Sally Withers
Chief People Officer
In this second blog, we continue to explore how important communication is for Leaders, focusing on listening skills and their application in remote communication. There are clear challenges with one-way communication, multitasking during calls, neglecting quieter voices, skimming messages, rushing 1-1s, and missing emotional cues.
All of these can lead to disengagement, miscommunication, and reduced trust — especially in the isolation of remote work.
In his book Supercommunicators, Charles Duhigg emphasises that great listening is active and intentional. It can easily be applied to remote settings.
Ask the Right Questions
Great listeners guide conversations by asking insightful questions that uncover deeper meaning. Challenge your teams with the right questions, pushing them to think critically and find solutions themselves.
- Remote: We have a lineup of robust collaboration tools at our disposal like Microsoft Teams (Forms) and Slack polls, Q&A features, or asynchronous video updates/messages to encourage thoughtful responses without putting people on the spot.
Reflect and Validate
Active listening involves summarising, validating, and responding thoughtfully to demonstrate understanding. It creates psychological safety, making people feel heard and confident in sharing their ideas. Google’s Project Aristotle found psychological safety to be the top predictor of successful teams.
- Remote: Summarise key points in Microsoft Teams, Slack, email, or project management tools e.g., “I hear you saying X. Let’s explore Y further”. Use emoji reactions,voice notes, or short check-in videos to make responses feel more personal and engaging.
Reflecting and validating ideas makes people feel valued and encourages more meaningful contributions.
Balance Talking and Silence
Great communicators know when to pause and let the other person think and respond. They draw out the best in people by making space for them to contribute rather than dominating discussions. Tim Cook, CEO of Apple is known for a quieter, more measured style, often pausing in meetings, giving space to others to contribute. Silence can be powerful—it creates room for deeper reflection, independent thinking, and stronger engagement.
- Remote: Embrace intentional pauses in Zoom or Teams calls to provide attendees with the opportunity to process and contribute. Utilise chat features to enable quieter team members to share insights without needing to speak immediately. Encourage asynchronous brainstorming using collaborative tools e.g. Notion, Miro, Google Docs, Confluence, Lucidspark to let ideas develop over time.
Focus on Emotions, Not Just Facts
Research suggests that people want to feel emotionally understood, not just intellectually acknowledged. Emotional validation activates the brain’s bonding systems, leading to trust, safety and openness. Great leaders invest in their people’s growth, recognising their emotions and motivations to unlock their full potential. They strive to build their emotional intelligence to foster trust, engagement, and sustained success.
- Remote: Start meetings with quick personal check-ins e.g. “What’s your energy level today on a scale of 1-10?”. Recognise emotions in messages and show empathy. Use 1:1 virtual coffee chats to maintain human connection beyond work discussions.
Satya Nadella himself wrote in his book, Hit Refresh:
“Listening is the most important thing that I accomplished each day because it would build the foundation of my leadership for years to come.”
By leveraging asynchronous tools, structured interactions, and digital empathy, you can make remote communication just as effective as in-person. It requires intentional communication and leveraging digital tools effectively. True leadership isn’t about talking the most—it’s about listening the best.
These are not just soft skills, they’re strategic and effective. How do you ensure your team feels heard?