SCJ’s Mission: Serving our clients, communities and each other with creativity, knowledge, insight and perspective.
Like everyone in Washington state, and across the world, SCJ Alliance is taking extraordinary measures to ensure the health and well-being of our staff while maintaining operations in the face of COVID-19. We have temporarily closed all our offices to visitors, and our staff have shifted to working from home.
While we are no longer working in our regular offices, we had infrastructure and systems in place that allowed us to quickly pivot and get right back to serving our clients. Here are just a few of the things we are doing to make sure we continue to provide the highest quality service to you:
- For over a year we have focused on purchasing laptops for our staff when replacing old computers. Most of our staff can do their jobs remotely, and frequently do.
- We operate on a platform that allows us access to email, remote servers, and other systems no matter where we are working.
- We have shifted all our meetings to video calls, typically through Google Hangouts Meet. This is proving a very effective tool for replacing face-to-face meetings, sharing screens, and keeping connected.
- Our AutoCAD operators are using software that allows them to control the big computers at their desks via smaller computers from home. If you could visit our office, you would see cursors moving and line work appearing on the computer monitors of our engineers and designers throughout the day. It is amazing, if not a bit eerie given there are no people there.
- We have redoubled our efforts to communicate across project teams. Communication is fundamental to the success of any endeavor. We are keeping this top of mind during this time of physical separation.
About a year ago we undertook working with every member of our staff to develop a mission statement that captures the essence of why we do what we do. It has served us well since its inception and provides an important reminder when things are tough. Never have the words we chose seemed more fitting.
- All of us at SCJ are putting our creativity into getting the job done under unprecedented circumstances.
- We know we will get through this and come out the other side stronger and more resilient.
- Our history of using project teams from multiple office locations and virtually collaborating to get the job done has provided insight into how to remain productive and focused.
- We have weathered many storms before – both personal and professional. We bring that perspective to our current situation with the knowledge that this too shall pass.
Phone and email are still the best way to reach anyone at SCJ. Specifically for financial questions, you can contact Tammy McDonald, our chief financial officer, at 360.352.1465, ext 267. You can reach me at 352.1465, ext 109 or jean.carr@scjalliance.com.
Jean Carr
President/CEO
Impressive, as usual.