Proximity

Rapid advances in technology and digitalization have dramatically narrowed the boundaries that once separated us. We can join meetings or collaborate across time zones without leaving our homes; conversing with colleagues on the other side of the world has never been easier. So why do we still feel so disconnected? Whilst we have never been so virtually close to each other, psychological boundaries stubbornly persist. In many ways, we have become more divided in recent years, with study after study pointing to rising social and political polarization. As a result, many leaders and professionals feel ill-equipped to meet the demands of today's workplace, struggling to motivate and engage an increasingly diverse and dispersed workforce. In Proximity, Sebastian Reiche addresses these increasingly urgent questions, including: - How do we connect with colleagues over distance? - How do we deal with disruptions to the way we work? - How do we build belonging without erasing our differences? - How should we design teams to make them more collaborative and attractive to talent? By broadening identities, reshaping work aspirations, and rethinking how influence is exercised, Sebastian Reiche shows how leaders and professionals can achieve proximity - that empowering sense of connection with their work and with others - in an increasingly distributed world. Proximity offers a practical guide to bridging divides in global and virtual teams, and it helps organizations align their workforce, redesign work, and connect people across radical change.

B. Sebastian Reiche is a tenured professor of People Management and Associate Dean for Faculty at IESE Business School in Barcelona, Spain. His research focuses on how to navigate the global and distributed workplace, and he has been repeatedly recognized as one of the world's leading 2% of scientists by Stanford University and Elsevier. His work is regularly covered by media and practitioner outlets around the globe, including The Economist, The Financial Times, Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, and World Economic Forum. At IESE, he has directed, designed, and delivered customized Executive Education programs for numerous companies, including ACS Group, Allianz, Boehringer Ingelheim, Deloitte, Salesforce, and SAP. He is a regular keynote speaker, and he advises global organizations and start-ups in the human capital space.

1. Beneath the banyan tree: what separates and joins us 2. Stranded between cultures or transcending cultures? 3. The upside of disturbance 4. When difference makes the difference 5. Diving into the depths of your distributed team 6. Jazzing up your team boundaries 7. When decentralization and proximity go together 8. Dialling up or down on hybrid work 9. When radical change is a source of unity 10. Towards greater proximity in society