Aimee Smith

Aimee Smith, B.Sc. (Eng.) ’98

Director of Technical Excellence at RWDI

How has your job been impacted by COVID-19?

The biggest impact on my job has been working from home. I have found that this has been an easy transition for me in terms of productivity and connection for project work.  We have a lot of great technology that we are able to leverage to keep operating.  Our main office here in Guelph is also still running (in terms of our model shop and wind tunnels) as we are deemed an essential service for the work we do on healthcare and infrastructure projects.  The most challenging thing for me personally with working at home (as it is for many of us) is managing my work-day around supporting the learning at home program for my 12 year old son.

How has your industry been affected?

Our project work is quite diverse and crosses several sectors and areas of the world. The impact is varied and is directly driven by the regulations that are in place from the local governments in these various regions. As our organization manages through the pandemic, one unexpected positive outcome I have seen is an increased level of communication across our global offices and a lot of team comradery, with people pulling together from their remote workstations in various locations (lots of virtual coffee chats and happy hours). I have also felt a similar sense of kinship with our clients as we all connect and continue to work on projects, turning on video cameras so we can see each other, hearing (and sometimes seeing) everyone’s kids and dogs barking in the background, and just sharing the overall sense that we need to keep working and moving projects forward.

How do you stay busy or connected with family and friends?

We are doing a lot of online communications through Facetime, Zoom meetings, etc. We have really been leveraging the technology and having “virtual” dinners and game nights. We are also making an effort to get outside more. I think I have been on more bike rides in the last six weeks than I have in the last 10 years!

What has inspired you the most in your community?

My husband works for one of the local hospitals in Kitchener and it is great to see how much the community is supporting the frontline workers. They regularly send in meals, or even something as simple as ice cream for all the workers. It is a simple gesture, but it sends a clear message of support to all these people.