Episode 38

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Published on:

5th Jul 2023

How Technology is Critical to Creating a Strong Communication Culture in Remote/Hybrid Teams

Dr. Jim discusses the challenges of effective communication in a distributed work environment and offers solutions to overcome them. He emphasizes the importance of implementing frameworks and processes to facilitate communication across the organization. Dr. Jim suggests using tech tools like Slack, Microsoft Teams, and Google Meets for asynchronous communication. He also recommends conducting regular surveys to gauge employee sentiment and using town hall meetings to align the organization's strategic direction. Collaboration can be enhanced through project management tools like Asana or Trello. By leveraging technology and fostering a cohesive organizational culture, effective communication can be achieved, leading to growth and success.

Timestamp

[0:00:00] Introduction to executing frameworks in a distributed environment

[0:00:00] Importance of a minimal tech stack for asynchronous communication

[0:00:00] Regularly checking the sentiment of the organization through surveys

[0:02:21] Using town halls and AMA sessions for strategic communication

[0:03:08] Collaboration tools for project management and visibility

[0:03:08] Amplifying frameworks and initiatives to create organizational culture

[0:03:08] Importance of a strong communication foundation for growth and scaling

Transcript

Integrating Technology to Improve Communication

Dr. Jim: [:

Maybe you're working in a remote environment or a hybrid environment, or even if you're onsite, these things aren't easy to pull off and you need to build some systems and processes that will allow you to be much more effective in getting these initiatives off the ground and communicating more effectively.

This is especially critical for small to midsize organizations because , you're working across multiple time zones. And you need a way to integrate all of these different work streams and communication frameworks and initiatives as you continue the process of growing and maturing as an organization.

nimal tech stack that allows [:

Another way that you can actually facilitate better communication over a distributed workforce is to regularly check the sentiment, your entire organization, and that's through the use of surveying tools.

It could be as simple as something like SurveyMonkey or Google Forms, or you can create more complex feedback mechanisms. But the key thing here, especially if you're in a small to mid-size organization, is that you need to do it on a regular basis. You need to have the data that is pulled from that available very quickly.

izations versus much larger, [:

Another way that you can leverage technology to create better organizational communication is to use periodic town halls or ask me anything sessions where your entire organization comes together . This is a great way to get everybody reoriented with the strategic direction of the organization or something big that's coming up and communicating that across the whole, and then you rely on your directors and managers to have more granular conversations across the organization. You don't want to have division-wide or company-wide, all hands meetings all the time because not everybody needs to be in the room. So be judicious with these so that it carries the right level of impact.

organization from a project [:

Using all of these communication platforms allows you to take those frameworks and initiatives that you've built to foster better communication and then put them into action and amplify those so that you can actually create a more cohesive organizational culture. The intent here is to use all of these.

Things and maybe some other things as far as a company intranet or newsletters, to keep everybody in the loop continue building that recognition culture and make sure that everybody is as connected as possible in a distributed environment. A strong communication foundation is one of the critical elements that you will need to have in place to grow and scale effectively and eventually become an elite organization because that communication foundation allows your managers to be empowered, keeps your employees engaged with those two elements together, you're building an elite organization.

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About the Podcast

Engaging Leadership
Building High-Performance K-12 Districts
What's the secret sauce to building a high-performing school district?
Is it strong leadership? Is it excellent educators? Is it a committed community?

It's all of the above.

K-12 public schools are the hubs of communities all over the country. The best districts have excellent leadership that serves their teams and their communities.

Each week we share the stories of K-12 leaders who are transforming their schools, their students, and their communities.

Tune in and listen to their journeys.

About your hosts

CheeTung Leong

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I'm committed to helping people live their best lives through work.

I'm one of the co-founders of EngageRocket, an HRTech SaaS startup and we are focused on helping organizations build empowered managers, engaged employees, and elite teams.

I'm a big nerd when it comes to economics and psychology and regularly use data and tech to help folks live their best lives.

I've been recognized by Prestige Magazine as one of the top 40 under 40 business leaders and have been featured in Forbes, Bloomberg, Business Insider, and Tech in Asia.

Jim Kanichirayil

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Your friendly neighborhood talent strategy nerd is the producer and co-host for The HR Impact Show. He's spent his career in sales and has been typically in startup b2b HRTech and TA-Tech organizations.

He's built high-performance sales teams throughout his career and is passionate about all things employee life cycle and especially employee retention and turnover.