High-performing teams are built from strong relationships. Post-COVID, how does and organization foster them?

Close relationships are integral to longevity, well-being, and happiness – and close relationships in the workplace, too, are integral to well-being: both for employees and for organizations. Companies are beginning to focus on employee well-being as a key factor in business success – but focusing on “well-being” without fostering open, productive relationships may not be the best strategy to get to the heart of the issue. The post-COVID years of technological and workplace advancement have shown us that teams can achieve just as much – if not more – when freed from the conventional idea of a ‘work desk.’ Work-life balance is becoming integral to employees, and for those working outside of their traditional office, it has become a state of being. So how is this changing workplace relationships and customs?

It is no secret that when individuals do not feel valued, prepared, or heard by their leaders, momentum is lost and relationships suffer. But the adage ‘management makes the job’ is only half the story. Workplace efficacy is achieved when teams foster open and meaningful connections between leaders and employees. Employee motivation drives company momentum, and that means employees need more than just positive relationships in the workplace.

To improve management strategies – in a long lasting, meaningful way – you need insight into what employees actually need, on an individual and team-level. Building a productive environment where positive relationships drive company momentum requires purposefully investing in employee knowledge, motivation, and organizational alignment. Fostering meaningful relationships in the workplace requires clear insight into all three. When these KMOs are aligned, workforces – in any field – strengthen.

All this is to say: if you are happy at work, you do better work. When an organization powers its goals by emphasizing strong, open-communication relationships between individuals and teams, people are nicer to each other. Employees learn faster, are more motivated, and do better work. Companies attract and retain more diverse workforces, and employees feel more comfortable being their authentic selves.

Obviously easier said than done.

So how, in an era of changing workplace customs, can organizations foster these types of connections?

Just as the 2020s have demonstrated that productivity in a digital environment is possible, they have also demonstrated the difficulty of maintaining meaningful, human connections between executives, directors, managers, and employees. With generational and technological gaps widening, the time for innovation is now – and harnessing the power of data is the easiest, most powerful way to bridge these gaps and illuminate the path from employee motivation to company momentum.

Consider having the ability to know about issues and a tool that can seed interventions, giving you direct and immediate access to an individual’s feedback for improvement, this is why RippleWorx is at the forefront of people analytics.

Measuring individuals' performance over time reveals actionable trends that teams can use to build knowledge, motivation, and organizational alignment – and the harmony of these three notes allows organizations to encourage meaningful connections, putting relationships at the center of work.

RippleWorx is a software engine that enables management in all types of workplaces to use data-driven insights to build more open-ended, productive relationships at each level of an organization. By measuring performance – and measuring knowledge, motivation, and organizational alignment – over time, RippleWorx’s automated intelligence can predict exactly how performance will improve, empowering employee readiness, increased retention, and advancement by giving management the tools they need to build strong relationships between departments. Its adaptive sensors trigger recommendations that show you where to put the most energy.

At their core, all organizations – from enterprise, to law enforcement, to education – need the same thing: a way to connect management to employees and address disconnect on an individualized level. RippleWorx offers this and more, allowing leaders to measure the “Pulse” of their organization and identify which changes will lead to the most success.

That’s the Ripple Effect in action.