Maren Deepwell

Tag: #virtualteams

  • Hacks for Hybrid Working starts on October 24

    I am very excited to spot the announcement for Hacks for Hybrid Working, a new flex course starting on October 24th, in the September edition of the Reclaim Roundup which links through to Lauren’s preview post of the course.

    For many of us in Higher Ed, hybrid working is here to stay. So whether you’d like to create a better work/life balance juggling being on campus with working from home, or you are looking to move from crisis mode to a way of working that is more sustainable, healthful or simply a little more joyful, this course is for you. Join us to explore hacks to create a better hybrid workplace for everyone.

    For me, this is the ideal project closely related to Leading Virtual Teams, which is due to be published next month. I appreciate the opportunity to collaborate with Lauren and the amazing folk at Reclaim outside of my day job and to have the opportunity to share some of the know-how gathered on how to make hybrid working work for you.

    The cherry on top is that this course is free for anyone to attend and participate, so if you are keen to learn more, register here to receive event information.

    What’s the course about?

    Lauren explains in her post:

    We’ll be meeting over the course of 4 weeks beginning late October through November to unpack hybrid working and all that it entails. These sessions will be a continuation of our OER22 presentation, Building Connections with Virtual Teams, as well as our radio broadcasts that I’ve outlined in my post, Working Habits, Self Evals, and Finding Connection. I’m really looking forward to diving further into personal working habits that take shape in virtual/hybrid settings, evaluating our relationships with digital tools, and building out a Hybrid Working Roadmap.

    Here’s our topic list:

    • Week 1: Hybrid Working Unpacked
    • Week 2: Digital Tools in the Virtual Workplace
    • Week 3: Exploring Hybrid Working Hacks
    • Week 4: Complete your Hybrid Working Roadmap

    There is so much fun in store, including a special radio session and a SPLOT site alongside the course materials and tools we’ll be trying out.

    How can you take part?

    Sessions will premier on watch.reclaimed.tech/hybrid-working when the time comes, and we’ll also be chatting in the #hybrid-working discord channel! Also, make sure you check reclaimed.tech for weekly blog posts with supplemental resources, quick links, a SPLOT or two, and even some homework.

    When: October 24 – November 18
    Weekly video sessions each Mondays at 11am ET
    Live Q&A/discussion time on Fridays at 11am ET

    We are really looking forward to seeing you there 🙂

  • Monthly News, August 2022

    Hello there 🙂

    The big news is that I have completed the book and sent it to the publisher. After about 18 months of writing and reviewing, editing and finally formatting all the references I sent all the files off for editing yesterday. 

    It’s been such a joy to work on this book at evenings and weekends, but I am also glad to be free to enjoy the summer weather and focus on my main work during a busy period. 

    What’s next

    There is a preview of the cover below. The book is due to come out in late October, and I am planning to share blog posts and resources for each chapter. The Open Access publication will be available to download for free first, and I also hope to produce a print edition on demand. I am also working on some related projects, more of which I will be sharing soon. 

    For now, I wish you all a good run up to the new academic year.

  • Leading Virtual Teams – Monthly Book News, July 2022

    This month I am making the final edits, before sending the book to the publisher for copy editing in mid August.

    I have also been working on the cover and thinking about what resources and activities I want to work on ahead of the book launch later this year.

    As summer is the busiest time for me at work, progress is slow going just now, and I am making the most of the warm weather to spend time away from the screen.

    A blue book cover with several sheets of paper and a notebook, with water color drawings of a cityscape and a digital network of nodes connected by lines.

    Recent blog posts

    I have been blogging more recently and shared an update about a recent team chat & bake, that would make a great addition to the team activities in the book.

    One of the things we really enjoyed about the activity was to spend some time together as a team without having to focus on a particular deliverable. It felt more like a social activity and we also enjoyed sharing jokes about how we were getting on with the recipe. It worked great to all make the same recipe as we could compare our experiences and tastes.

    I have also shared an update about the recent launch of Digital Learning in Higher Education, in which I co-authored a chapter; reflections on designing hybrid conferences and a post on celebrating small successes for a month to get out of a mindset of never quite achieving enough. 

