The Best Ways to Connect with Colleagues Outside of Work.
By Julianna Pillemer, Kristie Rogers, Beth Schinoff, and Jennifer Petriglieri
Connecting with colleagues outside of work can be a tricky endeavor, especially for leaders. On the one hand, it can be a swift means of creating more personalized relationships and stronger bonds: Studies show that connecting outside of work can help leaders and employees thrive in their work and improve team performance. On the other hand, leaders (rightly!) see that blurring the lines between work and non-work boundaries poses real risks. In the wrong setting, these encounters can lead to uncomfortable interactions that tarnish work relationships or potentially jeopardize a professional image that’s taken years to build.
As researchers, we’ve spent years exploring whether and how this type of boundary blurring can be a worthwhile risk to take. We found a key factor that determines the outcome of these interactions is where these connections happen.
The results of our multi-year study interviewing organizational leaders and employees across a wide range of professions in the U.S. and Europe revealed four features of non-work settings that are crucial for reaping the benefits of boundary-blurring interactions while lessening the risks.
Read the full Harvard Business Review article.
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Julianna Pillemer is an Assistant Professor of Management and Organizations at NYU Stern School of Business.