How to build team spirit digitally

In an everyday life with many digital channels and contacts, where everyone is sitting in their own place working, it becomes more important than ever for employers to create the conditions for collaboration, cohesion and shared goals. Working together in a team requires that we have a good grasp of our common goal and support each other in contributing our parts to achieve that goal. This often works very well through the usual digital channels, and meetings can become more efficient when the time for “small talk” is shortened and we focus on the task. Most people who work from home want to continue doing so in the future, at least part-time, according to the Internet Foundation’s 2020 report.

However, it’s easy to forget to follow up on the actual sense of “we”, those soft values that make us feel trust and enjoy being in the group. Depending on one’s overall life situation and social contacts, large differences in, among other things, perceived loneliness have been seen in recent years. Feeling seen, appreciated and acknowledged not only for your performance but also for who you are as a person is incredibly important for our mental health. In a work environment where people often meet physically – at the coffee machine, in the copy room or in meetings – much of the relationship-building happens more or less automatically. When we trust our colleagues and immediate manager, it becomes easier to ask for help or share our challenges or concerns. In an increasingly digital work environment, we need to consciously bring these soft values and the “hallway talk” into other channels. We humans are social beings who need secure networks with others, both to feel well and to be able to perform at work.

If we manage to build trust and a great team spirit, even at a distance, the work group can become more creative and engagement can increase even further. In addition, it can help employees enjoy their work more and stay longer with their expertise, and new hires can get up to speed faster when they experience support and a good atmosphere in the group.

Tips for creating team spirit digitally

Set aside time for social interaction unrelated to work. This could be digital Friday coffee breaks, after-work events or online cooking classes. The important thing is to focus on having fun together despite the distance, and getting to know each other a little better.

There are several good chat tools you can use to keep the hallway talk going digitally. They can be used to get answers to simple work-related questions, or just to check in on how everyone is doing and how things are going. Nothing long-winded or heavy work talk – lighter, quick questions are preferable.