Getting the Roots Together
In the wake of COVID-19, we at Temasek’s Digital Technology team have adjusted quite well to the new 100% virtual meetings reality. According to an article by J. Stewart Black on the Harvard Business Review, Laughter Will Keep Your Team Connected — Even While You’re Apart. We couldn’t agree more!
You might be curious as to laughter plays a part in our get-together sessions. Read on to find out how we put what some know as “the best medicine” into our meetings!
Gather the team — it’s ok not to have an agenda!
We hold regular virtual “no meeting agenda” TCSS ( Talk Cock Sing Song)* meetings, where all of us talk nonsense and have a good laugh together. Getting everyone to turn on their webcam is essential for this!
Talk Cock Sing Song is a colloquial term in Singapore that refers to hanging out together and engaging in casual banter.
The “First Click” Competition
Every workday begins with a ‘check-in’ at 9:30AM where team members are required to indicate if they’ve taken their temperature and are physically and mentally well.
Recently, these daily check-ins have stirred up quite the competitive spirit in our team. Thanks to Alvin Teh for getting the balling rolling on Slack, these check-ins have turned into a “first click” competition.
But much like stackoverflow responses, the prize remains unclear. Perhaps, it’s for pride, honor and glory.
Organise a Lunch Cook-off
One of our usual ‘what did you have for lunch?’ team conversations quickly escalated into a full blown cooking competition!
It all started with Kenny Lee (Left) showing off his pre-cooked lunch. Not wanting to lose out, Mark Lim Choon Lye (Right) showed off his Korean Noodle Lunch.
This WFH has certainly brought out the “master chef” in some of us! Chef Alvin Teh showed the crème de la crème of his creations:
And Suen also shared some of his kitchen exploits when mood (or cabin fever) strikes:
So… who do you think is the winner here?
Do Drinks After Hours
What other creative ways can you spice up your [insert preferred video conferencing software] meetings?
Everyone knows drinks are a must for proper team bonding, whether in person or virtually. We know that many of us are probably going to drink anyway. So we might as well drink together! After hours on Fridays, we typically make it a point to do drinks virtually.
We Laugh, A Lot. Offline or Online!
Wanna hear more lame jokes? Think you are funny? Come and join the Digital Technology team; we’ll have a great time working hard and having fun together!
