Seven out of 10 employees who work from home report feeling increasingly isolated after more than a year out of the office, according to a recent survey from One Poll and communications technology firm Volley. Comfort with colleagues has taken a hit as well—two-thirds of employees feel disconnected from their teams, and a similar number report they work directly with someone they could not pick out of a lineup.
Communication is key to improving many of these issues, but current approaches appear to be failing, with most employees reporting that remote communication options increase time, effort and misunderstandings. For example, 64% find chat and email harder than face-to-face meetings and 39% say in-person meetings are one of the things they miss most about in-office work. Almost all workers report retyping messages and emails for clarity at least once a day, yet 87% experience miscommunications weekly and 47% said this occurs four or more times every week.