Together via technology

As Victoria enters a new era of lockdowns, ACU IT wants to show you that distance doesn’t have to be lonely with the right tools.

Our colleagues in Victoria have started this week with a new set of restrictions presenting many of the same old challenges. How do we keep our social connections strong? How do we keep our students engaged? And how do we find happiness and satisfaction in a world that feels smaller each day?

The machines won’t solve all our problems, but technology allows our staff and students to stay connected and keep developing and learning.

Smile for the camera

For staff still operating remotely, it may have been a while since you had meaningful face-to-face contact with someone outside your household. We don’t always notice it at first, but as the weeks and months creep by we’re at risk of experiencing loneliness.

So if you have a meeting with colleagues in Melbourne, turn on your camera.

Microsoft have just released a variety of new display formats in Teams to keep video conferencing fresh. There’s Together Mode to replicate an audience layout, and the new expanded grid-view of 49 participants for big teams and forums. Check out this Workplace post for info on how to enable the new features.

Software for your own devices

This year has been surprising in a lot of ways, so you might not have expected to be working remotely for so long. When you’re working on any device, you should have access to the same programs you use on your work computer.

ACU IT want to let you know that many of our licensed software options are available for you and your students via myapps.acu.edu.au, or you can request more software via Service Central.

To find out more about how to access ACU’s licensed software, check out this article on Service Central Knowledge Base.

Honing your skills with ACU HR’s development courses

If you’re used to getting out and about and constantly learning new skills, the lockdown might have left you hankering to learn. We might not be able to help you get behind a potter’s wheel again sooner – but there are other ways to keep learning and striving.

ACU staff can take advantage of the wide range of courses via LinkedIn Learning, provided by HR. You can take free courses teaching you professional skills you’d like to develop, from Agile practice to project management to graphic design.