WORKING PRACTICES | REMOTE LEARNING The Covid-19 pandemic has meant graduates and new starters no longer have the opportunity to learn from colleagues and mentors in the real world. Firms have adapted by instigating remote online sessions, but what is the best way to replicate real-life learning? Phil Lattimore reports SCREEN TEST C ovid-19 has forced thousands of employees in building services to swap comfortable offices for spare bedrooms and kitchen tables in their own homes. Working from home has the biggest impact on new company starters and graduate trainees, who miss out on the opportunity to meet and get to know colleagues in a physical work environment. Over the past 10 months, companies have had to adapt existing schemes, and use technology to deliver training at home and integrate newcomers into a workplace culture. They have had to come up with new ways to welcome and train engineers who are starting out on their careers. Graduate recruits Building services consultant Sweco has recently integrated six new graduate trainees remotely. Peter Holmes is an associate who leads the graduate recruitment and development schemes. One of the challenges has been to help them feel part of the companys identity and community when theyre not, initially, physically in the office, he says. When we have had it open, weve worked really hard to create an engaging environment but, for a new joiner, it is a challenge, and weve had to work hard on integrating them. As well as the challenges of moving to an online learning model, the lack of informal office interaction that facilitates the exchange of ideas and knowledge and which supports new graduates is something that has also been difficult, says Holmes. Having some of those discussions that happen when you go for a coffee those are important, and elements that we do miss, he says. Sweco has provided young mentors for graduates who have started their engineering career under lockdown, in an effort to pass on what the mentor learned during their first months at the company (see panel, Online mentoring). Aecom also has an online mentoring scheme for its graduates and apprentices. Training people virtually when theyre at the start of their career is particularly challenging, says Sarah Hodgens, early careers manager at Aecom. Were currently creating peer-to-peer mentoring groups and buddy systems for new starters, to help build our virtual community and mirror some of the interactions these groups would usually experience face to face. This, she adds, builds on an Aecom event for 400 new graduates and apprentices in January 2020, which provided the opportunity for peerto-peer interaction before the pandemic. Covid-19 meant Arup had to shelve its week-long residential inductions for around 300 graduates and apprentices. As a result, we designed a pre-employment engagement strategy, coupled with a comprehensive onboarding plan, says Kamila Kaczkowska, the companys senior learning manager (technical learning). The content was made available to newcomers through a customised version of Arups Moodle learning platform (see screenshot on page 24), and connected them with their teams and buddies earlier than usual. Work culture Getting new starters integrated into the culture has been an issue most organisations are keen to address. For Aecom, it meant offering them a virtual version of the firms cultural initiatives, such as its Freedom to Grow campaign, which encourages employees to find a working style and balance that suits them best. Kaczkowska says Arup made sure its new intake had an extensive programme of virtual and online activities, which allowed them to meet their teams and interact with each other at office, regional and crossdiscipline levels. Various modules and events have been organised to 22 February 2021 www.cibsejournal.com CIBSE Feb21 pp22-24 Remote learning graduates.indd 22 22/01/2021 14:42