What does it mean to be connected? If your mind went straight to reliable wifi, you’re not alone. In this digital age, our definition of connection is less and less about human connection and much more about a wireless connection.

As human beings, connection is one of our most basic and primitive needs. It was once necessary for the survival of our species. Connecting with other people may be hard-wired in our brains, but the rise of technology leads us to believe that we’re more connected than ever before. But take a closer look and you see that while technology enables connection it also fosters isolation and detachment.

At PRC, we recently unveiled our new brand message of creating a ‘culture of connection.’  We believe creating human connection in the workplace is essential—and increasingly difficult—in this new digital age. In our technology-enabled workplaces, it is even more important to cut through the digital noise to create meaningful, human connections with teams and leaders.

Trust us. After 20 years of talent management, leadership development and teamwork, we’ve seen the disengaged, adrift and impersonal culture that can develop when people hide behind their keyboards.

We want to bring more conscious and intentional connection into the workspace and all PRC programs and workshops incorporate some element of creating or improving connection at work.  You’ll see it in our emotional intelligence training, leadership development, and team building. It’s front and center in all our work with virtual team building, and the concepts of authenticity and vulnerability – two important elements of human connection – are foundational to Brene Brown’s work. Learning who you are and being able to connect with different personalities is a key part of undergoing a DISC assessment.

Clearly, this is something we feel strongly about. And it’s an essential message for teams and leaders to learn. It’s about leveraging technology to do the amazing things it does – bring global teams together, inspire creativity, enable collaboration and so much more – while still growing as humans, feeding our curiosity, inspiring new, bring about positive changes in the world, and most importantly, connecting to each other. Greater connection to those around us leads to more meaningful relationships, more productivity during shared time together, and stronger roots of trust and value.

Creating a culture of connection is a challenge in both a virtual workplace and with teams who work out of the same location. If you or your teams need to brush up on your “human” skills, we’d love to help.