Today’s WFH Alliance community conversation—featuring guest expert Nicole Kyle, Managing Director & Co-Founder of Customer Management Practice—brought together leaders across industries and geographies to talk candidly about what’s really happening with employee engagement in a remote and hybrid world.

While Nicole shared helpful context from CMP Research’s latest findings, including why managers remain the single biggest driver of engagement, the heart of the session came from the community itself. Leaders opened up about their challenges, their progress, and the realities of leading teams who may never step foot in a physical contact center.

Below is a recap of what we learned together.

1. The Culture Shift Is Real—and Still Evolving

Many leaders shared that their organizations entered remote work from very different starting points:

• Teams who traditionally relied on in-person culture and relationships are still navigating what it means to recreate that sense of belonging when everyone is distributed
• Teams that have been virtual since day one are realizing that scale introduces new cultural challenges, especially when trying to create a sense of community beyond the supervisor-employee relationship
• Global, mixed-model organizations are balancing cultural differences, regional expectations, and varying management norms as they define what “engagement” truly means across borders

Despite these differences, a collective theme emerged:
Culture is no longer about proximity—it’s about intentionality.

And many leaders acknowledged that building community in a remote world requires more effort and more creativity than before.

2. Flexibility Remains a Core Engagement Lever

One of the strongest shared sentiments was that flexibility is inseparable from engagement.

Leaders described a growing need to:

• Provide flexibility without losing operational stability
• Give employees more control while still maintaining fairness
• Recognize flexibility as a form of trust, not simply scheduling

Nicole’s research reinforced this point:
When employees are satisfied with their flexibility, they report significantly higher overall satisfaction, loyalty, and performance outcomes.

But attendees emphasized an important nuance:
Flexibility is only a benefit if leaders know how to manage it.

3. The Manager Is Still the Center of the Engagement Universe

Nearly every attendee echoed the same priority:
Front-line leaders make or break the employee experience.

Participants shared what they see working today:

• Leaders who set aside time for personal check-ins, not just performance conversations
• Leaders who proactively reach out when they no longer have visual cues
• Leaders who show vulnerability and openness, creating trust

One organization described engagement as ensuring employees feel like part of a team—especially when that team is a mix of remote and on-site employees. Another emphasized shared responsibility, employees teaching one another, not just relying on their leader to create engagement for them.

What stood out most was how consistent the group was:
If we want better engagement, we must invest in leaders—not just systems or perks.

CMP’s research backs this up:
Managers have the largest impact on agent satisfaction compared to other drivers like tools, compensation, and even culture.

4. Flexibility Has Exposed—and Intensified—the Trust Gap

Several leaders highlighted a challenge that often goes unspoken:
Remote work has forced organizations to confront how much (or little) trust exists between leaders and employees.

Nicole’s data shows that managers still report lower trust in remote employees and worry about at-home distractions.

Attendees discussed how they’re addressing this:

• Encouraging leaders to be proactive, not reactive, especially when they can no longer see who is struggling or succeeding
• Building clarity around outcomes rather than monitoring activity
• Offering leadership development that is specifically tailored to remote environments
• Reinforcing that trust flows both ways: agents need to feel safe to ask for help, and leaders need to feel confident in giving autonomy

One comment summarized it well:
Leaders who thrived in person need different tools to thrive remotely.

5. Engagement Requires Focus—Not Chasing Every New Idea

Several participants voiced a concern that resonates across industries:
With so many potential initiatives, how do we prioritize the right things?

The group agreed that it’s easy to get distracted by trends, tech, and new programs. But the true drivers of engagement remain remarkably consistent:

• Strong and supportive leadership
• Meaningful flexibility
• Clear career development pathways

As one attendee put it:
“We need to focus on what matters, not chase every idea we come up with.”

6. Key Takeaways From the Group

Participants shared thoughtful closing reflections. Common takeaways included:

• Prioritizing leadership development is essential—we still don’t invest enough in frontline leaders
• Flexibility remains a crucial differentiator for retention and satisfaction
• Managers matter more than any other engagement driver—by a wide margin

Final Thoughts

Today’s conversation made one thing clear:
Remote and hybrid work aren’t challenges to solve—they’re realities to design for.

And the leaders who will excel in this new world are the ones who embrace proactive leadership, build trust through connection, and invest intentionally in their teams’ experience.

WFH Alliance is proud to bring together a community of leaders navigating these questions with honesty, curiosity, and a shared commitment to elevating the future of flexible work.

If you’re looking to deepen leadership capability, strengthen engagement, or apply these ideas inside your own organization, WFH Alliance offers ongoing workshops and training programs throughout the year. You can explore current and upcoming opportunities here:
https://members.wfhalliance.com/event-calendar