Remote Collaboration and Innovation
Remote Collaboration and Innovation
Running Remote Teams
Other ways to engage: watch the webinar, listen on Spotify
Thursday, May 28, 2020
Thank you to our panelists Turi McKinley of Frog Design, Isabelle Magnin of Atrium Health Navicent and our facilitator Tina Unterlaender of VW Credit for joining us for an Evolve Innovation Network conversation around running remote teams. In this conversation, Turi and Isabelle share how their respective teams have tackled collaborative working remotely, how they continue to innovate, and what they have learned working remotely. Replay the webinar now, listen to the podcast, or see below for selected highlights from this conversation.
Innovation at Frog Design and Atrium Health Navicent
At Frog Design, Turi approaches projects from a human-centered design perspective to design products and services that create a great relationship with customers. This stems from a company culture that encourages asking questions and being iterative.
At Atrium Health Navicent, Isabelle aims to create ecosystems where stakeholders are able to voice the challenges they’re facing and share ideas for potential solutions. This approach is driven by her belief that, “We innovate better when we’re together and have different perspectives at the table.”
How have things changed?
Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the healthcare industry has changed drastically. Physicians no longer have direct access to their patients, instead having to rely more heavily on phone calls and video conferencing. Despite these challenges, however, Isabelle has noticed a significant silver lining to the pandemic. She describes healthcare as, typically, a very “static industry,” but in the first 2 months of the pandemic, we have seen more healthcare innovation than in the last 10 years. Faced with the unprecedented challenges of COVID-19, the healthcare industry has responded with drive-thru testing and telehealth appointments, and remarkably, companies like Ford and Dyson have stepped in to make ventilators when the need presented itself. While there is no denying the emotional and physical challenges of COVID-19, it has served to showcase the human capacity for innovative thinking in the face of disaster.
Similarly, on a more personal level, when asked what she learned about herself through the pandemic, Turi responded that she gained confidence in her own adaptability. In general, Turi remarked, “there is a great amount of energy in change,” and COVID-19 has shown how adaptable we all can be. Still, there is much to be learned about working from home and common pitfalls to avoid. It can be tempting to turn off your video and take a more passive role in a virtual meeting, as many working professionals can relate, but Turi stresses the importance of intentionality when working remotely. Keeping video on, ignoring the urge to multitask, and leaving your Teams windows open are all examples of deliberate choices Turi suggests to keep you and your team engaged remotely.
How do we think about remote collaboration
Every company has had to make decisions about how they will translate their work online and continue working remotely. The market is saturated with video conferencing options, project management solutions, communication platforms, and countless other tools businesses must decide between in an effort to adapt to our new normal. In Turi’s experience at Frog Design, she has identified the necessity of such tools but also noticed the necessity of tools that would allow for the validation of concepts. In addition, she identifies the need to replicate the team room environment and allow people to think visually and explore ideas together. Ultimately, Turi emphasizes that picking a tool is less important than building the mindset and capability of a team to work and change together.
How to keep innovating?
In the healthcare field, COVID-19 has exposed many disparities, such as the digital divide, as well as several opportunities for improved care. Isabelle spoke of an example a physician faced with a child they had treated for years and knew as being lethargic and nonverbal in appointments. However, in a telehealth appointment in the child’s own home, they were energetic and capable of much more than the physician had expected. This interaction exposed the importance of human-centered design by showing, in this instance, the dependence of patient well-being on their environment and the gap in the physician’s knowledge before having seen them in that environment. Isabelle resolves that the COVID-19 pandemic will change how care is delivered with collaboration and partnership being more crucial than ever.
It’s unclear what conditions the world will return to post-COVID-19 pandemic, but it will undoubtedly be different than before. We have learned new ways of communicating and collaborating remotely, which will likely reduce the frequency of going into the office as well as traveling for work. Will we continue to be remote? Will companies break their leases on office spaces? Will they use that space in new ways? It remains to be seen.
What’s your ideal work setup? Do you prefer working from home, working in office, or a hybrid? Comment below and let us know!
Writing by Hannah Ranieri, Design Strategist at Orange Sparkle Ball, Inc.