Jeff Smallwood took remote working to another level  

Jeff Smallwood has been a supply specialist for the Scientific, Medical and Photographic Procurement Division at Public Services and Procurement Canada since early 2020. He joined the department in April 2016. Jeff was planning a March break cottage vacation with his family when his boss checked on his willingness and availability to join the Pandemic Response Sector.

Faced with the choice of a week at his cottage with his kids, or joining the personal protective equipment (PPE) procurement effort, Jeff decided to do both. But the adventure didn’t last just a week.

The cottage, close to Algonquin Park, in the Bancroft area of Ontario, was still carpeted with two feet of snow. Along with the cold, communication lines were hardly ideal.

“We have a landline shared by four cottages, and each has its own ring,” explained Jeff. “Fortunately, the others weren’t around yet, and I was able to use my neighbour’s Wi-Fi. We had to wait for the roads to be cleared of snow before I could get it installed at my cottage.”

Jeff’s home office setup was unique as he often had to work outside with his laptop on a block of wood to get a decent Wi-Fi signal.

Heat, or lack of it, inside the cottage was also an issue. “Every three days or so, I put the chainsaw and an axe in the truck, and I’d cut up a dead tree. It was an experience for sure.”

And so began Jeff’s early spring and summer work on more than a dozen procurement contracts for surgical gowns.

Many companies came forward with offers to help. “Overall, industry across Canada stepped up and genuinely wanted to do good. It shows the true colours of people,” he added.

Jeff says he decided to join the team partly for personal reasons: “I have older relatives and others with existing health issues that make them vulnerable to the virus. When I was working at National Defence, I was helping to protect our troops, and I brought that to this job. The team is doing important work to make sure our healthcare workers stay safe and have the best protection possible.”

The hours have been long and the work intense, but Jeff and his colleagues developed a close bond and have fun working together. At one point, they all decided to share photos of their home-working spaces, and Jeff submitted a photo of his laptop and workbook sitting on top of a log pile.

Some colleagues weren’t totally sure whether to believe it or not. As one said: “Is that really your desk, Jeff?” Indeed it was!

For more stories like this one, check out The faces behind the masks.