CEO’s Report

Samantha Hunter | OTA CEO

Once again, we blinked and have already found ourselves more than halfway through another year! Time has always marched on, but the relentless pace of change seems swifter now. Is it a sign of the times or my age?

It is well over two years since we became acquainted with the virus that just keeps on giving. A true innovator, COVID-19 seems to keep adapting to whatever is placed in front of it, and finds new ways to disrupt what we once considered normal. Our challenge in the face of relentless change is to stay motivated, keep adapting, rolling with change (if not embracing it), innovating, and bouncing forward rather than bouncing back.

Change has always been a tricky beast. As a rule, people don’t particularly like change, especially when it hasn’t been instigated by them, when they haven’t been consulted, and when they don’t see the true value. Much change to the way we live and work has been thrust upon us in recent years.

As we have navigated these relentless changes to our lives, we have asked a great deal of our teams, families, clients and countless others. Change fatigue and burnout are increasing while resilience is decreasing. How can we help shift the conversation to adaptability and bouncing forward? Innovation inevitably leads to change, and not all change is bad – we are all just a little tired of it at the moment.

At OTA, rather than reverting to the past and going straight back to the way things were, we are determined to celebrate the innovations we have discovered over the past few years and drive them forward. We are embracing innovations that have led to more equitable access and representation, such as our online Divisional Council and Special Interest Group meetings that allow members to contribute regardless of geographic location. Delivering CPD online and hosting virtual events have also encouraged greater participation, with less travel time and less greenhouse gas emissions.

The changing way in which we work – particularly with online video platforms – has seen connectivity and access to external agencies at a level never previously experienced, and enabled us to attract the best staff regardless of where they choose to live. All rather small innovations, but collectively they have changed the way we work with each other, our members, and our community and stakeholders. We don’t want to wind back the clock. We want to take the best of our past, mesh it with what we have learned over recent years, and create a better way forward.

The work of leadership is reflecting on the past while imagining the future. The board and executive are currently reflecting on where we have come from, honouring our legacies, owning our imperfections, and celebrating our successes. It is difficult to project how we might grow without considering where we have been. However, we are acutely aware of the changing landscape. We understand that change, progress and innovation are constant, and we must continue to adapt, evolve and innovate to ensure we remain relevant and contemporary as individuals, a profession and an association. We are investigating ideas about the ever-changing landscape of the profession, the environments in which we operate, and how our clients and communities will practise occupation as we develop the next plan for the association.

Ideas and innovation rarely happen in a vacuum, and a diversity of views will undoubtedly shape our future. We will be talking to members, consumers, funders, stakeholders and a range of other associations, businesses and professions as we create our map for the future and carve our place in it. As a problemsolving profession with innovation and adaptability at its core, we are confident the future is shining brightly for us.

Ideas and innovation rarely happen in a vacuum, and a diversity of views will undoubtedly shape our future.