How do you build and maintain trust and collaboration with your team and manager when working flexibly?

Building and maintaining trust and collaboration while working flexibly requires clear communication, accountability, and responsiveness. Establish regular check-ins with your team and manager to discuss goals, progress, and any challenges. Demonstrate reliability by meeting deadlines and delivering high-quality work consistently. Maintain transparency about your schedule and availability, ensuring accessibility during core working hours. Actively engage in team discussions, brainstorming sessions, and collaborative projects to foster a sense of belonging and teamwork. Proactively seek feedback, offer support to colleagues, and contribute ideas to demonstrate your commitment to shared success.

It is essential to set clear expectations with your team and manager about your working hours, availability, and deadlines. This will help to avoid misunderstandings and ensure that everyone is on the same page.

Based on my experience, meeting the designated goal within the allocated timeframe can foster trust. Driven individuals may finish the task ahead of schedule, contribute additional value, and aid other team members in completing the task promptly, resulting in increased productivity and a stronger sense of trust within the team.

Communication is key to building trust and collaboration. Make sure to communicate regularly with your team and manager, keeping them updated on your progress, challenges, and achievements.

In light of the growing prevalence of AI and ML, it has become increasingly crucial to prioritize humanity. Rather than solely relying on audio communication, it is important to engage in video calls to better comprehend emotions, cultivate empathy, and provide the team with a reassuring sense of support and assistance.

Part of building trust is showing you are open and flexible to gather in person on occasion for team meetings. Managers are in a challenging position as they work to develop camaraderie and team direction in a remote working environment. Meet them partway when they want to bring the team together for an enhanced group experience.

Go for a walk, sit in a corner silently rocking or go into the garden and holler profanities…all would go under the ‘gone for a walk banner’ huh Steve?😁

As the old adage suggests, speaking doesn't lead to learning, but attentive listening can yield great insights. Receiving feedback with an open mind is a crucial aspect of personal and professional development. It can be difficult to identify our shortcomings on our own, as we would have already corrected them if we were aware of them. Feedback allows us to view ourselves from an outside perspective. By incorporating feedback and making appropriate adjustments, we can constantly strive to become a better version of ourselves, fostering growth in the process.

In my experience, you also need to have a clear channel to communicate effectively with the team members that you are working with. You need everyone to be comfortable and accepting circumstances change. For example, dropping a message in the teams communication channel that you are taking time out to go for a walk after a heavy meeting/training session, is done to let them know you are away from your desk for a while. In the office, you would have told your colleagues sat around you in case anyone called by to see you in person.

It is crucial to demonstrate respect for others' boundaries and preferences. However, in order to fully comprehend these boundaries and preferences, it is necessary to have a deeper understanding of your team and manager. For instance, if you are aware that your manager or team member is unable to provide assistance outside of regular working hours, it is advisable to avoid contacting them during that time. Instead, wait until working hours to communicate any issues and seek their advice. Respecting people's personal time is essential.

Beyond celebration, consider tracking your progress and "wins" or areas of project completion. One way to do this is to keep an ongoing weekly record of your accomplishments and review them regularly with your manager. Why is this important? Because in a remote working world, it is hard to truly be "seen" as we once were in person. It is up to you to ensure your successes are known and to receive acknowledgment you are on the right track and working on the more valuable things for the business. Once you have a cadence of communicating what you are working on, you will build trust in your ability to work remotely.

The quality of a manager is often measured by the performance of their team. As we spend a significant portion of our day with our team and manager, they have a profound influence on both our personal and professional lives. It is important to share both minor and major accomplishments and milestones with our team and manager and to seize every opportunity to celebrate them. This allows our team to feel that their work and efforts are valued, and the act of celebrating serves as an acknowledgment of their contributions.

Learning knows no age limit, and anyone can impart valuable life lessons. In the context of one's professional life, feedback from both team members and one's manager is crucial for character-building and growth. It is beneficial to organize sessions where those who work closely with you can provide feedback and offer support in areas where you may be lacking. It is worth reiterating that learning and growth are ongoing processes and seeking feedback and support should be an ongoing pursuit.

Building relationships with your team and manager is critical to building trust and collaboration. Take the time to get to know your colleagues, ask questions, and show an interest in their work and lives.