Now that the COVID-19 lockdown is beginning to ease and our teams are gradually venturing back to the office, we wanted to find out how our Service Desk team have managed to adapt to a very new way of working. How have they continued to support our customers and maintain their team spirit during, what has been for many, a very unsettling and disruptive time?
What has been your experience of working from home and how have Wireless Logic supported you?
Lucy Duffy (LD) – I haven’t worked from home for this period of time before. Taking all of my belongings from the office felt very strange, however I now have a nice set-up at home and this has become the norm!
Gina Burnell (GB) – I’ve never worked from home before, it’s all very new to me! Wireless Logic have been great in making sure I feel comfortable at home whilst working. I nearly took my entire desk home which has been great and removed any stress. If I didn’t have all my equipment at home with me I think I would have really struggled to work effectively.
Matt Smith (MS) – Working from home is definitely something that’s new to me. It’s certainly been an experience, organising a group of people when they’re all in the same building is doable but when everyone is apart it’s been difficult at times. But it’s actually been kind of fun working in a new dynamic.
Elly Shoemark (ES) – It was my first time working from home and although I was feeling unsure and nervous about how this would work, especially as I wasn’t sure how long this would be the situation, I feel that it was a great opportunity for us, as a team, to learn new skills and learn to communicate whilst working apart.
How you have learnt to collaborate as a team under these circumstances?
LD – Communication has been key. We’ve continued to work as a team and support each other. Microsoft Teams has been hugely important as it’s enabled us to continue to communicate with each other daily both within Service Desk and also other departments. I even used Teams to have a conference call with a couple of customers – I think that seeing people face-to-face helps to strengthen customer relationships, which is important.
GB – As a team we have always been really good at communicating, but this has always been face-to-face! Our learning curve has been adapting to remote communication. We have learnt to do this by having daily video calls together, as well as having smaller collaborations, where required, such as weekly team meetings and catch-ups with senior members of the team. This has helped us overcome any challenges.
MS – As a team, we’ve all stayed in constant communication and kept the team spirit going even though we’re all apart.
ES – We set-up weekly and daily Service Desk team meetings and calls straight away, this meant that as a team we could stay up-to-date and in the know with the work we were all doing individually and together. As a team, I feel proud that we’ve all managed to communicate well and continue to work hard together to make sure that we support each other whilst also avoiding a disruption in the service that we provide our customers.
What new skills/experiences have you learnt since working from home?
LD – I’ve continued to assist with training colleagues and learn how to complete customer migrations. I think it’s important to continue as we would usually, although this can’t be done face-to-face, we can use video calls which works just as well.
GB – I’ve learnt that physical interaction has played a massive part in managing the Service Desk team – more than I realised! Managing a team remotely has certainly stimulated a different level of interaction than before. I’ve learnt that, whilst being around people physically, having that further 1:1 interaction can be so beneficial. Even if in the first instance you didn’t think it was required!
MS – Definitely time management, I have felt much more responsible for myself whilst working at home.
What have you missed about not being in the office?
LD – Interaction with colleagues that I may have not spoken to as much being at home.
GB – As cheesy as this sounds, I miss seeing everybody.
MS – Just being in and around the team, working from home is fine but you don’t get the same dynamic environment.
ES – I found that I soon adapted to working from home, but I did miss being around members of other teams and being able to join in on conversations about work and non-work topics!
What have you enjoyed most about working from home?
LD – I am really enjoying working from home! I enjoy being in my home environment and with my dog! FUN FRIDAY quizzes and competitions have been great too. They helped to give us a Friday buzz although our plans for the weekend may have been non-existent because of the pandemic!
GB – Our company events such as the quizzes, competitions etc, when you see everyone get together through a Zoom call there’s something really great about that! It almost feels like we haven’t been apart for so long.
MS – The Friday afternoon quizzes and events were really fun and a great way to keep people together.
ES – It was nice for us, as a company, to be able to take part in quizzes and different competitions that the social committee put together and also to receive updates from Oliver about the company and how it was coping during the pandemic.
How have Wireless Logic supported you during lockdown?
LD – Receiving a hamper and a Just Eat voucher was a lovely pick-me-up during these unprecedented times! Thank you Wireless Logic!
GB – Wireless Logic have supported me massively with their patience, understanding and flexibility. Having my 4 year old daughter at home with me whilst working full-time has been nothing less than challenging! But Wireless Logic have been very understanding about my struggles.
MS – Receiving a care package from work was amazing, and it really seems like Wireless Logic have done everything they can to support us at home. They’ve provided learning sessions, regular updates from our CEO, and provided us with the equipment we needed to be able to work from home.
ES – We received a hamper that was a nice touch and helped to make me feel valued during this time.
Tom Hillsdon (TH) – As my role as a key worker for the distribution channel at Wireless Logic the working environment was made as safe as possible with floor markings put down and PPE stations created. As we had one member of the orders team working from home for the first few weeks of the lockdown we had to split up the jobs to make it possible for one of us to work from home. Wireless Logic set-up this process very quickly and it’s helped us speed up the order process.
How have customers reacted to dealing with a team that works at home?
LD – I’ve only had to mention this to a handful of customers. They were unphased as I was still able to help them as if I was in the office.
GB – Our customers have been great during this whole transition. The majority of our day-to-day support for customers has not changed at all. For the instances where we may have faced a remote challenge, customers have been so patient and understanding. It’s great to have our customers’ support.
“We are so proud of how the team have not only adapted to working from home, but maintained the same levels of motivation and professionalism throughout, they are a great asset to the Wireless Logic Team”.
Hannah Holloway, Operations Manager, Wireless Logic
