Employee Engagement - 4 Ways to Improve Collaboration of a Global Workforce
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Human Resources professionals managing a global team for a mulitnational organization have unique challenges. Among them is fostering collegiality among co-workers in different geographies and time zones. However, uniting people, who come quite literally from different worlds, to pursue the same mission is vital to effective collaboration and innovation.
With this in mind, HR Exchange Network recently turned to HR and business leaders on Featured to find out how they are engaging global teams. Discover their advice for improving job satisfaction and improving collaboration of a global workforce:
Create Comfort
"One of the best ways to foster these exchanges is to give people a chance to connect about something other than work. Tools like Slack can make this easy by allowing you to create channels where people can share what they're reading, watching, or listening to lately.
For cohesion of specific teams, leaders can ask broad, fun questions to that group, such as getting people to tell stories about special family meals, weekend plans, favorite albums, or dream jobs they had as kids.
Strong collaboration requires a foundation of communication and openness, but you can create comfort with sharing by introducing low-stakes opportunities. HR leaders can do this for company-wide efforts and to build a larger company culture.
However, they should train managers and leaders to do this for business units or workgroups where introducing an HR staff member may introduce apprehension compared to the presence of their typical manager."-Geoff Whiting, Content Strategy Manager, Hubstaff
Plan Social Activities
"One actionable tip that HR leaders can implement is to encourage regular virtual team-building activities. These activities can include online games, virtual coffee breaks, or even language exchange programs.
Providing opportunities for employees to connect with each other on a personal level, regardless of their location, can help build a sense of community and encourage cultural exchange.
Better collaboration, increased innovation, and more productive and engaged team members have been observed when such activities were conducted."-Mark Damsgaard, Founder and Head of Client Advisory, Global Residence Index
Build Trust
"In today's digital landscape, where the focus is on remote work, the primary aim is to become an effective long-distance leader by promoting cultural exchanges within the global workforce. Research has led to emphasizing a core principle: trust-based management as the linchpin for fostering cultural exchanges.
This approach hinges on organizations placing unwavering trust in their teams, and cultivating a culture of trust, responsibility, and ownership among employees. To achieve this, organizations should establish clear expectations, facilitate transparent communication, and prioritize mental health.
This approach effectively nurtures mutual respect, empowerment, and global collaboration. When the workforce actively takes part in global projects involving individuals from diverse backgrounds, it naturally stimulates collaborative problem-solving.
This leads to a transition toward meaningful cultural exchanges, whether employees work remotely or in a hybrid capacity."-Barkha Rochwani, Leadership Development and L&D Consultant, NamanHR
READ: HR Guide to DEI
Offer Chances for Cultural Exchange
"To foster cultural exchanges among global remote workers and enhance collaboration, HR leaders can implement a 'Virtual Cultural Exchange Program.' This program pairs employees from different locations, encouraging them to engage in regular virtual meetings or collaborative projects.
HR can provide discussion prompts or project themes that revolve around cultural sharing, such as traditional recipes, festivals, or customs. This encourages employees to learn about each other's cultures as well as creates opportunities for cross-cultural understanding and bonding.
By making cultural exchange an integral part of remote work, organizations can enhance teamwork, creativity, and innovation among their global workforce, regardless of physical distances."-Sai Blackbyrn, CEO, Coach Foundation
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