If you are reading this article from your home office, you are living a reality that, until recent years, was the exception for a small minority of workers. Now, many companies across multiple industries are facilitating hybrid or remote work in one way or another, making the home office a more common setup for people than it once was. But even though technology enables remote work, employees feel disconnected from their colleagues.
This disconnect may be caused by location, as we find ourselves more physically distanced from our colleagues. Yet, amid the growing ‘return to the office’ movement and concerns that remote and hybrid work could be detrimental to the workforce, it turns out that the sense of disconnect between colleagues is caused by something else entirely.
The hidden barrier to employee connection
Recent research from Workato found that just 26% of UK workers felt it was harder to connect with colleagues virtually, and even fewer said not being in the office with colleagues hampered their ability to collaborate. The data shows that location has very little impact on our ability to feel connected to colleagues. British workers feel distant from their colleagues for a very different reason; there is simply too much work to be done and not enough time.
The unachievable workload and how it is managed is stealing time from UK workers that could be spent connecting and building relationships with colleagues, whether they are in the same room or a completely different location. This lack of connection has a knock-on effect on employee engagement, leaving individuals feeling isolated and teams struggling to collaborate.
Administrative tasks contribute to a significant lack of time for UK workers, particularly tasks that are highly repetitive, such as internal emails and memos; time that could be better spent connecting with colleagues. The survey showed that almost half of the workers felt that they would need an additional 30-60 minutes each day dedicated to team building, in order to feel closer to colleagues. With limited resources and only a certain number of hours available in the working day, UK businesses struggle to strike a balance between optimizing time and nurturing employee engagement – a challenge that can have a significant impact on the long-term success of their teams.
The role of automation in team communication
Creating more free time at work does not mean that employees work less – they will work smarter. When organizations seek to implement automation technology, they not only improve efficiency by shaving off vast amounts of time taken up by repetitive tasks, but also the impact on the people responsible for those tasks. Automation paves the way for bigger picture thinking and gives employees space to consider their career goals, think about improvements in the business, and plan for future resource challenges or obstacles. By shifting from task-based to value-based work, organizations can instill a mutual sense of empowerment among all levels of an organization in a concerted effort to strengthen the business and contribute to its long-term success.
Although the benefits of automation are compelling, it is of no use if the workers are not on board with the changes. So how do employees feel about automation? The feedback is overwhelmingly positive. British workers are seeing the productivity benefits of automation tools and the quality of their work is also improving. Specifically, with the use of automation tools, more than 4 in 5 people in the UK believe that automation is part of the solution to making time for more complex work, and 85% believe it is part of the solution to improve productivity.
Implementing automation allows companies to invest in human relationships to increase efficiency and productivity among employees. The benefits go beyond just improving the bottom line; employees in the UK value automation as an essential tool to enhance the quality of their work, create stronger relationships with teammates and make time to connect with team members on a personal level.
When a business consists of a strong, happy team, it naturally creates a ripple effect that leads to happy customers; a win-win solution for everyone.
Building a workplace for attachment and collaboration
As organizations continue to explore what the future of work looks like, many need to consider how they will foster an environment that allows UK workers to be creative, collaborative and connected. Recognizing automation as a way forward to elevate work, people and culture is critical to the success of businesses, regardless of industry or size. Managers now have the opportunity to invest meaningful time, resources and money in their employees to better foster a sense of belonging.
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