Some Christmas tales begin with a sleigh. This one begins with a display screen.
For 17 years, Cisco’s Linked Santa program has been delivering vacation magic to kids in hospitals throughout the U.Okay. and Eire. Powered by Webex expertise, a robust web connection, and a few sneaky elves (who simply so occur to be Cisco staff), every year Santa just about visits hospitalized kids who’re unable to spend their holidays at dwelling.
Linked Santa has reached 1000’s of kids around the world because the program’s starting, with Linked Santa outposts cropping up in the U.S., Canada, Switzerland, South Africa, and past. This vacation season, this system reached over 300 kids throughout 15 hospitals within the U.Okay. and Eire.
Joanne Bugg, Cisco EMEA Associate Enablement Chief, started volunteering for Linked Santa 13 years in the past and leads the program within the U.Okay.
“This is my favourite time of the yr – and top-of-the-line examples of utilizing our expertise for good,” shared Joanne. “There’s nothing like seeing these kids’s faces mild up by way of the Webex display screen. Because of Cisco, we’re in a position to give them a second of festive cheer throughout such a troublesome time.”
Behind the vacation magic
What would possibly seem to be a easy digital Santa go to is definitely a extremely coordinated effort throughout dozens of Cisco volunteers and a whole bunch of miles.
The work begins in October, when Joanne places out a name to Cisco Account Managers within the healthcare house, asking if their hospital could be inquisitive about a Linked Santa go to. The hospitals – all Cisco prospects – then join their IT workers with Cisco volunteers, who assist check web connections, set up Webex gadgets in playrooms, and fine-tune lighting and audio.
“We’ll have conversations like, ‘Oh, are you able to hear the jingle bells ringing over there?’” mentioned Joanne. “If the reply is ‘no,’ our Cisco Answer Engineers will help troubleshoot. That is a type of instances once we truly need to swap off our glorious Webex noise cancellation!”
Then the magic begins. On the day of Santa’s virtual go to, kids head to the playroom with hospital workers and onsite Cisco volunteers, dressed, in fact, as elves. On the way in which, the elves collect particulars just like the youngster’s identify, age, and Christmas want, and ship that info through Webex chat to Santa’s grotto – a room at Cisco’s Bedfont Lakes workplace.
Contained in the grotto, a rotating forged of Santas and volunteer elves stand – nicely, sit – on the prepared. Outfitted with a Netex machine, a second display screen powered by the grotto elves with every youngster’s personalised particulars, and a Christmas backdrop (full with a Santa chair, tree, and hearth), a little little bit of film magic helps convey the expertise to life.
By the point every youngster seems on the Webex display screen, Santa magically is aware of all the small print for a personalised digital dialog. “How’s your canine, Toby?” “I heard you’re on the Good checklist, Mia!” “A bit elf informed me you’re hoping for a LEGO set!”
For kids who could also be unable to maneuver from their rooms, volunteers are able to take their Webex expertise on the street. With an iPad and trolley, Santa makes bedside digital visits, with an in-person elf handing out items.
AI within the North Pole
In fact, AI is remodeling each a part of our expertise and world – and the North Pole isn’t any exception.
This yr, Sebastian Hughes, an Engineering Technical Chief and longtime Linked Santa volunteer, noticed an opportunity to optimize the expertise for kids within the hospital.
Generally there have been surprising hiccups – or, let’s name them blizzards – through the calls, making it troublesome for Santa to all the time have a personalised dialog. What occurs if two kids entered the room collectively? Or if a baby skipped the road? Or if the grotto elf didn’t have time to maneuver particulars from the Webex chat to the display screen that Santa was studying?
With the assistance of AI, Sebastian designed a template that permits a extra seamless switch of data from Webex chat to Santa’s display screen. Now, elves can shortly synthesize particulars, order kids who could be ready within the queue, and even ship secret messages to Santa. (The commonest, based on Joanne? “Preserve going Santa – we have extra youngsters ready!”)
Connection Throughout Distance and Distinction
Whereas this annual effort is powered by expertise, the true present is human connection.
This yr, throughout the U.Okay. and Eire, 95 Cisco volunteers donned elf hats, delivered greater than 1,000 items, and used Time2Give volunteer hours to convey vacation cheer to kids spending their Christmas in a hospital.
And whereas the Webex name offers the portal, it’s the Cisco volunteers — elves wearing inexperienced and pink — who energy the connection.
One go to in specific stays with Joanne. Stationed subsequent to Santa in his grotto, she noticed a baby in a wheelchair come on to the display screen.
“The kid was non-verbal and had restricted mobility, however I might see her simply clutching onto the hand of Mrs. Claus, a Cisco volunteer,” mentioned Joanne. “And when Santa mentioned her identify by way of the display screen, you possibly can simply see her total face mild up.”
For Joanne, that’s the magic of Linked Santa – and the magic of Cisco.
