Healthy relationships set the foundation for effective communication and make working together more comfortable and enjoyable. There are many reasons why establishing and maintaining relationships in remote teams is essential; we'll focus on two that consistently emerge from research, trust and connection.

Trust

Trust is fundamental to the success of remote teams (Breuer et al., 2020). Organizations with trust experience more positive team attitudes, share more information, and perform better (Breuer et al., 2016; De Jong et al., 2015). Trust begins with getting to know each other and sharing experiences. 

Jarvenpaa et al. (2004) showed that the importance of trust shifts as teams progress. During the early stages of relationship building, trust makes teams feel more connected. Later on, trust contributes to cohesiveness and more effective team communication.

Podcast: Stephen M. R. Covey—The Key to Creating Great Workplace Culture: the Role of Trust. 

Connection

Feelings of isolation and loneliness are significant challenges for individuals who work remotely (Charalampous et al., 2019). Healthy relationships can offset feelings of isolation, allowing your team to be engaged and satisfied with their work (Golden & Veiga, 2008).

• Leader connection: positive relationships between leaders and team members foster well-being (Arnold, 2017), promote job satisfaction, and improved job performance (Judge & Piccol, 2004). The more people work virtually, the more notable the adverse effects of a weak relationship are on job satisfaction and performance (Golden & Veiga, 2008).
• Team connection: Team members need to feel personally connected to their peers. As a leader, you are responsible for establishing and maintaining healthy relationships within your team. Nothing makes people feel disconnected as quickly as being left out. Cogliser et al. (2013) explored being left out in virtual teams. 'Group isolates' occur when people or groups are met with in separate virtual meetings. This can cause some people or groups to feel left out, which can negatively affect team dynamics (Cogliser et al., 2013).

Podcast: Leadership and Fostering Connections in Remote Teams

Article: The Importance of Human Connection in Remote Work

Action Items

1. Build trust through clarity. Be transparent about your abilities and strengths, and ask that your team members do the same (Breuer et al., 2020). Make it easy to keep track: Breuer et al. (2020) suggests creating online profiles that everyone has access to and updating your email signatures to contain relevant information.
2. Engage as a leader. Management styles that focus on relationships are the most effective in virtual teams, according to research by Ivanaj & Bozon (2016). Transformational leadership is one such leadership style. It's characterized by highly engaged, individualized relationships with followers and has consistently positive outcomes for team members, including job performance and well-being (Arnold, 2017; Judge & Piccol, 2004). 
3. Have your team meet all at once. Regular exchanges that include all members help avoid the group isolate problem and promote information sharing, cooperation, and trust (Cogliser et al., 2013).
4. Connect with your team individually. You've met all at once, but have you met one-on-one? For your introverted team members, this will be a stronger opportunity for relationship building than group settings (Cain, 2012). Meeting one-on-one gives your team an opportunity to share personal challenges and to discuss conflicts, giving you an opportunity resolve them constructively (more on this in Part III).
5. Share experiences and collaborate. Team building activities make members feel more connected and helps your team work together effectively (Klein et al., 2009). Establish rapport and build your team at a distance with shared experiences and collaborative activities. Use projects and activities that everyone contributes. Get started with the virtual relationship-building activities below!

Virtual Relationship-Building Activities

• Pick a fun topic and ask everyone on your team to contribute to a word cloud. 
• Sign up for a virtual escape room.
• Create a team photo by having everyone take a themed photo and create a collage on Canva.
• Use PollEverywhere to run fun polls on random, non-work topics; Marvel Universe or the Wizarding World of Harry Potter?
• Have a morning coffee break together—partner people up to take their 15-minute morning coffee (or tea) virtually and rotate the partners.