Advances in technology are making it easier and easier not to talk to the people we work with.
Why meet with your colleague in person when you could give them a call, send them an email, or shoot them a chat? And, when your team is distributed between cities and time zones, that communication becomes even more impersonal and detached.
But when we don’t talk face-to-face, we lose vital cues and connections. Alison Coleman, in her article “Why it’s good to talk,” addresses this issue:
While the sheer speed of digital connections appears to beat the time-consuming process of physical interaction, the importance of face-to-face conversation in the workplace shouldn’t be underestimated. Research shows that dispensing with a regular chat with people – whether they’re colleagues or other people nearby – can have a negative impact, not just on our health and happiness, but also on our productivity.
The boost to our quality of life that comes from face-to-face time with others is not replicated during time spent interacting with others online. A study carried out by Oregon Health & Science University sounded a more worrying note by revealing that having limited face-to-face social contact nearly doubles someone’s risk of having depression.
And research carried out by Hewlett Packard has shown that moments of conversation between co-workers can increase performance by 20%, while another study uncovered that 72% of employees who have a best friend at work are more satisfied with their job.
Sococo enables the kind of spontaneous human connection needed to communicate clearly and build strong relationships, even if you’re not physically co-located.
Teammates can chat around the virtual water cooler, and, with video and audio conferencing in every room, you can actually see each other face-to-face while you talk.
Read more about the importance of talking to your colleagues.
