After the circuit breaker started and we stopped reporting to the office to work, we all had to adjust to remote working. And as we know, change can be tough on everyone, so how has Big 3 Media been coping?
As offices started closing down, there were a lot of logistical movements in the works including workstation arrangements, work processes and policies. And through all that, we prioritised maintaining the semblance and structure of an organization despite not being able to meet face to face. To do this, we had more frequent monthly meetings known as “Townhalls”. Here we would share company-wide announcements and check in with each other.
The company also made an effort to create a fun working experience, as boosting morale was important to us during such a trying time. So after we created the Big 3 Cuddle sessions for everyone to come together in a more relaxed setting. We arrange these cuddle sessions on Google Meets. Here we have team leads to check in more with their team members as well as play games like 2 truths and a lie to get to know our colleagues more.
And if that wasn’t enough to cheer our colleagues up, HR is going the extra mile to ensure that the big3 family feels cared for. Every month, we’ve been sent company EDMs, each detailing long service awards, whose birthday is coming up and who’s leaving the company. A moment where Big3 staff really felt the love was when HR had food delivered to each of our houses, blessing us with a much appreciated KFC and McDonald’s meal.
As for business-wise, it has been of a hassle since our main business is live filming. Nowadays our usual onsite shoot requires additional steps and precautions to adhere to. We have to tread carefully with MOM and MTI regulations. Things we used to take for granted like reporting to the office every day now require an email to HR asking for permission to enter so that they can keep track of everything. Although these things may be a hassle, our staff adapted very fast and well to the changes for compliance.
And while there is little to no challenge for our non-filming workforce to work from home, valuable interactions and communications were impacted in that we can’t read body languages as well doing it online. For HR in particular, this limited our assessment of how interview candidates carry themselves. Thankfully, this can be combated by paying more attention to the little details and no problems have arisen from this yet.
For most companies, the sudden shift in working circumstances would have thrown a wrench in their plans and caused them to struggle. But rather than chinks in the armor, this circuit breaker has proved to not just our staff, but our clients as well, that Big 3 is made of a strong collaborative bunch that are ready to face any challenges head-on, together. We are blessed to have motivated and hardworking staff that resumed work as per normal despite these changes.
In fact, we will definitely be looking towards continuing remote working in the future as it showed that we can still be productive working from home. Big 3’s main priority is still to keep our staff safe and healthy. We are following closely to the government’s mandate and notice on movement. Additionally, we save on operating expenses in office, staff save time and money on transportation and food as well. Best of all, everyone gets to work in the comfort of their own home!
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