Back to hybrid
I took the opportunity to meet our newest team member @jaimeella in real life last week. Having done virtual inductions due to lockdown or isolation, it was a real treat once we’d collected kit to go through the induction checklist and job role over breakfast @dorsetmusuem.
It meant I joined our leadership team check-in that morning sat out the front of County Hall in the sunshine, it felt like ages since I’d seen everyone with summer leave, and it was good to catch up and connect again (not quite the same weather this week!).
Wearing my sunglasses for a MSTeams meeting was a bit novel, but it was the second time. I’d used my own device from one of our country parks to join a session with @tailwindDigital about a new prototype to support agile decision making in a hybrid world. My connection dropped out halfway through as my iPad overheated! #hybridchallenges
Back out the front of county hall I connected into our user adoption update meeting preparing for year 2 working with @365tribe and developing some super champions thinking about Power BI and Powerapps. This plan had created some concerns around IT support, data and how much we let users exploit these tools, so we’ve agreed to use the super champions to help us explore this as a way forward.
Towards the end of this meeting my laptop battery died, having been permanently connected to power for the last 18 months I’d forgotten about laptop battery life! Luckily I had driven into work (the joy of free parking and lots of spaces at the office due to COVID restrictions), so I dashed back home for my next meeting back in the dining room.
Tuesday started with a meeting in my garden, with http://linkedin.com/in/sarah-hillier-85572a176 for the first time in person. The family were pleased she bought cakes as there were some left over (a reminder of office life, not that I need the extra calories following lockdown 3.0).
We started planning the approach and workshops to consider what we do at the end of our social care system contract. We know the marketplace is limited and having already used 3 of the systems, the Einstein quote springs to mind ‘insanity: doing the same thing over and expecting different results.’ Could we think differently and use this as an opportunity to do something that would really help our social care professionals? I’ve since had an inspiring conversation with Andy MacDonald, Aberdeen City Council about the work they’ve been doing with Microsoft.
If you’ve missed it we’re having a Festival! FutureFest21 is our first hybrid event running w/c 4th October. We want to challenge ourselves about what we can and can’t do and see how well the tech can support us. There should be something for everyone, its about shifting digital from tech and digital teams out into the business and community which is why we brand it the way we do. Penny has written a great blog about our plans.
I walked in for our festival dress rehearsal, our task list keeps growing as all those practicalities of risk assessments, venue booking, refreshments come flooding back – virtual events are so much easier to put together.
We’ve had a few conversations about how agile and the double diamond work together following the appointment of a delivery manager for our digital platform. We’ve done well embedding our approach to user-centred design and introducing product management, but we’ve struggled with forming multi-disciplinary teams, effective SPRINT planning, and delivering value as quickly as possible. We know these two methods can work well together we just need to figure it out in the context of our organisation.
I recently had a great one to one walking meeting and reflected afterwards how much I’d shared about myself which I wouldn’t normally. When you are not staring at a screen or face to face, instead walking side by side in a different environment, it can be easier to open up helping to increase our understanding of each other. This has to be better and I want to keep doing walking meetings where people want to.
In my practice to become a better modern leader I’ve been working on how to improve by just 1% every day, minimum viable shift which works with our digital principles. This could be experimental/curiosity to know more, improving my productivity, or enriching the human experience of myself or others.
As part of this I started a journal and it is has really helped me with the transition from work to home at the end of day. Some days I may only write a few words, other days a whole page. I thought I was quite self-aware and reflective but I’m learning more about myself. This journey started at the beginning of the year with Adapt2Digital who have now partnered with Apolitical for anyone in the public sector to access https://apolitical.co/events/leadership-for-a-digital-world-in-the-public-service.
I ended the week at Shaftesbury school and their amazing tech classroom for kids. There was not a computer or laptop in sight, walls you could write on, and mics you could throw around. As we left, they were preparing for a hackathon with schools in Sweden, India, Thailand. The approach there is fantastic, and I can’t wait to go back as we will be based there for our festival future of Education day.
I’ve worked from home once a week for a long time and been able to deal with emails on the train, at other locations, but it will be interesting flipping that the other way so I’m predominantly at home. The great thing about hybrid though is it doesn’t mean I’m constrained to ‘office life’, working when and where to suit me and my work. being out and about again has felt exciting and not like work at all!
Did I enjoy leaving the dining room table and seeing people? Yes, I’ve missed walking to work and the fluidity of in person conversations.
Do I want to get back to the office as it was? No, any meetings will have to be worth the travel time and it’s certainly not to go sit at a desk in front of a screen.
Will winter change that view? Maybe, we will see.
