Allen Curve in a Pandemic

Does Allen exist online?

The conversation around engagement and communications with remote teams has been interesting this past year. According to the Allen Curve methodology of communications teams who are apart tend to disengage. Remote teams, who were once collaborative in the office, are caught in the quicksand of division.

Here are is a list of things you might want to try with your remote team:

• Webcam ON - Seeing one another helps even if there are a few choppy moments during your meeting.

• Daily stand ups - Increase frequency of your online meetings from weekly to daily. This builds consistency and consistency opens more opportunities to engage.

• Reduce the business chatter - Hello, we are in a pandemic! For Pete’s sake, try to empathize with the team by showing an understanding of the hardships that some might be faced with. Talk more about how chippy wags his tail when the delivery truck arrives and less about how we think we are going to move from complexity to simplicity.

• Prevention is key - Studies have shown that 6 months of disengagement takes 12 months to resolve. What are you waiting for ? A simple ‘thank-you’ or ‘hey there’ goes a long way for someone who has been working alone at home for more than a year.

• Fun is still fun - Your team needs regular fun activities to keep the energy levels up. Set up a weekly virtual coffee or a trivia night to celebrate a busy week. There are endless ideas available online an the golden rule is everyone must participate.

• Up skilling - For some of us this was a popular term but not a popular action item. New applied skills = better productivity. The time is now and there are thousands of amazing online courses available.

Some team members will react differently to the forced work from home policy so its important to increase the frequency of interaction with your team. See you on the other side!