How do you have a great virtual team retreat?
We found ourselves asking a question that many teams may find themselves faced with: how do we build morale, foster connections, and spend a week learning together when everyone is remote? We had hoped to bring our team together for an in-person company retreat but with the pandemic still lingering and remote experiences being a priority for our team it became clear that we would have to create a virtual retreat.
We didn’t want an experience that just meant more time in front of a screen or company happy hours that felt more like work and less happy. We wanted an experience that left our coworkers feeling excited to be on our team and connected beyond a Zoom meeting.
Staying true to our nautical name and our desire to live on a tropical island someday, we created Port of Call Week. A week with minimal client meetings, minimal “work”, and a lot of team building, professional growth, and connectivity. All virtual! We had a tall order to pull off and the result was a week with reviews like, “I’ve never had so much fun at a job in my life.” & “I had serious doubts about having a virtual retreat, I was 187% wrong.” We consider that a successful virtual retreat week!
So here is how we did it:
We made it a priority.
Our operations team invested time to plan, create, and form an entire week that was packed with exciting events. We prepped our clients for a week of us being “out of office,” and moved around calendars to insure our team had the time they needed to truly be a part of the Port of Call experience. For this week to be successful, itneeded to be a priority from the top down.
We made it fun.
On the first day, all of our team members were delivered a large box, packed to the brim with their favorite snacks, cocktail kits, party gear, Legos, new company swag, tech gear, coffee, and a few surprises that they couldn’t open until a specific time and date. The excitement was contagious and the best way to kick off the week!
We combined the virtual & the physical.
We wanted our team members to not just sit in front of a Zoom screen and listen to someone talk. So, we included activities like building a Lego Ship-in-a-Bottle that allowed the team to build at their desks, kitchen tables, or their kids’ playroom floors. From scavenger hunts to origami workshops, we made a conscious effort to ensure our team was not just staring at a screen all week.
We thought about the small things.
In order to make it the best week ever, we asked the team what they wanted to learn about through pre-Port of Call week surveys. We made sure the team had lunch delivered, that we covered topics the team cared about, and that every event had value.
We ended on a fun note every day.
From themed happy hours to giveaways, we made sure that every single day ended on a fun note. Because who doesn’t want to end the workday winning a new lego set or a gift card to their favorite store? We planned themed Happy Hours like Decades Night, Luau, and Game Night. Some easy ways we brought lots of fun into our day were through games like JackBox, Gartic Phone, and (a classic) Scattergories!
We leveraged technology for a seamless, interactive experience.
The whole week was virtual, which means we leaned heavily on technology to ensure a smooth, seamless experience. We utilized Zoom, