Work at home in all its glory
But there are reasons why it’s worth going into the office. Research has shown that we have a harder time creating deeper trust in someone we mostly meet on a screen. Therefore, you should meet your colleagues regularly in person and work together. How often can be a little different depending on how long you worked together.
It is important that everyone is there at critical times. If someone is joining via link, the point of everyone else being in the office disappears and then you might as well be spread out.
Workshops, on-boarding, collaboration and breaks
It can be difficult to motivate employees to come to the office just to work a normal day. But if you book things like workshops, introduction of new tasks or collaborations that require intensive dialogues, the benefits and motivation increase.
The social aspect should not be forgotten either. Make sure there is enough time for a break together. Take a long lunch and talk about things outside of work, encourage coffee or have a walking meeting and brainstorm new ideas.
Start with a kick-off meeting
Get your team on track by having an on-site kick-off meeting and discuss both the benefits of meeting on-site and the risks of not doing so regularly.
When you finish for the day, the goal is that you have a plan for when and why you will meet and work together. A plan that everyone gets to participate in and decide, which in turn makes everyone feel ownership and participation.