The Power of Video in Fostering Genuine Connections
The modern workplace is in a state of constant change. How can businesses maintain their company culture and build a sense of community when most offices are hybrid, spread around the globe, and embracing new technologies at differing rates? The key is creating a “High-Trust” organization—one where “employees feel safe to take risks, express themselves freely, and innovate”.
Break Down Workplace Hierarchy through Video
One common challenge organizations face is a divided culture due to the structural hierarchy. When a leader is locked behind an office door or works offsite, they’re missing opportunities to form relationships with their people.
When employees don’t trust management, it hurts the bottom line. Only 53% of employees feel like their managers care about their wellbeing—and this disengagement can result in up to $500 billion annually in productivity losses.
Video communications help break down these hierarchical barriers. It doesn’t matter whether you’re dealing with time or distance constraints—video facilitates direct interactions between peers across an organization. This can include video messaging shared from leadership, live-streamed stakeholder events, or a digital end-of-year business review.

Connect and Engage Employees Across Your Company
People want to establish a real connection with others at their job because it makes the work they do much more valuable. Increasing connections across teams helps employees get a bigger-picture understanding of their role.
In one survey, 98% of people said that video helps with building relationships both inside and outside their company. Video is a social powerhouse for fostering real relationships in corporate environments.
Boost Employee Morale and Productivity with Video
Employees that have strong relationships across the corporate hierarchy perform better at their jobs. They’re more likely to believe in the mission, feel heard when they speak up, and are more driven toward achieving goals. When employees can see the outcomes of their work, it helps them feel more motivated.
So how can you connect employees with video? It comes down to using effective video strategies that humanize your leadership.
Leadership Can Build Authenticity with Video Performances
One of video’s superpowers is being able to humanize executives. It breaks down the facade of the untouchable leader by bringing human emotion and storytelling to the forefront.
There are some subtle, yet invaluable, performance elements that will ensure a leader’s performance is received as authentic. Making sure that body language matches the tone of message is essential. If a message is casual but the leader stiff and buttoned-up, the performance is going to feel disingenuous.
In virtual interactions, the gestures, eye contact, and facial expressions you make play a crucial role in conveying emotions. There’s no hiding—the camera picks up everything. So it’s even more important to really believe in your message and tell it from the heart. When your face, body, and words are all sending the same cohesive message, employees are more likely to trust what you say.
Most people don’t feel natural on camera the first few times. But the more leaders appear on camera, the more comfortable the practice will become. And employees will appreciate feeling included by regular communications from their leadership teams. Trust combined with enhanced visibility is the equation any corporate executive needs to break down barriers and get your people on board.
Building a High-Trust Organization with Video
There are tangible benefits to building a high-trust organization through video. Harvard Business Review reported that people at high-trust companies report 74% less stress, 106% more energy at work, 50% higher productivity, 13% fewer sick days, 76% more engagement, 29% more satisfaction with their lives, and 40% less burnout than people at low-trust companies. The facts speak for themselves—your people and processes will benefit from prioritizing trust.
Companies that are struggling to form a high-trust environment may not be taking advantage of video—or aren’t using their videos the right way.
Video is an opportunity to be transparent and honest, not to sugar-coat the company. It can be tempting to jazz up videos with glamorous stock footage and fancy effects, but that’s not always the right approach for organizations looking to build trust. Pull stories from real employees who exemplify core values. Effective corporate videos should be engaging, moving, motivating, and multipurpose. They should engage while informing.
It’s crucial to remember the importance of human touch and authenticity in communication. By embracing video and leveraging its capabilities while staying true to genuine connections, businesses can enhance collaboration, drive engagement, and foster a thriving corporate culture.