REPORT
Connectedness
and shut-ins, for example, need the vitality that comes from
Why we need connectedness Pilar de Castro-Manglano believes a loss of in-person relationships impoverishes organizations and societies on multiple levels. Face-to-face interactions help you to:
close regular contact with young people, and young people can benefit from the wisdom and experience of their elders. To this end, I think initiatives like Adopt a Grandparent (Adopta un Abuelo) by Alberto Cabanes (Executive MBA ’23), to connect the generations, are necessary and important. We also need to learn to forgive and overlook the differences that have fractured families during this period, to reestablish
Truly know yourself. This helps you overcome your own vulnerabilities and develop positive traits that promote personal wellbeing.
growth. Use past hurdles to remind you of what is truly im-
Develop coping strategies. The more you interact with others, the better you are able to deal with interpersonal conflict.
people return to society?
Learn. Relationship behaviors are a source of knowledge and growth. Be more creative. Social exchanges spark new ideas, enrich the quality of those ideas and increase the capacity for innovation. Build strong social networks. You will have more stable and lasting relationships to rely on and draw upon.
ties, and make this an opportunity for personal and social portant. And start enjoying small pleasures once again. Not everyone is ready to go out again. How can we help Fear can be irrational. It paralyzes, generates stress and affects physical and mental health. We need to be respectful of those who still feel that way. But we must help them to rationalize it. The best way is to dismantle myths and provide evidence-based resources and information, so that people can resume their lives as normally as possible. In research with IESE’s Mireia Las Heras, you pointed out the limits of online working. Why should companies encourage in-person contact? Working completely online hinders the development of human relationships – the aspect that goes beyond work and enriches us personally. For example, workplace decision-making becomes easier when supported by a prior so-
“With connectedness comes the integrity and trust needed to be a good leader”
cial bond. These bonds often develop in small moments: a coffee break; a meal where personal issues arise naturally; helping an overwhelmed colleague, which is harder to detect when that person is working remotely. Working face-to-face often stabilizes relationships. It requires social skills – saying no respectfully, picking up on conversational cues – which are learned through practice. Why do we work better when we have a social bond? These bonds reveal what others need, what you can contribute and what you need yourself. Only ever relating to people via an online platform can be dehumanizing – we start treating each other as numbers. And while screens can give us
26 | IESE Business School Insight | no. 161
