How do you maintain trust and transparency in a remote or hybrid work environment?

Trust has always been a positive force in the workplace, but today it’s a game changer. In a hybrid working model, trust plays a part in almost every decision managers and employees make.

In fact, the Capgemini Research Institute’s recent report,?The Future of Work, reveals a trusted work culture to be one of the four core building blocks for the new hybrid working paradigm. The power of trust is striking: according to?research from the Harvard Business Review, people at high-trust companies report:

• 106% more energy at work
• 50% higher productivity
• 40% less burnout and
• 13% fewer sick days

Yet according to Capgemini's Future of Work report, 38% of managers are skeptical of remote workers, and nearly half of all employees (48%) feel micromanaged.

So how do leaders foster a culture of trust at work, and what strategies most effectively address the challenges of leading a hybrid workforce? Read on to learn the key elements of workplace trust, plus concrete steps for enhancing trust with your employees.

Forging the key elements of trust

To further explore the building blocks of a trust-based work culture, Capgemini analysed close to 500,000 employee comments from across the group. Cross-referencing their results with external research, they concluded that trust-based relationships between managers and employees rest on three pillars:

Empowerment:?giving employees the opportunity to step up and be responsible for their own tasks, to make their own decisions within a well-defined scope, and to decide flexibly and autonomously how and when they work, with the support of their management.

As Anne Lebel, Chief Human Resources Officer at Capgemini states in?Conversations for Tomorrow, “In a virtual environment, trust is developed by empowering team members to take ownership of their ideas and their work and enabling flexibility.”

Empathy:?the ability to put oneself in another person’s shoes and understand how they feel, while recognising that people interpret and handle situations differently.

Key to empathy is listening and caring while intentionally building relationships that allow concerns and mistakes to be shared openly.

Authenticity:?creating confidence with other people that they are interacting with the real you. This pillar also includes honesty and transparency, which means sharing important information, communicating clear expectations and goals, and providing honest, constructive feedback.

Trust is a two-way street. Leaders who learn how to effectively leverage empowerment, empathy and authenticity enjoy higher levels of trust from their employees and greater productivity. When managers learn how to instill employees with autonomy, the results are striking: employees feel better, work better, and feel the confidence to suggest creative and innovative solutions. There are many paths forward, but their analyses – looking at their own workplace and at working trends more broadly – reveal four key spheres of actions for managers to build high-trust cultures:

Supporting & Caring

As flexible working blurs boundaries between professional and personal life, employees are more likely to view their managers as part of their support systems.

To show support, first and foremost: take a step back and tap into the genuine feelings of care you have for your employees. Take time to listen and support them and be especially mindful about employees’ wellbeing.

Encourage employees to take breaks from work to recharge –?employees who take breaks every 90 minutes report a 30% higher level of focus at work. Pay close attention to signs of burnout (for example, irritability, sudden changes in behaviour), which are harder to notice among remote workers.

Relationship building

Without the spontaneous encounters of the physical workplace, many employees start to feel disconnected and isolated from the community, and thus feel less innate trust for each other.

Trust is built by getting to know each other, through pleasant interactions and cooperation. For managers, that relationship building now requires additional mindfulness.

Take time to interact socially with employees – discuss topics other than work – and ensure that employees take time to interact with each other. Team rituals are more important than ever, so schedule quick but regular group activities and find creative ways to celebrate successes and milestones as a team. Above all, make sure that routines are equally accessible to everyone, whether working at the office or from home.

Fairness & Inclusion

When some employees spend more time in the office than others, that gives rise to possible unfairness, for example, due to proximity bias – a tendency to believe that the people we see working are working more, coupled with an instinctive preference towards those people.

It is thus crucial for managers to ensure that all employees are presented with equal resources, attention and opportunities, whether they work at home or in the office, standard or irregular hours. Managers should also make efforts to regularly reflect on their own behaviour to check for unconscious biases, and to connect with employees who they don’t see as frequently in person.

Transparency & Communication

Since not all employees work at the same time or in the same place, it is important to ensure that everyone has equal access to all information – a task best achieved by communicating often and via various channels. Flexible working changes the way people collaborate, so expectations need to be clearly set and communicated.

For employees to work autonomously they must understand the scope of their work, including which decisions they can make on their own, and which to confer with a manager. Finally, it is key to ensure employees’ understanding of the big picture to create a sense of individual and group purpose.

So, how do you maintain trust and transparency in a remote and / or hybrid work environment?

Trust and transparency are essential for building and maintaining strong relationships in any work environment. But when you work remotely or in a hybrid model, where face-to-face interactions are limited or inconsistent, how do you ensure that you and your colleagues are on the same page, respect each other's boundaries, and communicate effectively?

In this article, there are some tips and best practices for fostering trust and transparency in a remote or hybrid work environment.

Set clear expectations

One of the first steps to establish trust and transparency is to set clear expectations for yourself and your team. This includes defining your roles and responsibilities, your goals and priorities, your preferred communication channels and frequency, and your availability and working hours.

By clarifying these aspects upfront, you can avoid misunderstandings, confusion, and frustration that may arise from working across different locations, time zones, and work styles. You can also use tools like project management software, shared calendars, and status updates to keep track of your progress and align your expectations with your team.

Communicate regularly and openly

Another key factor for building trust and transparency is to communicate regularly and openly with your team and your manager.

This means not only sharing information, updates, and feedback, but also expressing your opinions, concerns, and emotions. By communicating honestly and respectfully, you can show that you care about your work and your team, that you value their input and perspective, and that you are willing to listen and learn from them. ?

Build rapport and connection

Trust and transparency also depend on the quality of your relationships with your team and your manager. When you work remotely or in a hybrid model, you may miss out on the opportunities to bond and connect with your colleagues that you would have in a physical office.

That's why it's important to create and participate in activities that can help you build rapport and connection with your team. For instance, you can schedule regular virtual team meetings, social events, and icebreakers, where you can share your personal stories, interests, and hobbies, as well as celebrate your achievements and milestones.

You can also reach out to your colleagues individually, to offer support, appreciation, or recognition, or to simply chat and catch up.

Respect diversity and inclusion

Trust and transparency also require respect for diversity and inclusion in your team. When you work remotely or in a hybrid model, you may encounter different cultures, backgrounds, values, and beliefs among your colleagues.

These differences can enrich your team's creativity and performance, but they can also lead to misunderstandings, conflicts, and biases. To avoid these pitfalls, you need to respect and appreciate the diversity and inclusion in your team, and to foster a culture of openness, curiosity, and empathy.

You can do this by learning more about your colleagues' perspectives and experiences, by acknowledging and addressing any issues or challenges that may arise, and by promoting equity and fairness in your team.

Seek feedback and improvement

Finally, trust and transparency also involve seeking feedback and improvement for yourself and your team. When you work remotely or in a hybrid model, you may not receive as much feedback or guidance as you would in a physical office.

This can affect your confidence, motivation, and performance. To overcome this challenge, you need to proactively seek feedback and improvement from your team and your manager, and to provide feedback and improvement to them as well.

By doing this, you can show that you are committed to your work and your team, that you are open to learning and growing, and that you are willing to give and receive constructive criticism.

You can also use tools like surveys, polls, and reviews to collect and share feedback and improvement in a structured and effective way.

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