WLP362 Bonding and Bridging in Remote Teams plus Reading and Listening Recommendations
We are joined by regular guest Theresa Sigillito Hollema who has been doing some thinking with Pilar on the topic of Bonding within remote teams, versus Bridging, where team members create bonds with other parts of the organisation. Plus, Theresa has her own reading and listening recommendations to add to Pilar’s.
Recorded on 18 June 2024.
(You can view the email newsletter version version here: )
Theresa is the author of “Virtual Teams Across Cultures: Create Successful Teams Around the World”, which explores how to navigate the cultural and virtual aspects of working on geographically dispersed teams. Theresa supports global teams and leaders in putting these principles into practice.
She has been a guest on the show many times, most recently:
WLP337 Career Progression in Remote Teams - the local and global perspectives
WLP315: Effective Manager Mindset for Global Virtual Teams
WLP251 Leveraging Cultural Differences in Global Virtual Teams
Theresa's current research focuses on how people can develop cultural competency while working remotely, without the benefit of living in different countries.
A few month’s ago, Theresa and Pilar started looking at how remote teams were tackling “bridging” versus “bonding” in an organisation.
Bonding refers to the connections and relationships within a team, while bridging is about the relationships a team has with other teams in the organisation. Research has found that while bonding capital remained fairly strong when teams went remote during the pandemic, bridging capital dropped significantly. The informal interactions that used to happen spontaneously in the office, leading to cross-team connections, largely disappeared.
Bridging is important for several reasons:
Implementing large-scale organizational changes
Spurring innovation by bringing in outside perspectives
Enabling career development through relationships beyond one's immediate team
What can those in can virtual teams do to intentionally build bridging capital? Some ideas include:
Joining employee resource groups (ERGs) that span the organization
Volunteering for short-term projects with other teams
When in the office, being intentional about interacting with people outside your team
Using digital spaces to connect around shared interests
At the same time, strong bonding capital within the team is still vital. Research on one global virtual team found that without strong internal bonds, the team wasn't able to effectively utilize information gained through external bridging. The two forms of social capital are symbiotic.
In hybrid organisations, the new “in the office” schedules organised around teams being in the office at separate times might be reducing bridging opportunities. Check out research from October 2022: Where is your Office Today? New insights on Employee Behaviour and Social Networks
High-performing teams strike a balance, engaging in a mix of internal bonding and external bridging activities. (Reference to Sandy Pentland’s article The New Science of Building Great Teams HBR April 2012.)
And in global virtual teams, bridging may happen most at a local level, with dispersed team members tapping into different parts of the organisation. Virtual team leaders should be mindful of this dynamic and empower team members to bridge locally while strengthening team bonds virtually.
(To hear Theresa interviewing Pilar, check out the bonus episode on 7th October 2021.)
25.50 MINS
Reading and Listening Recommendations
Coffee Break Articles:
The Critical Minutes After a Virtual Meeting That Can Build Up or Tear Down Teams
Via HBS Working Knowledge
A short summary of a study "in the wild" about, yes, how an individual's mindset and actions after an online meeting will affect their team.
The Secret to an In Sync Startup? Ditch Your Meetings and Try an Asynchronous Culture
Via Review First Round
It's not just as simple as using Slack. Asynchronous communication requires no micromanagement, documenting everything, and treating hiring as a segmentation exercise.
Article Series on Feedback
via Tomáš Hančil of Complexity Partners, on LinkedIn
Theresa became interested in how to give feedback from a distance when she was writing her book on virtual, global leadership. She's finding this series very useful.
A simple pen & paper tool for community builders and network weavers
Via Netnigma (Katerina Bohle Carbonell)
How to deliberately understand your network, who is connected to whom and bridge those connections.
Borderless
a newsletter via SafetyWing
Theresa enjoys this regular collection of interesting articles for people who are nomad or remote, as well as the interactive nature of the newsletter.
32.50 MINS
Book Recommendations:
If you haven’t done so already, do check out Theresa’s book “Virtual Teams Across Cultures: Create Successful Teams Around the World”.
If you haven’t done so already, do check out Theresa’s book “Virtual Teams Across Cultures: Create Successful Teams Around the World”, which Pilar has recommended previously.
Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men
by Caroline Criado Perez
An entertaining, but thought provoking collection of case studies, stories and research from across the world which shows how much of the world around us, including medical practice, has been designed with men in mind - and the impact this has on society at large.
Tools and Weapons: the Promise and the Peril of the Digital Age
by Brad Smith and Carol Ann Brown
How Microsoft and other technological companies balance their practice with the need for privacy and security.
Postwar: A History of Europe Since 1945
By Tony Judt
As someone who grew up in the USA, Theresa is devouring this book about European history, which takes the reader right (almost) to the present day.
41.05 MINS
Listening Recommendations:
Podcast: Remotely Serious with Curtis Duggan
James from Freedom Files’ bold decision: choosing Latin America over the USA
19 May 2024
What does the experience of moving continents look like, and feel like? This episode's guest shares his journey, and continues advocating for location freedom.
Hard Fork, the podcast by the NY Times.
Theresa recommends all episodes. Kevin Roose and Casey Newton inform and entertain us about what’s going on with technology, and have high profiled guests such as Justin Trudeau and Sundar Pichai.
(Yes, not the first time this one gets recommended or mentioned in this show!)
Podcast: Remarkable People
Charan Ranganath: Unlocking the Power of Memory
29 may 2024
Why do we remember some events better than others? How are memories formed? Can we be tricked into thinking something happened? All these questions and more answered in this episode with one of Pilar’s favourite hosts.
Podcast: Writer on the Side
#146 No Longer Writing on the Side (not listed on his website)
15 May 2024
Hassan Osman, writer of Influencing Virtual Teams and many other business books, shares his experience of being laid off in a transparent and thoughtful way. Check out his new venture: AI for Leaders
Podcast: The Writer’s Voice
Theresa recommends this podcast by the New Yorker, where authors narrate their own short stories. Something for Pilar (and you!) to listen to as she puts together a jigsaw puzzle.
You can connect with Theresa on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/theresasigillitohollema/
And check out the resources on her website:
https://virtualacrosscultures.com/