Bridging the Gap: Promoting Learning & Culture for Hybrid & Remote Teams

If you could change one thing in your organization to make it a great place to work, what would it be?

If you said improving employee engagement, you’re in good company. 

This was a question from a recent Gallup report on the state of the global workplace. And more than 40 percent of respondents answered they wanted more engagement.

Connecting managers with employees—and with one another—has grown more challenging for businesses. 

According to Forbes,  over one-third of employees now work on a hybrid or fully remote basis. While remote work offers advantages like scheduling flexibility, on-site workplaces offer opportunities for team bonding, collaboration, coaching, and mentorship. 

Employees who work from home risk missing out on these opportunities. They can also feel disconnected from the company culture, which is harmful to motivation and productivity.

While teams have harnessed technology and come up with fun ways to promote team bonding and belonging in a remote setting, it’s also critical to prioritize employee learning, growth, and career development.

Using tools like a learning management system (LMS), managers can easily share content, set and monitor goals, and communicate with their teams to support employees in their career aspirations and promote learning and development—all while boosting engagement and job satisfaction. 

Read more: 15 Virtual Employee Recognition Ideas

How does working from home affect employee engagement and motivation?

Working from home or on a hybrid basis has undeniable advantages. For example, working remotely reduces the need to commute, provides employees with more flexibility to travel, and enables employees to spend more time with their loved ones. It also opens up a wider talent pool of potential candidates for employers.

On the other hand, remote work can create challenges for both employees and employers. For instance, remote employees often report feeling disengaged from the workplace culture and struggling with decreased motivation. 

Gallup probed this issue in a report titled “Are Remote Workers and Their Organizations Drifting Apart?” The report found that while overall workplace engagement is rising—up to 34 percent in 2023 from 32 percent the previous year—engagement among remote workers is heading in the opposite direction.

According to the report, “Remote workers’ connection to the mission and purpose of their organizations has deteriorated to a record low.” This decline is sharpest among fully remote workers, with only 28 percent saying they strongly agree they feel connected to their organization’s mission and purpose. 

These consequences directly impact workers, which can indirectly affect the entire organization’s growth and success. 

Read more: How to Create a Sense of Belonging in a Remote Work Environment

How can managers help remote workers feel more connected to company culture? 

When remote employees feel disconnected from company culture and are disengaged from their work, it can create a situation where employees feel less loyal. This can potentially impact multiple aspects of a business, including customer and employee retention and quality of work. 

That means higher turnover, increased hiring expenses, reduced efficiency, lowered morale, and ultimately, unwanted consequences for your bottom line. 

How can businesses avoid these outcomes and promote greater employee loyalty and satisfaction? The answer is that managers must help remote team members feel linked to the company’s culture, values, and mission, bringing a deeper sense of purpose and meaning to the work. 

There are many ways to boost employee engagement and connectivity. One beneficial tactic is implementing a cloud-based LMS: a system that allows businesses to build and customize training content, track employee progress and performance, share product or customer information, and more. 

For employees who work from home or off-site, this provides an invaluable resource for learning knowledge, building new skills, reviewing company policies, getting guidance from peers or managers, and finding information. 

Let’s take a closer look at how managers can use learning management systems to help remote or hybrid workers feel more connected and engaged. 

Read more: How to Create High-Performance Remote Teams

How can a learning management system (LMS) help you build community and connectivity? 

An LMS is a versatile tool that makes it easy for employees and HR managers to connect—crucial for teams working from different locations or time zones. It provides a central hub for all need-to-know information, from eLearning content and training resources to onboarding materials and HR documents. 

Employees (along with your customers) can access personalized training programs, view product tutorials, and explore other helpful resources—all designed to encourage engagement through features like interactivity and gamification. With all of your learning on one platform, you can feel confident everyone will stay aligned, regardless of geographical barriers. 

Here are a few of the ways that an LMS makes it easier to bring remote employees together, create a cohesive culture, and infuse your team members with a sense of purpose: 

• Online learning accelerates training by 40 to 60 percent, which makes employees more likely to dive in—and stay engaged once they’re there
• An LMS delivers the learning and professional development opportunities that Gen Z and Millennial workers want, with 74 percent saying they’d consider quitting an organization that didn’t provide those opportunities. That contributes to a culture of learning while simultaneously reducing dissatisfaction and turnover.
• An LMS provides a way to track employee progress, offer (and request) feedback, assess the most needed skills, and provide upskilling and reskilling opportunities. 
• LMSs encourage peer-to-peer learning opportunities

Increase engagement for remote and hybrid teams with the Learning Cloud

The Learning Cloud is an LMS that empowers remote teams to learn and collaborate easily—no matter who’s in what time zone. With an intuitive interface, ready-to-use content, all the integrations you need, and countless options for customization and white-labeling, the Learning Cloud provides the tools you need to empower employees, promote learning, and uplevel your business. 

Discover how the Learning Cloud drives engagement and accelerates growth. Contact us to schedule a free, personalized demo.