Yesterday I hosted my first online event, an online meetup with some Hiring Hub customers. Seeing the news that Boris Johnson is now running the country while in isolation via video, it doesn’t seem like such an accomplishment, but I’m taking wins where I can find them right now.
The attendees all worked in roles with responsibilities for company employees, from ensuring the right infrastructure is in place to enable working from home, to company morale and the wellbeing of individuals in a stressful time.
Even if I couldn’t supply the wine and nibbles, it was an enjoyable 45 minutes, connecting with others facing similar pressures in a supportive environment.
Key takeaways:
Slack is ace
Slack was the favoured messaging app within the group. The combination of work and fun was its main appeal. The tone of a slack message is very different to that of email, which can lend itself to a more formal approach. Lauren, from fintech company Grantree, told us their company uses slack in a multitude of ways, from fun initiatives like their guess the baby photo and trivia channels, to their Coping Circle to support colleagues at all times.
Lower your expectations
Juggling WFH and childcare means something has to give. Whether that’s washing my hair (I’m on day 4) or letting the kids have more iPad time, it’s an impossible challenge to do it all. You could feel the collective relief, even via video link, as we all agreed that lower standards and doing what works for your family was the right approach to this. It’s also important that employees feel it’s ok if kids pop up on a video call (as happened to me in this meetup), or your washing is in the background – it’s the new normal.
Support people living alone
People working in isolation brought up different challenges to address. A lot of companies have individuals living alone and for these people opportunities to connect with others can be hugely important.
Get some fresh air
If you can get outside (while maintaining social distancing of course) it really does help.
Structure
Darshana from the international business school ESCP.com talked about the importance of keeping some structure to the day, starting with getting up and dressed. As it becomes more difficult to separate home and work life, markers like getting dressed for the day and having a structure really do help.
Using Video and Virtual Technology
Thea from Code Nation talked about their use of virtual onboarding and virtual bootcamps for their coding apprentices. At Hiring Hub, we’re facilitating more video interviews, which complements our cloud based offering and whilst things have slowed down, we’re still making placements and adding new roles from people looking to hire through our marketplace.
In future I’ll also encourage participants to have their cameras on. The impact of a friendly face, even via a laptop screen, can’t be underestimated.
Practice Gratitude
The final tip should come from Lauren at Fintech company Grantree, who noted that during the meetup a message has gone out over slack asking people to say what’s made them smile this week. In difficult times, small gestures can make a big difference.
We’ll be hosting our next Meetup this Thursday at 14:00 to 14:45. Please click here if you’d like to sign up. We’d love to see you.
