How Curiosity Can Help Your Team to Think Beyond Hybrid

Hybrid-everything is the shiny new thing... until it's not. What can you do to take you and your team beyond the hybrid dream?

Managers everywhere are struggling to maintain team cohesion and productivity in hybrid work environments, balancing remote and in-office teams, communication barriers, "Zoom fatigue," and the differing preferences of employees regarding work settings. What if curiosity is your advantage to finding greater balance in your workplaces and achieving more Zen in your Zooms?

The Balancing Act of Remote Work and Team Cohesion:

Managers are now directors of a digital ensemble, trying to ensure everyone's playing in harmony even when they're miles apart. The struggle is real in maintaining that team spirit through a screen and ensuring productivity doesn't take a nosedive.

It's like trying to conduct a symphony with musicians who might be in their pajamas.

To face this challenge, many organizations have adopted hybrid or fully remote work models, especially after the pandemic. Yet, managing employees who work remotely brings unique challenges in terms of communication, team cohesion, and performance tracking.

The seemingly never-ending struggle to ensure productivity, maintaining team culture, and fostering collaboration without face-to-face interaction is tough. Not to mention, balancing the needs and preferences of employees who want flexible working arrangements versus those who prefer office settings can create friction.

Adapting to Technological Change and AI Integration:

With AI and new tech tools popping up faster than you can say "update," managers face the challenge of not just keeping up but also convincing the higher-ups to invest in these technologies.

Then, there's the fun part of rolling it out without causing a tech rebellion among the team. Imagine being a tech whisperer, translating "robot speak" into "human."

The Eternal Quest for Work-Life Balance and Mental Health:

Managers are now unofficial psychologists, trying to keep their team's morale up while also preventing burnout. It's a bit like being a circus juggler, keeping all the balls in the air – project deadlines, employee well-being, personal life, and, oh, their own sanity.

The spotlight on mental health has many managers navigating through empathy, support, and the tricky waters of privacy and professionalism.

Bonus Challenge!:

Let's not forget the minor inconvenience of micromanaging vs. autonomy. Managers must walk the tightrope between giving freedom and keeping control, often feeling like they're training dragons – too much fire (control), and you get burnt; too little, and they might just fly off to another castle!

Ok, so now that we've got all of that out of the way, what can you do about it?

And how does curiosity help?

Below, I outline a Curiosity-Based Thinking approach to hacking the harmony of hybrid working.

Curiosity-Based Thinking Activity: The Hybrid Harmony Hack

1. Curiosity Kick-off: Defining the Challenge with Curiosity

Curiosity Questions to Pique Engagement

• What if the challenge of hybrid work was an opportunity to create stronger teams than ever before?
• What if your team members were like musicians in a digital symphony? How would you help them play in harmony, even across different locations?
• What if you could solve Zoom fatigue by turning it into moments of creativity and connection?
• What if communication tools could be more about fostering team spirit than just transmitting information?
• What’s the most exciting thing about having a team that works remotely and in-office at the same time?

Encourage managers to reflect on these questions. The goal is to shift the perception of hybrid challenges from something to “deal with” into opportunities for innovation and team growth.

2. Deep Discovery: Exploring the Hybrid Team Dynamic

Discovery Phase to Build Insight and Context

• Have managers conduct a “Day in the Life” Discovery Session where they gather insights into how each team member operates remotely or in-office. This could include conducting short interviews asking:
• What’s your favorite part of working remotely?
• What’s the biggest challenge you face when working in a hybrid setting?
• What makes you feel connected to the team during the workday?
• How can team culture be strengthened in this work environment?

Using these insights, managers can map out the diversity of team preferences, work habits, and potential friction points to understand how to create harmony within the team.

3. Reframing Hybrid Struggles as Opportunities for Growth

Reframe Using Empathy and Creativity

• Reframe the tension between remote and in-office workers by turning it into a strength. For example:
• How can remote employees bring fresh perspectives or solutions that on-site employees may not see?
• Can in-office employees act as cultural ambassadors, spreading team spirit during virtual meetings?
• How can both groups mentor and support one another in ways that feel inclusive and impactful?

In this phase, managers can explore innovative solutions to Zoom fatigue, such as:

• Implementing “meeting-free” days or weeks.
• Hosting creative breaks during virtual meetings, such as having team members share personal stories, a fun fact, or even a moment of silence for reflection.
• Running short "What If...?" question-based icebreakers during meetings to reconnect and inject some curiosity into the day.

4. The Hybrid Team’s Heroic Journey: A Collaborative Storytelling Activity

Use Curiosity-Based Storytelling to Foster Team Spirit

You can connect personal curiosity with the universal elements of storytellingto guide your team through a Hero’s Journey exercise to foster collaboration and empathy. Here’s how:

• Ordinary World: Start by having each team member describe their "ordinary world" in the hybrid setting (e.g., working from home, commuting, etc.).
• Call to Adventure: Identify a shared challenge the team is facing—perhaps a big project or a need to improve collaboration.
• Crossing the Threshold: What are they doing now that they wouldn’t have done in a traditional work environment? (e.g., more creative ways of communicating or using digital tools).
• Meeting the Mentor: Each team member finds a mentor (either within the team or externally) to learn how to thrive in the hybrid environment.
• Return with the Elixir: The team collaboratively shares solutions and insights from their journey, creating new strategies to improve communication, foster creativity, and build cohesion.

This method of collaborative storytelling reinforces the idea that each team member’s journey, while different, contributes to a shared story of success.

5. Create a Hybrid Harmony Action Plan

Curiosity-Based Action Steps to Ensure Results

Once the exploration and reframing stages are complete, help project managers create a concrete action plan:

1. Consensus on Communication: Define how and when the team will communicate (e.g., daily check-ins, collaboration platforms).
2. Celebrate Wins: Incorporate regular celebrations of both personal and team wins—this could be as simple as acknowledging efforts in a weekly meeting or organizing virtual happy hours.
3. Hybrid Rituals: Create new team rituals that can be done remotely and in-office to maintain the company culture. These can be as simple as themed virtual background days or shared music playlists.
4. Wellness Wednesdays: Build in time for mental health checks, ensuring Zoom fatigue and burnout are actively addressed through scheduled breaks and flexibility.

The idea is to have each team member feel they are actively contributing to the cohesion and success of the team—regardless of location.

6. Curiosity A-Z Activity: Tools for Ongoing Exploration

For ongoing development, managers can use the Curiosity A-Z method:

• Assign each team member a letter of the alphabet and have them present a curiosity-driven idea for improving hybrid work (e.g., “A is for Adaptation—How can we adapt our communication tools to serve everyone?”).

This simple framework encourages creative thinking and helps sustain engagement over the long term.

The Curiosity-Based Thinking framework not only addresses the immediate struggles of hybrid work but also empowers managers and teams to continuously evolve their practices through curiosity, creativity, and collaboration.

Keep this cycle of discovery alive by revisiting these activities regularly!

Reach out if you'd like to start getting more out of your curiosity!

Stay curious!

Matt