while working remotely offers a plethora of benefits, including reduced stress levels, greater flexibility, and less time spent commuting, it is not without its challenges. Ensuring employees remain connected and engaged while simultaneously staving off loneliness should be a top priority for remote-first teams. To help your team achieve this, we’ll look at how remote work can strengthen relationships. 

Has remote work strengthened team relationships? 

While working remotely is not without its challenges, for most workers, the benefits have far outweighed the drawbacks. From increased happiness to more supported employees, we’ll take you through how remote work has strengthened team relationships. 

A study by Tracking Happiness found that people who work from home full-time are 20% happier on average than in-person workers. Likewise, a survey by CNBC and SurveyMonkey found that remote workers have a Workforce Happiness Index score of 72 out of 100. 

Not only does working remotely increase happiness  —  it also significantly reduces stress. Research shows that 53% of employees would feel stressed if their employers required them to return to the office. To emphasise this point, Limeade found that “there was not a single employee that did not have any anxiety about returning to the office/worksite.”

It follows that happy, stress-free workers are significantly more likely to build strong interpersonal relationships!

According to ADP Research Institute, two-thirds of remote workers feel their teams are highly supportive, compared to less than half of on-site employees (47%). 

These findings make sense, as Buffer’s 2022 State of Remote Work Report found that 97% of employees want to continue working remotely in some capacity and would recommend remote work to others. 

It’s no surprise that workers feel more supported when they feel employers are listening to their needs. So, fostering a supportive environment means that remote teams can build stronger relationships.

Working remotely can also improve productivity. 75% of virtual teams say remote collaboration allows them to be more effective, while 85% of businesses think they are more productive thanks to flexible working policies. 

A study by Stanford confirmed this, finding remote workers are 13% more productive than their in-office counterparts. 

Again, it makes sense that happy, productive teams are more likely to be engaged and connected. 

According to the Future of Work Survey by PwC, executives (77%) and employees (72%) agree that there is a high level of trust between leaders and employees in remote work environments. 

Likewise, Buffer finds that 93% of employees believe their organisation trusts them to work remotely.

Unsurprisingly, fostering a high degree of trust is critical to building connected teams. 

Research by Microsoft finds that, since working remotely, 39% of people are more likely to be their full, authentic selves at work and 31% are less likely to feel embarrassed if their home life shows up at work. 

To underscore this point, 17% of people have cried in front of a co-worker while working remotely, while 20% have met their colleagues' pets or family, thereby building deeper connections.

As Microsoft explains, “people who interacted with their co-workers more closely than before not only experienced stronger work relationships, but also reported higher productivity and better overall wellbeing.” 

As a result, Miro finds that 32% of employees think their relationship with their manager has improved since working from home. 

Further, 25% say their relationship with their colleagues has improved, while 21% say their relationship with peers on other teams has improved — concrete proof that you can still create connected teams while working remotely. 

Finally, but perhaps most importantly, remote work doesn’t just help you build strong relationships with colleagues — it can also strengthen your relationship with loved ones. 

Miro’s research finds that people report improved relationships with their spouse/partner (49%), young children (62%), and friends and extended family (30%). 

Most likely, this is because workers have more free time to spend with loved ones. Buffer finds that 67% of employees say ‘flexibility in how I spend my time’ is the biggest benefit of remote work. 

What’s more, 76% of employees now want flexibility in where they work, and 93% want flexibility in when they work. It’s easy to understand why employees want more flexibility, given how much working remotely has improved their relationships with loved ones. 

While it may seem obvious, emphasising clear, ongoing communication is a surefire way to build a connected remote team. As mentioned, 37% of remote workers think collaboration and communication are significant challenges. 

So, what can remote teams do to overcome this challenge? To start with, ask yourself: what does clear communication look like for my team? Every team will be different, but a few tips include: 

Daily written check-ins, where each team member outlines their priorities for the day

Daily round-ups, celebrating that day’s wins and accomplishments 

Regular ‘social’ events, such as virtual games on a Friday afternoon 

Again, every team will be different — clear communication for one team might feel like a total overload for another. So, the most important tip is to be aware of each team member's individual needs and foster an environment of open, honest communication where everyone feels comfortable reaching out and asking questions. 

Mental health support can be a tricky balancing act when working remotely. On the one hand, Addeco finds that 42% of workers feel anxiety about returning to the office. In contrast, HowNow finds that 47% of remote workers experience anxiety. 

In other words, there is no catch-all solution. Some employees find that remote work greatly aids their mental health, while others find it far more challenging. 

One thing that a majority of workers (74%) agree on is that their company should increase the focus on mental health and staff wellbeing. Unfortunately, only 55% of employees feel their company cares about their mental health. These findings send a clear message to employers: step up your mental health and wellbeing support, particularly for remote teams.

Building strong relationships at work is vital for any team's happiness, togetherness, and productivity. With this in mind, we’ll explore how to build strong relationships in a remote work environment.

Building strong relationships in a remote work environment

Building strong relationships at work is vital for any team's happiness, togetherness, and productivity. With this in mind, we’ll explore how to build strong relationships in a remote work environment. 

Please note that this article discusses suicidal ideation and may be sensitive content to some readers. 

In Australia, today is R U OK? Day (while September 10th is globally recognized as Suicide Awareness Day). R U OK? Day highlights the impact a simple question could have on someone who is struggling with their mental health.  

Within a workplace context, a culture where everyone feels safe to ask and answer this question speaks volumes of the psychological safety supporting its people.  

With the intent to continue empowering organizations beyond the important days that are recognized this week, we will explore three essential layers of suicide awareness and prevention within a workplace. These are:

By including mental health awareness training as a part of your organization’s ongoing L&D program, you can empower not only those who are struggling but their peers as well to recognize the early signs of low mental health. 

Rolling out learning that contains sensitive subject material must always be done with consideration and supportive structures in place. Stigma reduction from effective education can  improve supportive behaviours within the entire team. Additionally, stigma reduction training can also increase the preventative steps taken by employees who are struggling with suicidal ideation or their mental health. 

Mental health awareness and education must be included at all points of an employee’s lifecycle and workplace learning journey. From onboarding to skills development, mental health education empowers not only the learner personally, but the depth of their positive impact on the organization.  

Individual awareness of the importance of mental health has improved leaps and bounds (particularly within the context of the last three years). However, there is still a ‘workplace wellbeing gap’.  

September 8th is R U OK? Day, providing the opportunity to make space for impactful conversations. To empower the wellbeing of your organization this article explores the three layers of suicide awareness and prevention within a workplace.

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