There’s no doubt that technology has been a saving grace over the last few years. As the world changed around us, technology was a constant that helped us to keep connected, as well as helping us to carry on working (even if our offices did look a little different).

Naturally that brought with it highs and lows, so we wanted to share some of FMC’s with you. From furry friends making an appearance on video calls to feeling connected even though we were apart, here’s how technology helped us (and made us laugh) over the course of the pandemic.

The highs…

‘More and more people having access to video conferencing tools has meant that a higher percentage of my client and candidate calls are done via video than ever before. This has been brilliant for building strong relationships and really getting to know the people I’m speaking with. It’s easy to underestimate the power of putting a face to a name!’ Charlotte Ashton

‘As a business we’ve saved a lot of miles by not travelling to client meetings and hosting these virtually. You still get to see the person you’re talking to and knowing the reduction in miles is benefitting the environment is a real positive and something that I think will persist in future as companies become more climate conscious.’ Ryan Luckman

‘I started my role with FMC completely remotely thanks to the tech that was on offer. I was able to hit the ground running in the role and connect with my new colleagues even though we were all sitting in our own homes! Leaving a role and starting a new one in the height of a pandemic was nerve wracking and starting it remotely added another layer to this, but it was made easy to connect with the people I worked with which really helped me to settle in.’ Abi Brown

‘We’ve always embraced technology within our processes, and prior to the first lockdown we had invested in cloud technology and mobile hardware to give us the widest range of flexibility. This meant that our infrastructure coped well with the demands of flexible working when the pandemic hit. Without technology our experience commercially of the pandemic would have been far worse.’ Iain McCracken

‘Being able to conduct team-wide calls when we were all working remotely was invaluable, it kept us feeling connected even when there were miles between us and allowed us to carry on with a small part of normality.’ Chris Mapp

…and the lows

It’s not all sunshine and rainbows, though. Technology can be notoriously temperamental… just ask anyone who’s experienced the infamous ‘you’re on mute!’ on a video call! From pets making an appearance on important calls to being frozen in embarrassing positions, tech can at times cause us a headache (and a bit of a laugh, too).

‘I’d been using my Zoom account to join a virtual pub quiz with our friends one weekend during lockdown. It was a couple of minutes into a video call with a candidate the following week that I realised I’d never changed my name back from our team’s name… luckily it wasn’t anything too embarrassing and the candidate saw the funny side!’ Ryan Luckman

‘In what is one of the most embarrassing things I’ve done at work I once unplugged the phone I was using at the time to call our tech support whilst I was on the phone to them. To make matters worse this was in the office, so I don’t even have remote working teething problems to blame! I’ve also been frozen on a video call in unflattering poses more times than I’d care to admit. (pictured)’ Beth Wingad

‘Albus, our dog, loves nothing more than making an appearance in the background of my video calls, either barking or jumping into view! People tend to be pleased to see him, though.’ Joe Coleman

What has your experience with technology been like during the pandemic?

Without a doubt investment in technology has seen companies through the pandemic and has allowed both working and socialisation to continue, albeit in a different way to ‘normal’. As technology looks set to influence the future of work too, we’d love to hear your opinion on your experiences as the world of work becomes increasingly digitised.

The FMC Future of Work series aims to explore what the future holds for our professional lives. Over the next few months, we’ll be providing weekly updates where we’ll be discussing different aspects of how, where and when we work. 

We’ll also be undertaking some research into what the future of work may look like for us all, and will be sharing our findings with you. There’ll be an opportunity for you to take part in a survey on what you think the future of work will look like, so keep an eye out on the FMC Blog for more information in the coming weeks.