Mapping out employee belonging in the virtual workforce

Mapping out employee belonging as we navigate the new virtual workforce is top of mind for HR teams right now. However, belonging is one the facets of culture that is difficult to quantify.

Susan Ferrier, NABs group executive of people and culture told HRD: “Belonging is not something individuals can generate themselves – it’s something that’s created through connection and relationships. It’s the magic that happens when employees feel seen, heard, and supported as they show up day after day to do their work.”

A sense of purpose

While there are practical strategies for creating belonging you also have to take into account the conceptual aspect. And though view the future of work as hybrid, there are industries that are face to face that are facing a different challenge.

Businesses in the retail and healthcare sectors are doubling down on their organisations purpose. One HR leader said, their business’s mantra of people caring for people had been a core focus to come back to in all their decision-making initiatives, ensuring that they were actively encouraging connection across all teams and level of business. Aligning that purpose with leadership is a current focus to ensure the actions of leaders are contributing to belonging and connection.

COVID has affected many of the workplace opportunities for connection. There’s no ability to catch up in the break room and wearing masks has made talking and connecting more difficult. One manufacturing HR leader said: “What does bind us all is the feeling that we are here to put food on the shelves and feed the community during covid.”

Fostering remote connections

The head of HR at a major bank said it had placed a major focus on new starters. Particularly in locations where there is a big demand for talent, it’s imperative to build that sense of connection “from the time someone accepts the role to the time they are due to start.

From virtual meetings with leadership teams to lunch and learn sessions – when these strategies were applied to 500 new hires, the dropout rate was 25% less than usual.

The five pillars of belonging

• Welcomed aboard – introduce, inducted, and incorporated into the organisational team and the culture.
• Known as individuals with unique qualities to be celebrated.
• Included, valued and accepted into the fold, without reservation.
• Consistently supported to develop their skills and progress their careers.
• Feeling connected to colleagues and fellow employees across the enterprise.

Leadership a driver of success

Anita Fleming, co-founder and director at Fourfold consulting said businesses were using clever practices and small gestures to foster a big connection with their employees.

“HR leaders can generate conversation and momentum, but leadership is actually what continues to keep people feeling connected.

The theme that stands out across industries is the strong link between belonging and purpose. The ability to drive connection through shared values remains a key strategy for HR leaders who agree that also, that belonging must be tied to commercial success.

“It must be more than just something HR professionals like talking about. We don’t know necessarily always think about how the concept we’re talking about makes a contribution to business performance,” Ferrier said.

Clear definition of an organisations values is fundamental as HR leaders plot their pathway out of the pandemic and into the future of work.

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