As is happening with many businesses around the world, the Wolfstar office has had to close due to the Covid-19 crisis but the hard work continues and it’s very much business as (un)usual.
As a close-knit team that thrives on interaction, we’re dealing with the current situation in our own unique way. In case any of our ideas can similarly help your team, we’ve put together our top five tips for helping to keep the pack united through these tricky times.
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01. Working Hours
When we’re in the office we work flexible hours, it allows us the luxury and freedom to work to our own timetables but, as it feels like both luxury and freedom are in short supply at the moment, we’ve decided to all keep to the same working hours for now. This not only makes it easier to keep track of who is online when, it also helps make us feel less spread out somehow, we feel stronger and more motivated as a team to know everyone is working and contactable at exactly the same time.
02. Team Meetings
Every Monday the whole Wolfstar team come together for an upbeat meeting to chat about the previous week and discuss the one ahead. This can include anything from support and client feedback to sharing ideas, successes or entertaining stories. We find it’s extremely valuable for us to come together collectively at least once a week.
While we’re working remotely, we have made the decision to use technology to continue our weekly team meetings which feel more important than ever when clear information, regular updates and synergy are so crucial. For now we have to do them over video or conference call but we still find them incredibly worthwhile, it brings structure and some normality to our week and we’re managing to maintain the typically cheerful Wolfstar sense of humour. It’s also a mandatory requirement to have a brew in hand.
03. Communication
We pride ourselves on our good communication but, whilst we’re required to work from home, we’ve enhanced that superpower and become over-communicators! We’re taking a ‘just do it’ approach to getting in touch with each other. If we feel like picking up the phone or sending that message, for even the smallest thing, we don’t think twice.
If we want advice, perspective, support or just to remember that word that keeps escaping us, we call. It ensures we keep regular contact, avoids feelings of isolation, (especially for those that live alone) and helps to keep us functioning well together as a team, knowing we are always there, approachable and never too busy for one another.
04. Whatsapp Group
On an average week we might use our Wolfstar WhatsApp group to update each other on things like networking events, what time we’re meeting for after work drinks or to send round mildly amusing GIFs. As part of our over-communication, we are currently utilising the group chat a little differently.
Firstly, we’re using it much more and we’re now sharing more too, ideas, articles, messages of positivity and even just ‘checking in’ with everyone at once. It means that nobody misses out on the conversation and that satisfies our acute FOMO! It’s important for us that we have the opportunity for these chats, day or night, it’s a line of communication that’s always open. We find it connects us and we enjoy the social interaction, we’d be lying if we said the occasional pet selfie didn’t creep in there too!
05. Music
Initially inspired by Dessert Island Disks, the Wolfstar playlist began with every member of the team adding eight of their favourite songs to a collective Spotify playlist. A few years down the line that playlist became several playlists and has since taken on a life of it’s own, with themes and artists that would make your ears boggle (that’s totally a thing).
We find the eclectic playlists open our ears and minds to the passions of others in our team and brings us together in a way that music seems to do so well. While we have to be separated, we’ve created a specific ‘work from home’ playlist that we all listen to during our working day. It’s small (but mighty) ideas like this that we find help pull our wolfpack together, through even the toughest days.
The importance of teamwork is no secret. For us, it’s the foundation of Wolfstar’s culture and spirit. It allows us to combine skills and ideas and provide the best possible service. It fosters creativity and offers a support network, now more than ever we don’t want to compromise that. Like the wolf, we are sociable animals and we’re refusing to let distance come in the way of the bond we have with our clients and each other. For as long as is necessary we intend to embrace our ‘business as (un)usual’ approach so we come out of the other side, unified and stronger than ever.
Stay safe.
