The Symantec Service Corps (SSC) team has passed the halfway point and is now closing in on their goals. Despite coming together as 10 individuals from different backgrounds, cultures, and skill sets, they have become a strong, cohesive team with a shared passion for making an impact across three important organizations.
Team Symantec: Working and learning together
Work days in Peru are busy, packed with meetings and new challenges. They're also filled with positive energy and a sense of belonging for the SSC, despite being thousands of miles away from their respective homes. The team is not only working in a new country with clients that speak a foreign language, but they are also amongst peers that in many cases, they've only known for a short time.
What differences have they seen in day-to-day work styles?
Most collaboration is face-to-face. As part of the SSC program, teams are constantly together, discussing, debating and developing bonds.
"I have hardly used email since I have been here, and this has been a breath of fresh air," said Joseph Ferrar. "We tend to arrange time for meetings in person and then all of our work so far has been done face-to-face."
"(At home) I'm remote, so it's great to actually sit around a table with people and not just through WebEx," said Alicia Pereira. "After a short time here, I can most certainly say that I'll be going back to work with renewed energy, plenty of new knowledge, and a bunch of new friends from all over the world."
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Paz Peru team being patient and flexible. Peru time: pick up was scheduled for 8:30 a.m., still waiting at 9:45 a.m.
Patience and listening skills are important. Every meeting is bilingual, English and Spanish, so the team has learned to work with interpreters. As such, getting one's point across clearly and succinctly is extremely important and sometimes challenging. The team has become accustomed to summarizing what they hear and then clarifying anything that doesn't align.
"A regular conversation typically takes twice as long, e.g., first you speak English, then it gets translated into Spanish, and the same in reverse for the client. Additionally you need to monitor the translation, jump in to help with technical terms, or re-ask the same question in a different way," said Chris Brown.
Look beyond your core network for support. While the participants have been divided into three client groups, they've found incredible value in soliciting help from team members outside of their direct client group. Many of the participants have spent time learning about the other two projects, listening to their challenges and proactively offering solutions.
"Paz Peru was hard at work trying to complete the outline of the marketing plan that we will deliver at the end of the project. Chris (working on a separate project) popped his head in the team room to say hello and to see how we were doing. An hour later he was still sitting with us, actively contributing to the exercise, proposing new ideas that we had not considered," said Ferrar
Everyone brings a unique perspective and skill set, noticing and acknowledging this can make a big difference. As a team from various backgrounds, working in non-traditional roles, it's become critical to recognize and appreciate the skills and experience that everyone brings to the table. Each person offers a unique approach and adds value. Showing interest in someone's background, asking how things are going, and understanding how individuals like to receive feedback can significantly boost team output.
"My biggest surprise has been how easy it's been to work with my team in Peru. While we come from different countries and have different backgrounds and experiences, here in Peru we share the same passion, the same goal, and the same commitment to making a difference here. With all that in common, it's been very easy to work together," said Claire Dean.
For more, read: Building Strong Teams -- Arequipa Style!
Life in Peru
Curious about day-to-day life in Arequipa, Peru? Read Allyson Gomez's Q&A blog post answering questions from Symantec colleagues back home, including what's on her Peru "bucket list" and whether or not she's tried guinea pig yet.
As a trained chef, Dean describes some of the classic Peruvian dishes (yes, including guinea pig) in her blog post "Peruvian food is a big melting pot."
"Of all my experiences so far as a member of the SSC, the cuisine has been my most delightful surprise," Dean said.
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| SSC members join in a traditional dance circule while visiting Taquile Island. |
Chris Brown also shares details about an outing -- including a high-intensity bowling match -- with their Descosur client and Service Corp partner, Pyxera in his blog post, Downtime: Visiting Club International Arequipa (a Peruvian athletics facility).
Continue to follow the team
With a little more than a week left, continue the journey with the Symantec Service Corps team by following along on their blog and Twitter feed.
For more information about Symantec's Corporate Responsibility strategy, visit the Corporate Responsibility website.
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Lora Phillips is Symantec's Senior Manager, Global Corporate Responsibility.