People are telling us what they want... Are you ready to lead?

The following is an except from my latest leadership training, Workplace Influence: Leading in Hybrid and Remote Environments. Click here to access the training.

The workplace has shifted.

While this isn't news, the noise is getting louder. People are making their needs, wants, and preferences known. Consider these statistics: *

>> 91% of employees worldwide prefer to work fully or almost completely remotely.

>> In the U.S., 33% of employees with remote-capable jobs want to be fully off-site.

>> Approximately 8% of employees prefer to be on-site only.

>> Just under 60% of employees overall prefer a hybrid work arrangement.

The trend is clear: more employees are demanding flexibility.

It's easy for it to feel out of control. So how do you keep employees engaged and productive when they are located here, there, and everywhere?

First, realize that keeping employees engaged is always a challenge, no matter what their work location. Check out these stats from Gallup on the repercussions of disengaged employees:

ABSENT: Disengaged employees have 37% higher absenteeism than their engaged counterparts.

DISCONNECTED: Disengaged workers make 60% more errors, and companies with low engagement experience 16% lower profitability.

MISSED OPPORTUNITIES: Globally, disengaged employees cost the economy $8.8 trillion annually in lost productivity. In the U.S., this cost is estimated at $450-$500 billion per year.

If these stats assume on-site employees, no wonder executives are running scared about having employees out of sight. But holding on too tight and mandating RTO isn’t going to solve the problem of disengaged employees and they implications to business results..

It might even make matters worse.

As a middle manager, you have the power to influence people, and therefore business results, no matter where your team is located or how often you see them in-person.

I am so confident in this because I spent over half of my 25+ years in the corporate world leading people nationally and globally in remote and hybrid environments...

Before it was a hot topic.

What I can tell you is this: there are strategies that always work and don’t require you to have advanced knowledge of human behavior. I’m talking about boots on the ground, practical things you can do right now to change the tone of your team, engage them in authentic ways, and start to build consistent top performance.

Why is this important?

You have goals. You want your team to be:

CONNECTED: Feeling plugged in to the company’s goals, even if they’re miles away.

CREATIVE: Bringing new ideas, innovations and solutions to the team and organization.

CONSISTENT: Delivering predictable, quality results, day-in and day-out.

How do you engage your team and achieve these goals?

INTENTIONAL leadership that focuses on:

Ensuring effective communication through the perfect combination of trust and credibility.

Identifying and leveraging your own natural leadership strengths and style.

Inspiring through The Purpose Quotient so everyone feels part of something greater.

It’s always important for your team members to feel heard, seen and have opportunities to contribute to the best of their abilities. Helping them do that has nothing to do with where they are and everything to do with how you apply timeless, proven leadership principles to the challenges of the modern workplace.

Go deeper and learn how to engage your team no matter where they sit. Watch my latest training, "Workplace Influence :: Leading in Hybrid + Remote Environments."

You’ll get time-tested leadership strategies that are simple to apply in today’s demanding, disruptive work environments.

Best of all, my you’ll walk away feeling more empowered to lead your team through anything!

Watch the training on-demand here.

Always for you,

Elissa

PS: Strategic Leadership Lab is your program that combines on-demand learning with personalized coaching to help you lead with purpose and unlock your team’s potential.

Empower your team, communicate with influence, and achieve results that matter...

Enroll in Strategic Leadership Lab today.