The New Workplace Map: Influence Over Hierarchy

In remote and hybrid workplaces, influence looks different — and so must the way organizations build culture. A majority of employers in 2025 (60%) offered hybrid work opportunities for most employees, according to the SHRM 2025 Employee Benefits Survey, making the question of how to sustain culture across dispersed teams more urgent than ever. 

At SHRM25 in San Diego, Elizabeth Scott, founder and CEO of Brighter Strategies, challenged a familiar assumption: that culture is created through in-person moments. “There is no watercooler anymore,” she said. “Your culture builders aren’t wandering the halls — they’re connecting through Wi-Fi signals.”

Drawing upon two decades of consulting work and insights from more than 500 companies, Scott argued that organizations must start mapping social capital — the invisible web of trust, reciprocity, and influence that shapes behavior more than hierarchy ever could.

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 What Is Social Capital?

“Social capital is like an emotional bank account. If I do what I say I’ll do, show up when I promise to, and help you when I can — you trust me. That builds credit in our relationship. And when I ask for help, you’re more likely to say ‘yes’ because there’s something in the account,” Scott said.

This emotional currency translates into four key behaviors:

• Trust: A reliable colleague becomes someone others lean on.
• Reciprocity: Help begets help.
• Access to information: Well-connected individuals are aware of what’s happening — formally and informally.
• Support: They offer guidance, resources, and empathy in return.

And yet, many organizations have no idea who their most trusted employees are because these dynamics don’t show up in organizational charts or performance reviews, Scott said.

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How to Spot Invisible Influence

To uncover people who have the most influence, organizations are turning to organizational network analysis (ONA). This technique visualizes connections among employees, such as who talks to whom, where communication bottlenecks occur, and who sits at the center of information flow.

Scott shared how one family-run business illustrated that influence doesn’t always follow the org chart. The founders’ son, despite having no official leadership role, was one of the most influential people in the company. Employees regularly turned to him for advice because they knew he could sway decisions through his relationship with leadership.

This company exemplifies how informal connections and access points, rather than titles, can shape who holds real power in a workplace. Mapping these relationships gives leaders clearer insights into how decisions are influenced and how information truly moves through the organization. 

 And in times of change, those dynamics can determine whether communication flows smoothly or stalls altogether.

Emotional Proximity Is the New Culture Driver

“It’s not about physical proximity — it’s about emotional proximity. People must feel connected, seen, and trusted. That’s what creates culture,” Scott emphasized.

Scott shared an example from a fully remote nonprofit where the ONA revealed that while departments were siloed on paper, many employees worked across teams daily — functioning like one unified team. That insight led to a successful restructuring, including consolidating teams and elevating programming leaders into a unified structure.

The analysis showed that the most influential figures weren’t executives, but culture influencers — employees others turned to for help, trust, and connection. “If culture leaders believe in your idea, they’ll spread that message. If they don’t feel included, they’ll resist. And they’ll bring others with them,” Scott said.

Strategies for Sustaining Culture Anywhere 

Although spotting cultural influencers is a critical first step for improving culture, it’s only part of the equation. Strengthening culture in a hybrid and remote environment also requires deliberate practices that foster connection, trust, and shared purpose across the organization. 

Scott shared these real-world strategies that have helped organizations successfully build and sustain culture in dispersed settings:

• Identify and activate culture influencers by inviting them to help lead change and build community.
• Create informal moments by building in five minutes at the start of meetings to talk about life. Scott noted it may feel awkward at first, but it becomes part of your culture.
• Use tools such as the Slack app Donut to randomly pair colleagues for virtual coffee chats. 
• Establish open co-working links  to create virtual spaces employees can drop into if they want company or collaboration.
• Form culture crews to set up volunteer groups that run programming and connect people across teams. 
• Anchor meetings in values by adding cultural principles to agendas. Scott noted that this small step can keep an organization’s identity and priorities top of mind, even when teams aren’t in the same physical space.

Culture is reinforced by the everyday practices, shared values, and intentional touchpoints that shape how people work together. 

Whether through informal conversations, cross-functional collaboration, or meetings rooted in organizational values, the actions taken to foster trust and connection ripple outward. Identifying your culture influencers is about creating an environment in which everyone can contribute to a stronger, more cohesive culture.

In a world where connection trumps hierarchy, it’s time to rethink who shapes your culture — and empower them to lead it.