It is fair to say that only 3 years ago I wouldn’t have had this in my top 100 PM skills. But times have changed and whilst some companies always embraced working from home, Covid and the pandemic has forced other companies to adapt and adopt at a minimum a hybrid way of working. For this to work PMs need to be able to adapt their working habits & styles.

• PMs need to be comfortable working anonymously and independently.

• PMs need to be confident to make key decisions and run with these.

• PMs who like to have their thoughts and decisions affirmed face to face may need to adapt if their. role involves full or part working from home (WFH)

• PMs need to be more flexible in how they work.

• PMs who have relied solely on 100% face to face contact and office environments could be at risk of a career change.

• Change management should be a skill that PMs are adept at delivering in part or in full as part of project deliveries, they must now use this skill to manage their own transition into remote working.

• WFH is more about the management of tasks & time & quality PMs should be masters of this.

• PMs need to be familiar with online communication tools such as MS Teams & Zoom.

• Presentation skills need to improve if not already at a quality standard as with remote working sharing and presenting of reports and data will become more frequent and necessary.

• Presentation skills will improve and if some PMs perceive this as a weakness this is the optimal time to improve them as there is no escape from stakeholder calls.

• Organising meetings can become easier as there is no longer a need to book meeting room and although attendees may be able to decline meeting requests, eventually persistence will mean they can’t hide like they can in some offices.

• A negative of WFH is that colleagues and stakeholders can disappear offline & remain in hiding until an opportunity arises face to face in an office or your doorstep them.

• The need for travel is diminished and, in some cases, may disappear now a remote environment exists and this can be a cost saver for companies and employees.

• Remote meetings tend to be more organised because they have too – agendas will be created and there can be a better flow to them.

• Remote meetings can vary in length usually from 15 minutes to an hour depending on context, whereas my experience from onsite meetings is that they are not accurately timed and, in most cases, time is burnt unnecessarily.

• With remote meetings you can simply join and listen, if you have nothing to contribute.

• However, organisers should be careful to keep attendance to those who are necessary.

• Optimal numbers for online meetings are between 5 & 9 if a team meeting to get the most benefit.

•1:1 online meeting is perfect too for short catch ups.

• As a PM be careful not to let any attendee into your meeting especially attendees who have received a forwarded invitation from another guest.

• Make sure their attendance is necessary and don’t be afraid to question their attendance motive regardless of who they are and how senior they are – remember PMs need to be in control as hosts.

• Meeting etiquette such as camera on/off should be dictated by the importance of the meeting but I wouldn’t force attendees to turn cameras on.

• Whether meetings are recorded can be an issue for legal & compliance and it is always best to check with them on company policies, at a simple level to have meetings recorded it may be necessary to have all cameras off.

• Trust is important when managing stakeholders in a hybrid and remote environment – it can be wise to have regular short check ins with key stakeholders to make tasks are on tracks and issues managed.

• The advantages of remote and hybrid working far outweigh the traditional 9-5 onsite every day.

• The best PMs will adapt, the average ones will fall by the way side.

• Micro management is less prevalent in hybrid environments and more focus is on productivity, relationships and results which can only be good for all stakeholders concerned.

• In my opinion a mix of onsite/offsite work balance is conducive to having the best project outcomes for Project Managers and stakeholders.