A few years ago, I worked with a tech company navigating the chaos of hybrid work for their team. One of their senior leaders said, “We’ve done all the right things... training, policies, team charters… But something still feels off.” That “off” feeling was disconnection. That sense of a lack of belonging in hybrid teams is more common than we like to admit.
When people and culture change falls flat
Maybe this feels familiar: your people and culture initiatives look good on paper, but in reality, people with lived experience of exclusion feel invisible in meetings. Participation is inconsistent. Microaggressions slip through. You sense people are performing inclusion rather than living it.
That struggling team culture creates an emotional ick... like you’re missing something important, but can’t quite name it.
Especially in hybrid and remote workplaces, belonging can quietly erode. And without it, all the other equity, diversity, inclusion and belonging efforts lose power.
Imagine if that changed…
Imagine if your distributed team didn’t just function, but thrived. If team members, who previously felt pushed to the margins, felt genuinely heard and valued. If your workplace culture reflected not just values on the wall, but lived, measurable behaviours across departments. What if hybrid meetings didn’t leave folks out, but instead pulled them in?
That kind of people and team culture change is possible.
So why aren’t more organizations getting there?
Because too often, strategies are built for people, not with them. Leaders rush to implement "best practices" instead of co-creating real-world solutions with those most impacted.
Belonging doesn’t come from downloading a new policy template.
It comes from surfacing the unseen and unsaid.
And for hybrid teams, what breaks belonging is often contextual; it differs by lived experience, department, or even time zone. The barriers for groups that are under-represented or pushed to the margins, don’t show up in the same way across the board.
So what does work to create belonging in hybrid teams?
- 1Start with those most impacted. The people most affected by belonging gaps are the experts. Use tools like the Belonging Matters Conversations to listen — really listen — to what’s eroding trust and dignity in your hybrid workplace.
- 2Co-design your strategy. Create people and culture initiatives that reflect the input and leadership of under-represented groups and those who have experienced exclusion within your workplace. Use guiding principles that are actionable and measurable, not just statements of intent.
- 3Build reflective practices into the everyday. Instead of heavy surveys, try lightweight “temperature checks” after team meetings. Ask questions like, on a scale from 1 to 10, to what extent, did you feel:Heard in today’s meeting?There was space to contribute your strengths?
- 4Anchor behaviour change in self-awareness. We’re all fish in water. Mining our own belonging and not-belonging stories helps us accompany (not fix) others. That’s where authentic leadership begins.
What happens when you do?
We’ve seen polarized leadership teams go from inaction to high-impact collaboration. We’ve watched hybrid tech teams unlock hidden talents. We’ve witnessed Indigenous and non-Indigenous organizations rebuild trust and shared leadership... together.
The Belonging Matters Framework has reached over 2.5 million people in 12+ languages. It’s grounded in research, lived experience, and practical tools. And it’s earned recognition from the United Nations for a reason: it works.
And if you don’t?
The risk of doing nothing is bigger than just poor morale. It’s turnover. Lawsuits. Talent drain. Wasted time and money on “flavour-of-the-month” strategies that never stick.
But more importantly, it’s the quiet disconnection that spreads like fog across your team.
Let’s talk
If you’re ready to bring your team’s culture of belonging into clearer focus, let’s talk.
Hop on a 20-minute call with me. I’ll walk you through practical, proven steps to start measuring and accelerating belonging, starting right where you are.
