Psychological safety is essential to driving good decision making, productive teamwork and innovation, and is a cornerstone of a healthy organisational culture.
But when it comes to a hybrid work setting, there are more factors and nuances to consider to nurture a psychologically safe workforce.
What is psychological safety?
Amy C. Edmondson and Mark Mortensen define it as: “The belief that one can speak up without risk of punishment or humiliation”.
While its meaning is now widely understood in a business setting, achieving and maintaining psychological safety is not so easy.
Psychological safety in a hybrid work setting
In a hybrid environment, there are additional challenges to creating a culture of psychological safety. Reduced levels of face-to-face contact often lead to feelings of disconnection or exclusion, and communication can feel more uncomfortable meaning that employees are less likely to speak up. It is therefore critical for leaders to reflect on how they can impact on this important aspect of their organisation and do so in a challenging hybrid world.
Leaders can help create a feeling of psychological safety in a hybrid organisation by doing the following:
1. Adopt a warm and approachable communication style in emails and meetings
It can be difficult to gauge the emotions and reactions of others in a virtual setting, leading to misunderstandings. Tone of voice, body language and facial expressions are all important cues that can be missed, making it harder to communicate effectively.
Written communications are far more likely to come across as blunt or impersonal. Particularly if you have a senior role, you will need to work hard to make sure people do not feel intimidated or nervous speaking to you and, crucially, this needs to be achieved by actions and not just words.
2. Create opportunities for questions, feedback and informal discussions to encourage open communication and collaboration within the team
Virtual meetings tend to feel more formal making it difficult to create a relaxed atmosphere for open discussion. The absence of small talk or casual interactions at the beginning or end of virtual meetings can make employees feel less able to bring up something they want to discuss or ask. Employees may hesitate to schedule a meeting or send an email to address a minor issue unless it is deemed important enough, so you will need to consider how you can create more opportunities for this type of conversation.
Regular online drop-in sessions or setting aside time in team meetings for more relaxed conversations all help achieve this. Ensure that all team members are treated respectfully, and diverse viewpoints are encouraged. Make sure that unhelpful criticism or rudeness doesn’t creep into conversations putting others off speaking.
Ultimately, creating a healthy feedback culture will help team performance and wellbeing.
3. Build relationships
When employees are not physically present in the office, they may not feel like they are part of the team or that they know their manager and colleagues particularly well. This lack of connection leads to reduced cooperation and collaboration as well as a sense of isolation among team members.
Consider what team-building activities you could introduce to build greater trust and rapport. Remember that, despite occasional eye-rolling and heavy sighs, activities that are purely about team building and that have nothing to do with work are still useful. The greater trust, rapport and shared experience that result from such activities is often the grease that makes everything run a little more smoothly.
4. Clarify the rules and expectations of hybrid working
It’s important to provide employees with a clear understanding of their roles and responsibilities. But try not to be too rigid and consider adopting a ‘needs-based’ approach to hybrid work that allows flex.
Too much uncertainty about the rules and expectations, however, can lead to digital presenteeism where employees feel pressured to overwork to prove their productivity while working from home.
Perceived lack of trust from leaders can create a stressful work environment where employees are afraid to step away from their computers or take breaks, further eroding psychological safety. Employee monitoring exacerbates this feeling of not being trusted. The recent example at Wells Fargo illustrates this point – employees were sacked for buying ‘mouse jigglers’. Mistrust on both sides led to this situation.
5. Role model vulnerability and openness
Share your own mistakes and challenges with the team to create a culture of learning and growth. Be open when you don’t know the answer to something and be comfortable when you are not the expert. It may also be useful to seek feedback on your leadership style. This will help you understand how you are perceived by others and identify areas for improvement.
Role model the way you want others to hear and respond to feedback.
6. Address barriers to psychological safety
Consider the culture of your organisation. If leaders are seen as intimidating or difficult to talk to, consider giving them feedback. Are there any processes or procedures which get in the way of psychological safety?
Final takeaway
While hybrid working offers flexibility and convenience, it also presents challenges in maintaining psychological safety within teams. By implementing these strategies leaders can create a work environment where employees feel empowered to speak up, share ideas and collaborate.
