Genetically engineered osmosis
Leadership by osmosis was a bad phrase pre-pandemic. It suggested someone was lazy. Good traits don't just magically rub off from one person to another, right?
But looking back, maybe we were too hard on osmosis.
Biologically, osmosis means molecules passing from one cell to an adjacent cell through a semipermeable membrane.
In the business setting, osmosis is, "the process of gradual or unconscious assimilation of ideas, knowledge, etc."
Gradual. Unconscious.
This was a vastly under-appreciated benefit of the physical office.
How did you get to be a better leader??I sat beside Gina for five years and noticed how she treated her team.
How do you know the product so well??I worked across from Henrik and watched how he used it.
How do you negotiate so well with our suppliers??We played golf every time I’d go visit them.
How did you come up with that brilliant idea??Karin and I had the same argument in the meeting room every week for six months until it suddenly clicked.
There are a lot of semipermeable membranes in physical offices.
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Membranes in a digital workplace aren’t semipermeable.?They aren’t even octo-permeable (made that up).
Osmosis doesn’t happen unconsciously in a digital workplace. You’ve got to drill holes in the solid digital membranes.
-You invite teammates to join your next client Zoom call.
-You have a forum to share your ups and downs from the day.
-You create a digital room where people can do focused work for 45 minutes together and then relax and chat.
-You use apps to serendipitously connect people on a video call.
Those opting for the hybrid model aren’t off the hook. Unconscious osmosis will only work for those who come to the office every day.
Osmosis wasn’t quite as bad as we thought, and now that we don’t have it, we’ve got to figure out how to get it back.
What’s working for you?