This article is written by FlexGC, a grassroots volunteer network of Canadian federal public servants that promotes flexible work arrangements. It is not affiliated with the Government of Canada (GC) in any way, shape, or form.

It is the final part of a four-part series meant to support public servants as they transition to hybrid working in the Canadian public service. Read Part 1 on adapting to change, Part 2 on becoming a change leader, and Part 3 on best practices for distributed teams.

  • The problem: We’re asking public servants to return to a common hybrid work model without providing them with the tools and resources necessary to thrive.
  • Why it matters: Public servants are often leaders - both formally and informally - in their respective spaces. Inadequately equipped public servants lead to inadequate outcomes, impacting the workplace and the nation at large.
  • The solution: This blog series has discussed change leadership, hybrid best practices, and the importance of building community and connecting to purpose. When all else fails, the best thing a public servant can do to thrive in a hybrid work environment is to focus on building an empathetic and resilient team culture.

Teams who have a good culture have an improved likelihood of success in terms of navigating our new normal, including hybrid work arrangements.

Why?

It’s simple, really.

Teams with a good culture are more likely to promote transparent communication and are more likely to weather difficult times more effectively than other teams. Good culture also ensures employees feel supported, valued, and “in the know”, which in turn keeps employees engaged and resilient in the face of change.

So, what does good team culture look like?

First, let’s define what it is. A team with a strong, positive culture is one where the working environment is characterised by trust, honesty, and fairness. A team with a shared culture shares values, attitudes, and practices that characterise the team and help to guide behaviour and inform actions. It’s the “vibe” of your team, if you will.

How do you build a good one?

  1. Start by assessing what your team currently values. If you’re a manager, this includes assessing how your employees feel about their work and the wider organisation.
  2. Make sure your culture is employee-powered. Emphasise employee involvement, influence, and engagement. Engage your employees (or if you’re an employee, encourage your team) to brainstorm what qualities they’d like to see in their team’s culture. Maybe appreciation rings particularly true, or integrity really resonates with your team. Maybe the principles of give and take, or the concept of co-creation really resonate. Brainstorm as many as you’d like and use them to guide you!
  3. Once you’ve identified what your team culture looks like, it’s time to figure out how to ground your culture in those qualities. That is, how do you foster these on an active and daily basis? Let’s use trust as an example. If trust is a quality that drives your team, you may hold open forums or solicit feedback at all levels. You might also increase visibility across projects and processes to build trust across all levels.
  4. Invest in space and time that matches your culture. This might look like blocked out calendars, walking meetings, or opportunities for growth and education. It might be shared days in the office, or dedicated remote coworking days. Identify what your best practices look like and move forward from there. Whatever you do, make sure it matches the culture that your team is striving for.
  5. Don’t forget to keep your culture in mind moving forward, and don’t be afraid to come back and reassess what works and what doesn’t. Consider engaging in “Start, Stop, Continue” exercises with your team, leverage team charters, hold a “Blue Sky” activity day. There are tons of ways to come back and continuously build and improve your culture!

If you can’t think of concrete ways to foster good culture within your team, here are some quick and easy ways to do so:

  • Work in the open: this might look like shared calendars, shared project planning and tracking, or team check-ins to share what’s working and what’s not.
  • Offer both formal and informal opportunities for growth.
  • Communicate with the whole team frequently and regularly.
  • Encourage vulnerability, honesty, empathy, and transparency—this starts with you!
  • Provide recognition, formally or informally, on a regular basis.
  • If you work on a distributed team, consider building in a buddy system so that your distributed colleagues are part of the fun as well.

Many federal public servants may not have control over their working arrangements, or at least less than we’d like. But what we do have is the capacity to create microcosms of influence within our own teams, whether you’re a manager or an employee, that can make our working environment as pleasant as humanly possible. You may not have control over your organisation’s culture, but you can directly influence your team’s.

Note: FlexGC is here to help - this article represents part one of a four-part series meant to support public servants as they navigate the twists and turns that come with working in the public service. Read Part 1 on adapting to change, Part 2 on becoming a change leader, and Part 3 on best practices for distributed teams.

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(Image Credit: Merwan Boudriss, Unsplash)