Lab breaks bring staff together
08 Apr 2020
Using Zoom to connect with staff
Since regular lab work in the Division of Cancer has ended, and a proportion of the staff have suspended their research in order to support the NHS and return to work in hospitals – Stephen Taylor, Leech Professor of Pharmacology and Head of the Division of Cancer Sciences – has had to quickly find numerous ways to mobilise his own research team of 12, and the wider 300-strong Division.
A Division-wide ‘open meeting’ using Zoom attracted 158 staff, and encouraged colleagues to email questions to leaders ahead of time, as well as to use the instant chat function on the day. They’ve used this opportunity to ask questions and express concerns, and Stephen and his team have been supported by HR in answering these as best they can.
In an attempt to maintain the camaraderie they’ve established, Stephen’s research team enjoy ‘lab’ coffee breaks together - the most popular variant of this is the evening happy hour. Raising a toast to those colleagues supporting the NHS, the team find this human interaction is effective in raising their own spirits.
Stephen said: “As a scientist I’ve had to take a crash course in communications. But I’m learning as I go. These regular sense checks are essential to ensure my team remains motivated, not just in their roles, but against the battle against COVID-19.”
The divisional meetings are supplemented with video updates from leaders and regular Zoom catch-ups between smaller teams. Here resources are pooled in order to cover the responsibilities of absent colleagues, because despite hands-on experiments stopping, there is still vital work to be done in the form of analysing data, and report and thesis writing.
In addition, the division are taking care that no member of the team is overwhelmed with balancing work with caring responsibilities, along with the worries the virus brings.
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