Spencer Silverglate, President of Clarke Silverglate in Miami.

Zoom and other videoconferencing platforms have been a godsend during the COVID-19 pandemic. They've enabled us to conduct business, attend school and stay connected with colleagues, friends, and loved ones when we couldn't be together in person. Litigators have been able to attend depositions, mediations and court hearings remotely. Many are ready to pronounce videoconferences and remote work as the new normal, even after the pandemic subsides.

Me? I'm not so sure. Yes, the benefits of remote work are significant. Among them are:

Health and wellness. Less time spent commuting and traveling and more time to focus on nutrition, exercise, and sleep. More time for family, friends, and enriching activities. More time with pets. Folks with health conditions are able to stay connected while maintaining social distance and avoiding infection.

Childcare. Greater flexibility for parents to care for their children and for adult children to care for their parents and relatives.

Cost savings. Diminished spending on childcare, commuting, business travel, dry cleaning, eating out, pet care and personal services. For employers, less rent and office expense.

Expanded talent pool. The ability of employers to hire employees anywhere in the world. The ability of employees to live anywhere in the world.

Safety and environment. Less commuting and travel mean reduced carbon emissions and fewer accidents.

Personally, I've benefited from working at home. I typically commute at least an hour or more to and from my office each way. That's over two hours in my daily schedule—as much as 15 hours per week. I've spent much of the extra time with my wife (we're empty nesters), and also doing extra work, reading and catching up on much-needed sleep. We've eaten out less and cooked in more. Our food and gas expenses have plummeted; our quality time together has soared. Many of my friends have had similar experiences. They've spent more time with their children (including adult children) than they have in years. In some cases, more than ever. And our pets ave been in heaven!

My firm has been productive, too. While litigation has slowed, depositions, hearings, and mediations are being handled remotely. Work is getting done. Many lawyers have told me that they're more productive at home. Heck, I'd probably say the same myself.

So what's the rub? If we're happy, healthy, and productive working remotely—why do we need an office at all?

I think the answer boils down to teamwork and culture.

Nothing of significance was ever accomplished by an individual acting alone—even a productive individual. Teamwork lies at the heart of all great achievement. Teams foster a sense of community. They provide greater resources, richer ideas, and higher energy than do any one person. Teams add multiple perspectives on problem solving; individual insight is not as broad or as deep as that of a group.

Teams also motivate us. A couple years ago I joined a group exercise class after decades of working out alone. In class I exert way more effort than I ever did on my own—not because there's an instructor leading the class, but because I don't want to disappoint my ever encouraging classmates. And, for my own ego, I want to keep up!

Human beings are social creatures. We thrive in teams. Alone, we wither. If teamwork is the engine that powers an organization, culture is the glue that holds the team together. Culture is how organizations do things. It is the values and behaviors that contribute to the unique social and psychological environment of a group. It is esprit de corps: the feeling of pride, fellowship, and loyalty that team members share. It is sharing a common identity. Culture is what differentiates your organization from every other.

Team culture is forged not online, but in the trenches, working shoulder to shoulder toward a common vision. It is fostered in countless impromptu visits to a colleague's office. In shared meals. Even in the proverbial water cooler chats.

Why can't team culture thrive in a virtual environment? Because, at its core, team culture is really about relationships. It is about knowing and being known. Virtual relationships are just that: virtual. They are socially distanced relationships. They lack the incidental, nonverbal communication that comes with presence. The contagious excitement, the infectious enthusiasm, the shared sadness. All of the unspoken communication that human beings are expert at interpreting in person, but horrible at deciphering over the internet. It's a bit like the videoconference attendee dressed in business attire from the waist up and shorts or sweats or pajamas from the waist down (we've all done it). Virtual relationships have many of the trappings of real relationships, but they're just a bit … inauthentic. They approximate the real thing, but they're not quite the real thing.

Human beings crave connection. And real, authentic human connection is impossible online. The emoji hasn't been created that replaces a face-to-face conversation, a pat on the back, a hand shake, a hug. Real relationships are built by sharing experiences in person, not in cyberspace.

Virtual meetings are good, but they will never substitute for one-on-one connection. Great teams are not built by videoconference. After spending three years of blood, sweat, and tears (and money) attending law school, the newly minted grad does not aspire to suit up in his or her pajamas and commute to the kitchen table. Just as no child would opt to be raised by virtual parents, no young lawyer would prefer to be mentored from afar by some wizard hidden behind a curtain of technology.

I've spent my entire 32-year legal career sitting 20 feet away from my mentor, Bud Clarke. During that time, I've worn out the carpet between our two offices—brainstorming cases, asking advice, getting much-needed perspective. I always leave his office better than when I entered. You can't get that on a video conference. And, working remotely, you can't observe what happens between videoconferences.

Mario Cuomo said, "I talk and talk, and I haven't taught people what my father taught me by example in one week."

When we are not at our mentors' elbow day in and day out, we miss their example. Information can be imparted through a screen, but character is molded side by side.

To be clear, I am not suggesting that video technology is a bad thing. It's a tool, and like any tool, it can be extremely effective. For those with health conditions or family care issues, it can be a game changer. It's all in how you use the technology. It's about balance.

For my part, once the pandemic subsides, I will likely commute a bit less and Zoom a bit more—yes, in business attire from the waist up and jammy-jams from the waist down. It's so darn convenient. But as I leverage the benefits of the technology, I will bear in mind that it's an adjunct to, not a substitute for, personal connection. Virtual relationships can never replace real relationships.

Spencer Silverglate is president of litigation boutique Clarke Silverglate in Miami. The article is reprinted with permission from the DRI, formerly the Defense Research Institute.