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Listen to this week’s podcast episode, Ep.242: Third Spaces, Team Culture, Leadership and Building Human Connections, with Talia Rosenblum, click here to listen!
Everyone needs to be invested in creating, it is basically a better culture and a more connected culture, not just the team. And it really requires time. It's not like, let's get together and have a team building experience for, you know, an hour. That's just simply not enough. And so you can have those larger experiences, that's like an hour you get everyone together. But what what are the individual leaders doing every single day to model the behavior?
The disappearing Third Space & reclaiming Human Connections in a screen-first workplace
When was the last time you had a meaningful conversation at work without a smartphone sitting on the table, a presentation on a screen, a notes app on your tablet or a notification buzzing in your pocket? It’s a question many of us would struggle to answer.
We operate in working environments where digital communication is constant, yet true human connection feels increasingly rare. Chatting with guest Talia Rosenblum for this week's episode of Leading with Integrity, this paradox came up a few times...
Talia spent over a decade leading customer support teams of up to fifty people in hospitality tech, managing remote groups long before remote work became standard practice. After experiencing a tech industry layoff, she pivoted her career to address the growing sense of digital isolation in organizations. As the founder of Third Space Experiences, she now designs device-free connection experiences for teams, conferences, leadership groups and communities.
Our discussion this week explores why leaving workplace culture to chance creates isolated silos, why the corporate rush toward artificial intelligence often misses the mark in customer relations, the importance and power of connection & community and how leaders can restore authentic presence in a distracted world.
Digital silos and the unintentional Culture
Most organizations approach workplace culture passively, they onboard new hires, introduce them to the team, assign tasks, assume organic relationships will form on their own. But when those all-important inter- and intra- team connections are left to chance, the end result is rarely going to be a happy team working in genuine cohesion within a positive culture.
Instead, people naturally gravitate toward those who look, think, or work like themselves, creating isolated cliques and structural silos. Talia observed this dynamic repeatedly throughout her career in tech. When culture develops without intentional direction, team members default to superficial small talk or form small pockets that exclude others. In some cases, established groups cling to a "remember when" mentality, making newer team members feel unimportant or awkward.
True team cohesion and the positive culture that ideally surrounds it, both require deliberate design from leaders who are paying attention. When leadership actively brings people together beyond job titles, immediate tasks, workgroups/departments and daily routines, they unlock the full potential of a diverse workforce. Getting to know colleagues outside of strict job functions creates psychological safety because when you understand how a teammate thinks, why a deadline matters to them, what experiences shape their perspective, what challenges or obstacles they are struggling with, then you can resolve friction faster and collaborate effectively.
Keeping the Human in Customer Connection
Given Talia’s background in customer service/support and my love-hate views on ‘AI’, it’s probably no surprise that our conversation also touched on the current corporate obsession with automating customer-facing roles.
Talia offered a grounded perspective on where digital tools fit and where they actively damage organisations. Many tech executives are rushing to replace human support teams with automated chatbots in an effort to cut overhead costs, while automating simple tasks like password resets makes complete operational sense, treating all customer interactions as digital noise to be eliminated is a major mistake.
Customer support isn't merely a cost center; it's a critical sensory organ for an organisation. Frontline support teams speak directly with users every day, gathering insights about product usability, operational friction, user experience, bugs and the changing nature of customer expectations. When companies hand those touchpoints over entirely to automated scripts, they lose vital human feedback.
Customers want to feel heard and understood by a person who can exercise judgment. Stripping away human contact in the name of immediate efficiency undermines long-term trust, leaving users frustrated by repetitive automated loops. And the eagle-eyed reader may spot the parallel leadership lesson here: your people also want to feel heard and understood.
The hierarchy of Connection and the loss of Third Spaces
To understand why workplace isolation is so widespread, we have to examine the concept of "third spaces". Traditionally, a third space refers to an anchor of community life outside of the home (the first space) and the workplace (the second space); places like local community centers, youth groups/spaces, pubs, bars, coffeehouses, public gathering spots etc.
