Before we get started, let’s address the elephant in the room: no, social drinks on Zoom aren't the solution we're proposing here. Between long, painful periods of silence and then bursts of chatter that override other people, and, not to mention, the reality that you’re slowly getting tipsy on a glass of wine or Heineken alone at home, Zoom drinks aren’t a great substitute for the real thing.
Zoom drinks are, however, a brave attempt at bridging the gap between culture development to create a sense of community within the organisation, and the steady increase of people working from home.
In a post-lockdown world that’s been heavily affected by the pandemic, hybrid work is becoming commonplace in the corporate world. Hybrid work is the blanket term that describes the fluid model of work where employees have either a completely flexible working week, or arranged in-office/working from home days.
The challenge of hybrid work is figuring out the most effective ways we can maintain a strong culture which employees feel part of. Culture is a fundamental success indicator for any organisation - a weak culture can be the catalyst towards business catastrophe.