Not gone stir-crazy yet but...
"…it does all feel like we’re stuck inside a Netflix series – I’m half expecting Charlie Brooker to yell ‘cut’ on the latest episode of Black Mirror.
We’re now over a week into ‘working from home’ – most of our planned courses are still taking place, which is a huge relief in terms of business continuity.
We’re not seeing a vast amount of new enquiries, but there has been enough to give some hope for a ‘new normal’ that isn’t too far removed from the old one.
The shift to remote delivery of our training has been relatively straightforward and gratifyingly effective. After the usual first-run issues relating to audio/video hardware it seems that the classes are running smoothly and effectively – we are an adaptable species for sure. I have noticed that delegates are jumping into the meeting up to an hour before the appointed start-time and using it as an opportunity to catch up on non-training stuff – virtual water-cooler moments. It’s lovely to be able to provide that facility, and clear testament to the natural-feeling environment that Zoom is providing.
For me as someone whose role involves coordinating training courses rather than delivering them (fortunately for our clients!), in some ways I feel more engaged with the courses that are taking place than I did before we started remote delivery. I can jump on to the Zoom account and observe and enjoy the instruction and also the interaction between the teams at any point during the course, rather than just being there for the start and end of the sessions. Being able to listen in to the work-place banter and positive interactions during the training is a fantastic antidote and distraction to the rolling news and speculation everywhere on the internet. We even had appearances from a few toddlers on a client course this morning – the symptomatic of the more relaxed and tolerant approach to personal circumstances we are now seeing - even those with sudden childcare demands are able to participate to the best of their ability.
From a Framework internal perspective we’ve settled into a nice rhythm - enjoying our daily 10am ‘Group Hugs’ as our daily catch-ups via Zoom have become known. Tomorrow we have a ‘bring your pets to the meeting’ – I’m sure we’ll have a few wriggling cats and barking dogs joining in for a while!
On a personal note we’re also planning on trialling Zoom out this evening for a remote Midweek Margherita (or two!) with some family friends who are stuck in London – thank goodness for technology!
I may or may not let you know how that goes ...
