A space tucked away from all distractions earned Husker Home Office of the Week honors for Richard Greene.

An associate director for enrollment management, Greene’s space works for him because it seamlessly blends his passions together of work, sneakers, music and geography, creating a positive vibe that makes his work day productive.

The Husker Home Office of the Week award was launched April 10 to showcase how faculty and staff have adjusted to working from home as part of the University of Nebraska–Lincoln’s response to COVID-19.

The award repeats weekly until employees return to campus. Details on how to enter are below.

Read on for Greene’s takes on how working from home is progressing and a few tips for other faculty and staff to consider.

What tips for a successful work-from-home day do you have for fellow employees?

Make sure you bring a sense of normalcy to these uncertain times and continue, or adapt, any productive work habits you had before moving to remote work. Prior to transitioning to remote work, I always worked off of a to-do list that was written on a simple notepad. I find my remote work days are just as productive as long as I keep to my to-do list.

Courtesy

What is your favorite item in your home office?

It’s not pictured, but it’s for sure my grandfather’s 1958 commencement program from Alabama Polytechnic Institute (now Auburn University). Before his passing, my grandfather and I always shared a connection and one of my proudest moments was graduating from the same university as him. It’s so cool to have his commencement program framed by my Auburn University diploma.

What do you miss most about your campus space?

The in-person interaction with my awesome colleagues. In my position, I often bounce around and help the division as needed and because of that, I’ve had the privilege of building some amazing friendships with my colleagues in ASEM and I miss that.

What is something you’ve learned working from home that you hope to integrate when you return to campus?

Our incoming students have really shown that they value a virtual connection with members of our staff and faculty. From the student attendance to the cross-campus collaboration, our recent Admitted Student Day was such a success. The virtual connection with our students and the adaptability and eagerness of staff and faculty to collaborate with one another made this event exciting and I hope we use that as momentum once we are back.

To be considered for the honor, submit photos of your custom space via email to tfedderson@unl.edu along with answers to the the questions below. The award winner will be notified on each Thursday, with their space appearing in the Friday edition of Nebraska Today. For more information, send email to tfedderson@unl.edu.

Entries for the “Husker Home Office of the Week” must include your name, university position, home department, phone number (for contact, if necessary), years employed on campus, home address (to mail the award), and answers to at least three of these five questions:

- Why does this space work for you?

- What tips for a successful work-from-home day do you have for fellow employees?

- What is your favorite item in the home office space?

- What do you miss most about your campus space?

- Is there any process/concept/idea that you’ve experienced working from home that you hope to integrate when we return to campus?