    A photo of a brown dog on top of a rock with the sea in the background.

    My writing buddy Posey had a break from the office and explored Pembrokeshire Coastal Paths… 

  • Virtual Teams Book – Monthly News, June 2022

    Virtual Teams Book – Monthly News, June 2022

    Book news

    Work on the book is making good progress at the moment. I am focusing on working through edits and responding to feedback from reviewers.

    Meanwhile I am also working with the publisher on the format, layout and cover. As Leading Virtual Teams will be published online under an open licence, we want to make it as accessible as possible.

    This month I am also planning ahead for the summer, setting out deadlines for the final stages of the editing process before the book gets sent for copy editing. Summer is my busiest time at work as we have our flagship conference in early September and there is always a lot happening in the run up to that. So work on the book may be a little slower for the next period.

    Logo for remote working radio show showing an illustration of a podcast host at the microphone.

    Remote Working Radio Season 1

    As I have been working on my book Leading Virtual Teams, I have been talking about working remotely on DS106 Radio on the Remote Working Radio Show. What started out as a lot of music and a bit of chat from me and sharing updated on the book has grown into an hour of chat with special guests, exploring how we work from home, what challenges we encounter and tips for developing your own practice.

    The show is taking a break over the summer, so here are the recordings from season 1 for you to catch up with and enjoy. A huge thank you to my guests who joined me on air and shared their insights. We will be back on air in the autumn for season 2.

    Recordings

    Subscribe

    Subscribe to receive monthly news about the Leading Virtual Teams Book and remote working radio sessions.

  • Nuggets of inspiration: how we work and what works for us

    I like revisiting or exploring different frameworks to think with, not necessarily to adopt them whole, but because they usually offer me small nuggets of inspiration. Here are some examples of what I explored and what I found out along the way:

    Ways to explore your traits, motivations or fears

    • Enneagram Core Motivations: This is a tool which combines modern psychology with an ancient personality system, and it helps you identify one of nine core motivations. There is a helpful post that explains how to choose your type, and plenty of free online tests available to experiment with. I found this really helpful as a prompt for reflection and enjoyed thinking about which core motivations I would NOT choose and why.
    • Gallup Clifton Strengths Assessment: this is a popular assessment tool, particularly in a work context. Whilst the assessment tools either require a paid subscription or one off fee for completion, there is a wealth of articles, tools and resources online via the official site. This could be good fit for you if you are working in a large organisation for example, and may be something employers offer.
    • Myers Briggs Personality Types: This is probably one of the best known frameworks, and it offers free online tests as well as resources to explore. I have done several of these over the years as part of recruitment and coaching, and always found it helpful not least because it’s interesting to see if your answers change over time.
    • Spark Types: This framework offers a free test to help you find your Spark Type and is based on the work of Jonathan Fields, and his accompanying book ‘Sparked – Discover your unique imprint for work and what makes you come alive’.
    • Harvard Business Review: If you prefer to explore rather than do an assessment, there are plenty of examples online to help you reflect on different leadership styles or personality types. I found the later video especially helpful as it focuses on potential limits rather than strengths.

    Beyond finding a fit

    At times, finding a framework you feel affinity with can be hard or feel unproductive. So here are some ideas for what I explored in that situation, starting with Emilie Wapnick’s TED talk and related book, How to Be Everything (and you can be a ‘multi-potentional-ite’). I have always been interested in working (and thinking) at the intersection of different interests, different disciplines, and so the perspective Wapnick shares chimes with me.

  • Remote Working Radio – Season 1

    Remote Working Radio – Season 1

    As I have been working on my book Leading Virtual Teams, I have been talking about working remotely on DS106 Radio on the Remote Working Radio Show.

    What has started out as a lot of music and a bit of chat from me and sharing updated on the book has grown into an hour of chat with special guests, exploring how we work from home, what challenges we encounter and tips for developing your own practice.

    The show is taking a break over the summer, so here are the recordings from season 1 for you to catch up with and enjoy. A huge thank you to my guests who joined me on air and shared their insights.

    We will be back on air in the autumn for season 2.

    Recordings