Nov
07
2013
The writing’s on the wall, no literally
By Sally Pearman.
As any one that has visited the Centre in the past year will know, we’ve been redecorating our offices to make sure our venue is comfortable, vibrant and welcoming. And I definitely think that’s something we’ve been able to achieve. From retro pick and mix (there are some particularly tasty veggie-friendly swirls!) to a new sofa for meetings. Brightly coloured published work books and the best stocked ice cream freezer on Old Street!
But what I wanted to talk about in this blog was one of the brilliant side effects of our DIY attempts - our chalk board wall. Whether you’re a team leader, a trainer or are simply looking to redecorate your kitchen, I’d whole heartedly recommend investing in some chalk board paint.
Communicating news and ideas
When you’re constantly bombarded with emails and social media it’s actually really pleasurable to take the time to chalk up a picture or a message to your colleagues. For me, it’s evocative of my childhood and it’s something I really enjoy doing. It also takes more thought than sending out a tweet so it makes you really conscious of what you’re saying and whether it’s something that needs to be shared.
It’s interesting; delegates and trainers like reading it and I imagine it probably gets a lot more attention than some of the magazines we keep in our café area.
As we run several events with different consultants each week it’s nice to have a visual focus point in which everyone can see any ‘headline’ news stories from the previous few weeks. Working with consultants can make feeling ‘cohesive’ a real challenge and having this ideas board has definitely helped chip away at that.
Celebrating success
I’m always talking about celebrating success as I think it’s something that all too often gets forgotten. Our board has been an excellent tool to anonymously post praise about individuals, projects and the organisation as a whole. Whether that’s a delegate complimenting our receptionist or an L&D Manager for whom we’ve delivered a management programme.
It’s been really fun and joyful to share some of our good news stories.
Communicating our strategic plan and the progress we’re making
Sometimes a strategic plan can feel like this very clinical, fixed and distant document which means a lot to the senior management team but doesn’t really resonant with the rest of the staff. So sharing ours in the main office has been a great way to illustrate our priorities with, well with everyone.
We use the board as a reference at each of our staff days (these happen every two months) and then we map out what progress has been made.
I think it’s important that we show the steps we’ve taken towards our goals and being able to constantly update our progress shows our direction in a very obvious way. There is a real danger that ‘the plan’ becomes stagnant and distant whereas sharing it in this very visual way has made it feel very present and motivating.
Embarrassing photos and fundraising
As some of you will know, Jennie, the Centre’s MD, has recently had a baby girl. The chalk board has given us a focal point to share photographs, and keep the team in touch with her while she’s been on leave. Sharing personal news, from engagements to fundraising, is a lovely way to highlight that we’re all human and that our personal lives are just as important as the time we spend in the office.
Easy to use
One Saturday in August, three of the staff team (including myself!) came into the office to mask up and paint the chalk board. With just two quick-drying coats and a day to let it dry out we were good to go!
The chalk washes off with a bit of a scrub so we can update the board every few weeks. We keep the chalk and chalk pens out all the time so if anyone wants to make any addition they’re free to do so. It’s actually been a great mind-mapping tool and we’ve even had a few Picasso-esque doodles.
And if I can use it with my scribbly handwriting then I think this could be used by anyone!
