Page 10 - CBI Magazine_November 2020

CBI MAGAZINE | November 2020
to travel, took the time to attend the Birthday Bash in Johannesburg, South Africa. Someone in the management, who couldn’t be there due to country restrictions, even baked a cake to celebrate with us. It’s one thing, having meetings via Zoom, it’s another, meeting someone in person. I look forward to meeting the others that couldn’t be there, at the next event...
That morning was busy, long before we went live. The CBI support team had been up early working already. The technical team (for the live stream) was testing equipment. Decorations and camera angles had to be checked. Links for YouTube generated and checked. Uncle Ferdie and his team ensured that the members had all the information they needed.
The Energizer Bunny had nothing on me that day, as ran between the different departments to make sure everyone had what they needed. The link went out, shortly after that, we went live. The team had gathered together, along with Delegates
from the Namibian Embassy. As the afternoon progressed, more and more people arrived to join the celebration.
As all events go, no matter how well you plan, there is always a hiccup. At one point, the lip-sync went out. Just as we were busy announcing that we were going to pause the video for 3-5 seconds for the sound to sync, everything went black. We had to start from scratch. We rolled with the punches and were up and on the air in no time again.
It was funny participating in the arm waving and charades, whenever something had to be communicated to the speakers. Or the ninja-like precision to remove a distracting cold drink from the camera frame. Little things like this added to the excitement of the day.
When the director shouted “Clear!”, it was dead quiet for about a second or two, I personally think that a few people were going “Phew” on the inside. The Spit-Braai was ON! Can you name a better way
to celebrate than lamb on a braai? The sun set, as the magic of the fairy lights came to life, everyone was tired from the work put into this event, yet strangely energized by the comments and interaction received by the members of the CBI Association. Just as we had finished supper, the heavens opened. A thunderstorm broke, we all moved inside, it did not deter us. The Celebration Continued!
Even though we were unable to celebrate this year with our members in person, it has been a good bonding experience for the CBI Team that was able to travel there. It might sound silly, but it creates a sense of camaraderie. Understanding each other better, building relationships leads to SO MUCH more. In the long run, we can build a better company through collaboration of ideas, because we have a better understanding of the different needs, desires and problems faced by our colleagues. We look forward to the NEXT CBI Event! And we look forward to seeing YOU personally there.
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