One of the consequences of the global pandemic in the workplace is an increased demand for flexible and hybrid working. In response, employers are offering staff to work from home more regularly, and come into the office or on campus for less time each week. Flexible working is intended to increase staff satisfaction, productivity, and retention at a time when we have moved from the great resignation of 2021 to an endemic of ‘quiet quitting’. At the same time, effectively working from home has become a sought after skill in the workplace, particularly as some of the negative impacts of long term home working on (mental) health, equality, diversity and inclusion and staff engagement have started to emerge.
Bridging the gap between the growing hybrid workforce of knowledge workers and the (lack) of organisational vision for the post-pandemic workplace, are the managers and leaders leading increasingly virtual teams. It is their job to translate the newfound flexibility into effective collaboration between colleagues. It is their challenge to establish communication channels that engage a hybrid workforce with diverse needs, balancing work with other commitments. A workforce for whom coming to the office or on campus may be a hated necessity or indeed a much sought after opportunity. Not everyone loves working from home, sharing a desk or meeting in a coffee shop.
If you are looking to develop strategies for managing people and projects in this complex, shifting landscape then this course is for you.
Course dates: 21 April – 31 May 2023
The course is free to join and open to all. Once you are registered for the course, you will receive all course information and content via email. You can take the course over a period of four weeks at your own pace or you can dip in and out of topics that interest you. Course content will remain available for at least three months after the end of the course so that you can revisit topics.
What is the course about?
My aim for Leading Virtual Teams as a book was to explore current practice in succeeding in a virtual workplace and questions what the future may hold. This new taster course translates the ideas in the book into practice. The course offers you opportunities to listen, reflect and explore. It is designed to offer inspiration and practical starting points if you are interested in:
- How we work and onboard new colleagues
- Setting shared expectations
- Fostering a shared team culture
- Team activities
- Setting intentions for your practice
Listen
The course has four parts and each part is introduced by a podcast episode that sets out the key ideas for the topic. I have chosen the podcast format to enable you to follow the course at your own pace, listening when it suits you and also to minimise screen time needed to take part in the course. Whether you listen to the course as you walk the dog, cook or sit in a comfy chair, this course is designed to take you away from your screen and constant stream of notifications. You just have to listen.
Reflect
Each topic is accompanied by prompts and questions to help you reflect on your professional practice. You will use these prompts to take a deeper dive into ways of working in the hybrid workplace and reflect on how your leadership style aligns to your goals and values. Each topic will help you reflect on a different aspect of your approach, your agency and authenticity. You can choose whether you write your reflections down, share them with others in the course or keep them private for yourself.
Explore
In addition to the podcast, each topic comes with a short summary blog post, which includes resources and tools to explore. Some topics will include structured activities for you to try out, others will link to external sources for more inspiration.
Who is the course for?
This course is designed for emerging and established leaders and managers working in a hybrid or fully virtual setting in education and the not-for-profit sector. We will focus on how to develop effective home/hybrid working strategies for yourself into approaches for managing and leading virtual teams. Whether you are collaborating online on a project, organising distributed volunteers or managing a whole hybrid working department, this course will offer you a unique opportunity to reflect and explore.