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At Busy Things we use a chat platform to type messages to each other whilst in the office. This might seem crazy, but it’s a good way to communicate quickly with multiple people, mainly between admin on the middle floor and the creatives on the top floor. The ground floor is for storage and the sound recording booth and equipment, and a place to retreat to at lunchtime if the idea of ‘fresh air’ doesn’t appeal. The programmers play geeky board games in there.
The middle floor has the kitchen, so the people in the attic are obliged to get up occasionally and walk down the stairs to get a cup of tea or their lunch out of the fridge. Top floor people get more exercise than middle floor people.
Testing out Zoom
When we all went home for Lockdown One, we carried on using our chat software. As with thousands of other companies we also experimented with various ways of seeing and hearing each other. Each morning my colleagues can ring my Zoom-room bell and I can decide whether to let them in.
We have all had an insight into each other’s lives that were private before: Little Chris talks to me from his bedroom. I keep a close eye on how often his bedding is changed. Sally (marketing) will not turn her camera on unless given notice; Teagan (artist) sits in her conservatory looking cold. Duncan (programmer) has empty walls and dark corners.
Zoom is great but the text chat with a bank of animated memes continues to be our favourite form of communication.
Coffee comes first, then there are usually several questions that need a rapid response to keep things moving.