Samantha's Memo: In asking Joe about the components of his work that he finds most challenging, it is abundantly clear that personnel management, people skills, and communication play a pivotal role in Joe’s day-to-day job duties. Outside of the answers that Joe gave us involving these ideas, just observing Joe in his place of work made it obvious that he is part of an intricate web of staff, working together to orchestrate success. At any given moment, Joe was not only talking with us and/or watching the practice, but also listening and talking to his team via his walkie talkie and engaging with all of the workers who walked by. 

      One of the most intriguing components of our fieldwork has been the ways in which Joe portrays the work culture of his team. During our first session, Joe emphasized that he was interested in creating a work culture of fun. The culture of fun has seemed somewhat apparent through our first few shadowing experiences. For example, on the first day, I observed visible tattoos and open use of Zyns (a tobacco product), seeming to suggest the laidback, casual atmosphere for which Joe is striving. Speaking to Joe’s team, it has seemed rather unanimous that the culture of Duke Athletics (at least under Joe) feels fun, supportive, and low stress. 

      In any case, the ways in which Joe handles his coworkers seem to stem from a high level of competence, along with a deep understanding of the individuals who work around him. Joe seems to have a very strong grasp of the variety of reasons people may pursue a job in athletics technology and does not necessarily assume each person has the same intentions or life goals. In Joe’s words, his job involves, “just kind of understanding your personnel and knowing like who's what, what they want to do, you know?”. In a similarly understanding way, Joe is patient and gentle with his student workers who make mistakes, such as the student who became confused and started to film the wrong part of practice. Joe employs a high level of emotional intelligence in his work, acknowledging that mistakes can be attributed to “miscommunication” and choosing to prioritize problem solving over discipline or anger. 

      From emotional intelligence to communication, Joe’s lived experience with his job is permeated by the idea of invisible labor. Joe himself acknowledges that people around him often fail to realize the time and effort that must go into their work, even if he does not refer to this phenomenon as invisible labor. This labor extends even to emotional labor: Joe explained that during game days, he must display a high level of professionalism, going so far as to show no emotion during high-tension moments of the game. These emotional performances can be especially hard for Joe, as he has spent weeks preparing the team for success, and often wants to celebrate their positive moments. However, his restraint and professionalism are taken as a given, and performed dutifully by Joe.

Niles' Memo: Joe noted that if anything, managing people was the hardest part of the job, but it was also what he was called on the most to do. In a lot of ways, he's a middle man, acting as a liaison between the coaches and film footage, making sure that the coaches have what they need. At every step of the way, what the coaches want is at the forefront of Joe's mind. Certain angles are better for certain drills because of what the coaches are able to see, and certain periods are more critical to be reviewed than others, and Joe is called on again to evaluate the manpower need to fulfill Coach Diaz's wishes. 

There was a large emphasis on culture in general throughout both the team and the staff. Personal introductions were a vital marker, at least, seemingly, to Joe. We were introduced to a variety of faces, a lot of which we didn't cross paths with again, but to Joe, it seemed important that we weren't strangers on the sideline. If you were in blue and in the facility, you were expected to a part of the team. That code was apparent before we even got there, as Joe informed us about that team's dress code inside the facility and at practice: everyone must wear Duke blue of some kind of Duke football merch. 

Spirit, and the team spirit, was incredibly important. Everyone was tasked with maintaining the energy and supporting one another throughout the practice. Joe checked in on his various team members frequently as he made sure that they all knew that their assignments were and how to to them. Behind the movements of Joe's team, the actual football team mirrored their actions and sentiments, picking each other up as the team continued throughout conditioning practice. 

It was evident that the culture between both the players and Joe's team was not entirely separate. Both feed off each other in various ways with the athletes interacting with and encouraging Joe's team while benefitting from their help. A handful of coaches thanked Joe for his diligence throughout the day. This back and froth made it clear that these team identities are fluid for Joe, as he moves not just as a member of the support staff, but also as an extension of the team's coaching staff, as he acts as their eyes. For this reason, its easy to consider the tech team as a part of the larger football operation, as they are also only loyal to the football team specifically instead of other athletic programs as well.