Over recent decades, many of these neutral spaces have vanished or become increasingly transactional, leaving people with fewer places to gather simply to be present with others. This loss of physical gathering spaces coincides with a shift toward screen-dominated communication, Talia describes a clear hierarchy of human connection: in-person interaction sits at the top because it delivers full social cues (body language, facial expressions, tone of voice and physical presence), video calls capture a portion of these cues and phone conversations retain tone, while at the bottom sits text messages, Whatsapp groups, Slack channels and emails, each of which reduce interaction to flat text stripped of emotional nuance.
Because the vast majority of workplace communication now happens at the bottom of this hierarchy, our social skills have dulled. People have become hesitant to initiate simple conversations with colleagues out of a fear of appearing awkward, relying entirely on digital channels creates an illusion of connection while leaving individuals feeling isolated.
Practical curiosity and the “Why Behind the Why”
Rebuilding connection doesn't require forced corporate fun, elaborate team-building exercises, away days or a free lunch (because there’s no such thing, remember?).
In fact, artificial team-building events often backfire if the daily culture remains cold and transactional; real progress on the other hand, happens through small, consistent leadership habits. Talia shared two practical approaches for leaders looking to foster genuine rapport:
The first is utilizing open curiosity prompts; instead of asking standard, transactional questions about project statuses, try asking a team member: "What's something you're curious about right now?"
This simple question allows people to share as much or as little as they like, whether it's a book they're reading, a problem they're mulling over, a random work thing or a personal interest. It opens a door to genuine conversation without feeling intrusive.The second approach involves storytelling and context. Talia recalled a former manager who onboarded new team members by sharing what she called "the why behind the why". Rather than walking through a dry list of responsibilities, he painted a picture of how the company started, why the founders cared so deeply about the mission, how each role contributed to that broader purpose. Giving people clear context helps them care about their work and feel part of a collective effort (and incidentally it’s why sharing the context is a core part of Leading with Integrity!).
Final thoughts and a Leadership Hero that’s tough to argue with…
As you may know, each week I only have one mandatory question for EVERY guest: Leadership Heroes. When I asked Talia to choose hers, she named former US President Barack Obama. The why of this question is often the most interesting part of the answer, and for Talia it was all about Obama’s ability to deliver powerful, intentional communication while remaining thoroughly relatable and grounded. Whether sharing his annual reading list, cracking a self-deprecating joke, addressing a large audience or all of the above at the same time, his leadership style balances high purpose with genuine human warmth.
That combination of clear purpose and authentic relatability is what modern management desperately needs and I believe it’s what most of us aspire to in our leadership too. True leadership isn't about hiding behind a job title, enforcing rigid rules, winning arguments, knowing everything or treating team members as productivity units.
It's about kindness, listening with genuine interest and giving your people the context and space they need to connect. As you guide your teams this week, try putting the devices away for a moment, ask a thoughtful question and focus on building real human connections.
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Hear the full length chat with Talia, find it on your preferred podcasting platform OR use the web-player at this link: https://smartlink.ausha.co/leading-with-integrity/ep-242-third-spaces-team-culture-leadership-and-building-human-connections-with-talia-rosenblum-leadership-podcasts
And if you prefer video then you’ll find it on YouTube too: https://youtu.be/Pcgrj3hDGQY
Next week I’m joined by Benas Leonavicius, solo founder, SEO expert and first-time leader. We’ll be exploring his leadership journey and the lessons he’s learnt as he grows his first team. And maybe talking a bit of tech too.
Until we meet again, THANK YOU for reading, listening, supporting Leading with Integrity. There’s no show or newsletter, no future of leadership without each and every one of you.
Be a Leader Not a Boss,
- David
In case you don’t know me that well, I’m David Hatch and I’m here to help you lead more like a Jedi and less like a Sith.
If you’re a new manager or first-time leader in a tech, expertise or specialist driven workplace and you’re feeling lonely, stuck, overwhelmed, or simply ready for your next chapter in leadership, the Integrity Leaders Community offers conversations, courses, resources and support to help you grow one step at a time. If you have a healthy love of sci-fi and want to learn more about leadership, then this is the community for you! Solopreneurs also welcome. 😉
