Leading Hybrid and Remote Teams by Gleb Tsipursky

Working remotely lessens the chance that they will encounter these prejudices and the pressure to constantly code-switch. Professionals from marginalized communities still suffer from discrimination and microaggressions in the office. We know that underrepresented groups have a stronger desire for hybrid and remote work - one survey found that 21% of white knowledge workers want to return to full-time, on-site work compared to just 3% of Black knowledge workers. These findings are problematic for several reasons, with one of them being that prejudice against remote workers exacerbates other inequities in the workplace. This may explain why remote workers get promoted less often than their peers, despite being 15% more productive on average. Forty-two percent said they sometimes forget about remote workers when assigning tasks. SHRM reported two-thirds (67%) of supervisors overseeing remote workers admitted to believing remote workers are more replaceable than onsite workers. Last year, the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) released findings from a survey of more than 800 supervisors. Proximity bias describes how people in positions of power tend to treat workers who are physically closer to them more favorably, and stems from the antiquated assumption that those who work remotely are less productive than those who work from the office. The recent shift to remote and hybrid work has created a “visibility” concern for many employees. For example, you may ask your team to show up every Friday for an in-person team building activity, but empower them to choose whether or not to commute Monday through Thursday. Push for equal treatment: If you work at an organization that allows you to make your own team rules, take advantage.Use these meetings to become more aware of your team members work, and also let them know that their work is visible to you. Mitigate “face time” concerns: To address the problem of decreased face time with remote workers, initiate more frequent (weekly or biweekly), low-stakes performance evaluations or one-on-one check-ins.Collectively, practice valuing deliverables, collaboration, and innovation, as opposed to employee location.

Notice when you might be falling into proximity bias, and redirect your focus to include those who contribute remotely.

Instill an “excellence from anywhere culture”: First, help your organization openly acknowledge proximity bias as a potential issue.

While these findings are problematic on many levels, managers - new or seasoned - can take steps to mitigate this bias. In a recent survey, 42% of managers said they sometimes forget about remote workers when assigning tasks. The antiquated assumption that those who work from home are less productive than those who work from the office has given rise to “visibility” concerns.

Leading Hybrid and Remote Teams by Gleb Tsipursky