Reinventing collaboration in times of Corona…

Today, in times when COVID-19 is turning our everyday lives upside down, I am experiencing a confusingly surreal picture.

Companies that have tended to struggle with home office regulations are moving their entire team to the home office overnight. Meetings that used to take place at the tables in meeting rooms are now being held virtually and my coaching sessions have also largely shifted to Zoom and the like.

What we can definitely no longer do is work with ready-made solutions

DOWNLOADING

to react to what is happening. The parameters have completely shifted.

The granulation of the ground we walk on has changed dramatically. It is as if we are running down a mountain and the solid ground in our path suddenly turns into loose rubble. To avoid losing our balance or falling down the slope, we pick up speed and pause.

SEEING

What has changed? How do I need to adjust my gait?

Once we have gained an overview, we move on and try out which technique and pace seem suitable

SENSING

to be able to continue running under the changed conditions.

However, our steps are now more cautious and deliberate. We pay more attention to where we step and make sure that we don’t lose sight of the others so that they don’t get hurt.

NOW – after a whirlwind of events – the majority of employees find themselves in their own four walls. Working from home has become a sobering reality. And now? Now it feels as if the solid ground has disappeared from under our feet and instead we are trying to find our footing on loose rubble.

Tighter conditions severely restrict our freedom of movement in daily life. Routine is a thing of the past. The usual stop at the bakery on the way to the subway is just as much a thing of the past as the lunch break with colleagues or the after-work beer with your buddies in the local pub.

Our need for closeness and belonging is just as strained these days as our need for structure and feedback.

What are we going to do now? Now that the daily exchange with colleagues and managers is a real challenge for people and technology? Quickly calling out a quick piece of information to a colleague or laughing heartily at a joke while getting a coffee from the kitchen is not an option at the moment.

The numerous conversations we’ve had with managers and employees over the last few days about the challenges and needs of this time show that this is not possible:

Agreements in all directions are now more important than ever. The quality of internal communication and transparency about the next steps within the company are of enormous value for morale and the sense of belonging.

Young people in particular with little life/work experience currently need not only the support of their managers, but above all the sustaining energy of the entire team.

I am currently sitting together with my clients in virtual chat rooms and together we are developing concepts to ensure a sense of belonging and support within a fragile environment.

An insight into measures that go down well:

• Team spirit: greeting the virtual team in the morning or making appointments via video chat for a coffee or cigarette break.
• Listening: Employees who make themselves available for conversations when cabin fever threatens or the ceiling is dangerously close.
• Share: Blog posts or photo boards about their own experience of home office time.
• Questions: Surveys in which employees’ experiences, fears and needs are asked anonymously in order to provide them with better support.
• Community: Wearing company shirts and caps with the company logo at virtual meetings.
• Humor: Cheering each other up or pulling each other’s leg. Nothing connects more than laughing together.

Apart from that, the formal rhythms retain their justification. Maintain the structure. In turbulent times, we need the anchors of our daily routines all the more.

Therefore, as usual, keep the

• regular meetings in the respective working groups
• Individual discussions in the set meeting rhythms

And hold regular and extraordinary information meetings in which you summarize the current situation and break it down for your company. In this way, you support the much-needed transparency and the strengthening team spirit.

Resist the temptation to replace meetings with written reports. Feeling and seeing your colleagues promotes a sense of belonging in times of mandatory home office. Especially because not everyone has a spacious apartment with a balcony or terrace.

The more we are present in the moment and feel what is happening with all our senses, the more we focus our energy in the here and now and can therefore act in an extremely concentrated and productive way. We are in a process of sensing and creating together (co-sensing and co-creating) and thus in a clear presence

PRESENCING.

What does this mean: being present in the here and now?

In a state of presencing, we strengthen the source of our own resources. The belief in ourselves that enables us to think openly. To open our hearts to ourselves and others and thus develop a will that forms the basis for constructive action.

We are constantly in a state of tension between presence and absence (ABSENCING). While in one state we find possibilities and inspiration, in the other we freeze in a lack of perspective.

Stay on the creative side of the field and start with yourself!

Turn your calendar into a source of structure! Plan your day.

• Start the day with a large glass of water and exercise/meditation
• Do not forgot your personal hygiene under any circumstances
• Make sure you eat healthy, fresh food
• Don’t postpone anything, stick to your appointments with yourself
• Take breaks
• Find an end. Working at home does not mean being available around the clock.

Many things that we have not thought about before, or that seemed normal or natural to us, now take on a new meaning.

Are you looking for answers where there are no questions yet?

Do you need strategies for which there are no fixed ideas yet?

Are you looking for perspectives instead of dead ends?

THE GOOD NEWS IS: You don’t have to do everything on your own.

I recommend that you do:

Let’s talk on the phone today and work together to tackle what is currently needed to give your team the support it needs and to set yourself up in the best possible way for what lies ahead.

Yours

Regina Reitinger