Mark Bithrey – B3 Designers

As I write this from my makeshift home office in my daughter’s bedroom, surrounded by her favourite stuffed bears, I am struggling to shorten my list of positives.

When the lockdown first hit us, the team went into it confident for we all work from home from time to time anyway. But I cannot deny that we did feel wary and uncertain about adjusting to our new realities. A few weeks into it, and it has taught us so much – lessons we know we will carry with us forever.

Incredibly, the coronavirus crisis has brought the team at B3 Designers closer. We are more organised, more productive, more focussed. A list of positive things that have come out of this for us:

Time Management

We start our team meetings bang on time at 9 am every single day. Nobody is delayed by public transport and everybody is prepared. Our in-office weekly meetings are now looking inadequate, as we bond every morning over exercise routines and failed baking experiments. Our calendars are packed! We are also pretty thrilled to be saving a whole lot of time and money commuting.

Communication and Technology

Mini conversations have become easier. There is no side chatter and we have each other’s undivided attention, getting things done more efficiently. We jump into video/screen share calls to quickly talk through any hurdles, and off we all go. We are here for each other more than ever before – we’ve even had prosecco parties on Friday evenings! Our team WhatsApp group is strictly for non-work chat and is buzzing every day with videos, memes, music, and stories of pets and children.

Clients and Encouragement 

Our clients have been an immense source of positivity and encouragement for us, never losing sight of their long-term visions and continuing to keep up their faith in the industry. We have been working on interesting projects for hotels and restaurants in Europe, remotely coordinating all tasks.

Creativity and Learning

The constant goal with good design is to find a balance between creativity, structure, ideas, and discipline. We are finding an uptick in all of these as we research and share ideas with each other constantly (Pinterest and WhatsApp are our best friends). The team has also been cooking, baking, painting, and making music.

What’s Coming Next?

We will bounce back from this, as will the hospitality industry. But we cannot deny that the way we work will change forever, for the better. We don’t know for sure what is coming next, but I do know that design will always have a role to play in shaping a changing world. For now, I am enjoying spending time with my family, adding LinkedIn Learning modules to my ever-growing list, and meeting virtually with my whole team every day.

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