When you pivot, you stop in your tracks, and turn without lifting your foot as your momentum takes you in a new direction relatively seamlessly. It’s a skill we usually associate with athletes, particularly basketball players, the best of whom keep their eyes on not just the ball, but the flow of the game – and change their own direction accordingly.
Pivoting has become the new buzzword in the COVID-19 world. Our survival, and the survival of the institutions and businesses that create our social and economic ecosystem, depends on our ability to see where the game is taking us and turn quickly to continue in that new direction.
The CBA has done a lot of pivoting since March, when all levels of governments first told us to stay home. As many provinces begin their phased re-openings, the first wave of the pandemic has not yet finished, and the spectre of a promised second wave hangs over us.
One of the ways the CBA has pivoted to this new reality was to look at the ways in which we can continue to serve our members despite not being able to meet in person. This spring the Immigration Section held its first virtual conference. While it was not the same experience as an in-person meeting, it still managed to offer at least some of the value you’ve told us you find in conferences – networking opportunities and the ability to learn from subject-matter experts.
This fall the CBA will be moving all of its former in-person meetings and conferences online, on the assumption that travel restrictions will still be in place. We’re working on making the virtual experience as robust as possible to provide maximum benefit to everyone who participates.
If you have questions about this new normal, or ideas about how the CBA can better pivot to face it, please don’t hesitate to contact me at president@cba.org.