In desperate times, we have to keep communicating

Image via pxhere

It has been a week of soul-searching, head shaking, and tears. Even watching from afar, we have all been affected by images of the human tragedy unfolding in Ukraine. The city of Kyiv is 3,000 kilometres away from my home and yet it has never felt closer. 

The unfolding events in Ukraine are never far from our thoughts. 

I was watching the screencast of a lecture this week focusing on virtual teams, and the skills needed to succeed in virtual teamwork. One of the key skills required was communication.  

“Failure to communicate can lead to conflict and/or project failure.” 

The line was part of a discussion about virtual teams, but it resonated in my mind throughout the week.

 

This week, of all weeks, we saw the truth of this statement on a terrifying global scale, watching Ukraine disintegrate into chaos amid a brutal Russian invasion, and Vladimir Putin’s refusal to communicate. 

Putin has opted not to communicate effectively with Russia’s neighbours, but also to his own people, blocking access to communications, silencing dissenters. In contrast, besieged Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy has tried to maintain communication with the Ukrainian people, boosting morale and establishing emotional connection in a time of desperate need.  

The issue of trust in communication is in the spotlight, reminding us how important it is to have reliable sources of information. It is a reminder of the importance of upholding ethical standards in our communication. 

The events in Ukraine have also illustrated communication tools at work to help the most vulnerable. Amid the evacuation of hundreds of thousands of displaced Ukrainian people, social media technologies are being adapted as emergency learning aids. Already here in Ireland, communication tools are being used to help some of the recently displaced, with the likes of media outlets like the Irish Examiner and The Journal offering practical advice to Ukrainian people arriving in Ireland across different platforms and in language that they can understand.

The two years of the pandemic brought huge shifts in the way work is carried out, moving the modern workplace swiftly towards remote and virtual learning environments, sometimes irreversibly. As we emerge from the pandemic those changes are becoming part of our everyday work life.  

We can expect further change, in a similarly accelerated timeframe, in response to events in Ukraine. In Ireland, the horrors of war have made us reflect on our place in Europe and the world. I believe events in Ukraine over the past few days will also change our working lives in the coming years, not just with accelerated transitions to alternative fuel sources, but also increased emphasis on security of our data and increased emphasis and scrutiny on technical communication. 

We are all wondering what we can do to help people in Ukraine and those leaving Ukraine right now, and we all hope and pray for an end to the slaughter. Beyond the emergency, with 1.5 million people already forced to flee, e-learning is likely to play a significant role in helping displaced people to integrate, access services, and manage their situation in the longer term, because they’ll need our help.