By Mike Richman
The COVID-19 pandemic against which humanity is now struggling has changed just about everything in our lives: Work, leisure, education, buying habits, entertainment, and much more. One thing that hasn’t changed, however, is the desire—the need—for community. Physically isolated as we all are, the act of nurturing bonds across cyberspace is an act of human defiance against a dehumanizing foe.
Although there is no substitute for meeting someone in person, technology has made online connection effective and efficient. In fact, under certain circumstances, the value provided to attendees of virtual meetings can exceed face-to-face get-togethers.
Exemplar Global is proving the truth of this statement with ongoing as well as upcoming virtual events showcasing a wide range of speakers and a breadth of topical areas that are of specific interest to auditors and other quality professionals within industry. The presented content has been carefully curated by members of the Exemplar Global team so that you, our users, can derive long-lasting benefit as you learn and grow in this chosen profession.
One of the best-kept secrets online is the Exemplar Global LinkedIn Group. Within this community (there’s that word again) ideas are shared, thoughts are provoked, questions are asked, and members are inspired to do our best work. If you have yet to join, there’s no time like the present to find out what you have been missing.
Over the past few weeks, thought leaders on the Exemplar Global team have been offering live Q&A events on LinkedIn and via Zoom, in which members can pose questions about remote auditing, career development, the language of standards, the future of the profession, and much more. These Q&As are excellent opportunities to learn from some of the best auditing minds around, so I encourage you to join our group and pick their brains.
Another unique resource is our annual Online Auditor Expo. Now in its fourth year, the Online Auditor Expo is one of the highlights on our calendar. This year we have 37 deeply relevant sessions from auditors, standards developers, and end-users, running the gamut from food safety to new standards to the emerging technologies of which you must be aware. The Expo is online, on-demand, and on point—and CPD is offered for each of the presentations. The Online Auditor Expo is a fantastic way to keep yourself on the cutting edge of auditing best practices from many of the true leaders in our community.
Especially in the age of COVID-19, maintaining connection and fostering community don’t just happen—it comes from experience as well as a concerted effort to identify the issues of greatest import to the group. We hope that our weekly Q&As administered through LinkedIn and Zoom as well as the Online Auditor Expo are effective means of keeping you in touch with the information you need from the people who best understand it. We’re always on the lookout for new ideas, too, and that most definitely includes suggestions from you, our users. Community at its best, of course, is a multidirectional. As we hope to offer value to you, we understand that you have great value to offer us as well. With these programs, and others to come, we’re sure that can learn from one another and keep in close contact both during the days of this crisis as well as in post-coronavirus days to come.
About the author
Mike Richman is the principal of Richman Business Media Consulting, a marketing and public relations company working with clients in the worlds of manufacturing, consumer products, politics, and education. Richman also hosts the web television program NorCal News Now, which focuses on social, economic, and political issues in California. He is a contributor to (and former publisher of) Quality Digest.