When it comes to designing an effective client experience, I’ve been heard to suggest (more than once) that we may be using old approaches to tackle new challenges. The same, I fear, is true when it comes to structuring our teams and our work. When I started Absolute Engagement, after selling my last business, I knew that I wanted certain things to be very different. I wanted to work (most of the time) from a home office and I wanted a small core team and to use contractors as and when they were needed. I didn’t know how I would make either work, but getting clear on those objectives forced me to think differently. And it turns out that’s not a bad thing. Reema Baber is our Director of Programs and Development. She is, well, younger than me (one of those millennials). In addition to that, we work remotely. And the topic of age and the ability to work remotely turn out to be closely connected and important drivers of our success. I often read about the challenges associated with working with younger team members and offering alternative work structures, so thought it would be helpful to share our experience. So today, rather than simply share my views, I’m going straight to the source. Inspired by this video in which Michelle Hoskin, founder of Standards International, interviewed her EA, Helen, about how they structure their roles, today I’m going to interview Reema.

In this short interview we discuss:

• The benefits of a providing an option to work remotely (at least some of the time) and how to make it work
• The importance of communicating a clear and compelling vision
• How a need for impact can be misinterpreted as a desire to advance too quickly
• The need to understand working styles and our individual drivers of productivity
• The concept of flow and how that may change how your team works
• The critical elements of trust (and how to create it) and communication (and how to manage it)
• How starting with an understanding of your own needs increases your chances of success when experimenting with different team structures

Reema doesn’t claim to speak for all millennials but provides some real insight into the thinking. More importantly she shares some specific ways she and her peers work differently and why it can be a good thing if we’re open to change.

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Thanks for stopping by,

Julie