Daniel Broglie explains what is important when returning to the office from working from home. He is co-owner of the Dielsdorf-based Chromos Group.
Daniel Broglie, why should you return to the office at all?
I don't believe in the "me company", but in the fact that we achieve more as a whole and provide better solutions than each individual on their own. As the Chromos Group, we are an organization and working together is our strength. Of course, we can also communicate with each other via technical tools, but personal exchange is the most essential part of any successful collaboration. It has been scientifically proven that only 7% of communication between people is based on content, 38% on tone and voice and as much as 55% on body language. Video calls are therefore better than pure telephone calls, but even then we still lose more than half of what we humans perceive in others when communicating. Physical contact therefore clearly offers the greatest advantages.
Can we still do the office?
Why shouldn't we still be able to do it? We didn't ask ourselves whether we could work from home before coronavirus. And then we just had to do it. I think it's more important to ask what I've learned in this situation and how I can bring the good things back to the office. Our goal is to create a better everyday office life than before the pandemic. When it comes to returning to work, our motto is: those who feel that they are burdened by returning should work with their line manager to find out what the problem is. However, employees should come back. We are a service company, we develop solutions for our customers, and this requires physical contact and a mutual exchange within the team.
Did you welcome your employees back with a special campaign?
I think "welcoming back" is extremely important. However, we never let the connection break down, but instead ramped up communication during the coronavirus pandemic and clearly promoted the connection to the office. For example, we weren't able to hold a Christmas dinner, but everyone received a special Christmas present. Continuous dialog with employees is the most important thing in my view. If this dialog is broken off, I doubt whether a special greeting or a "Schöggeli" on their return will be of much use.
Should we shake hands again?
That's one question - the other is whether our famous three kisses will return. My impression is that shaking hands will become the norm again. I'm already experiencing it again in everyday business life. People were looking forward to it and I think it's a nice tradition. I'm more curious about the three kisses.
Chromos and Fujifilm have figuratively shaken hands. They merged to form the Chromos Group during the pandemic. How was it possible to create a team spirit among the workforce?
We didn't do much culturally at the beginning of the pandemic. We still have some catching up to do. This year, under special protective measures, we held four Chromos Culture Cafés with all our employees, with around 30 people attending each one. We met for an afternoon and discussed the most important values of our collaboration. It was interesting to see that some of the employees were inhibited at the beginning. You could feel that there was a barrier to being back in the office with lots of people in one place. However, the cultural cafés were then unanimously perceived as very positive: We're finally seeing each other again!
And how has the team spirit developed over the past year?
There are many reasons for this. It was an exceptional situation that triggered great solidarity among us. People helped each other even more than before, certain things were no longer taken for granted and I found it very positive how everyone pulled together. We made the best of the situation and we didn't fall into complaining. I would like to compliment Switzerland as a whole for this: We have sought a middle way. In Germany, where we also have a subsidiary, we were constantly confronted with coronavirus figures and curfews, which had a huge impact on people's morale. I am very happy that we found a compromise in Switzerland and that the companies were allowed to go their own way. The constant contact was extremely important. But this has already suffered.
How do you get the team spirit back on track?
It's a matter of getting there. But it's made easier by the fact that the employees see it: It's cool, I'll see you again. That helps the team spirit enormously.
