Originally found at Fast Company, by Jessica Thiefels.

As employers scrambled to pivot their teams to remote work during the pandemic, a number of employees reported losing the sense of connection, relationship, and cultural values they used to have on-site, according to a Gallup survey.

In fact, employees who worked in a different location than their manager were 10% less likely to feel cared about or recognized for their contributions, 7% less likely to feel aligned with the core mission, and 5% less likely to feel their opinions matter.

What’s more, according to TinyPulse, while 91% of employees rate their colleagues on a positive scale, just over a third (36%) describe their company’s team-building efforts as “poor” and 30% reveal they don’t have much fun at work.

Not only do you need to build trust with your remote employees—especially as a new manager who is still learning the team dynamics—but now is a great time to make it fun. Use these ideas to keep things light while connecting more deeply as a team.

Continue reading the original article at Fast Company.

Read the original research in Academy of Management Journal.

Also read this AOM Insights summary citing this research.

Check out this video based on the original research.

Learn more about the AOM Scholars and explore their work:

• Jessica R. Methot, Rutgers
• Emily H Rosado-Solomon, California State University Long Beach
• Patrick Downes, Texas Christian University
• Allison S Gabriel, University of Arizona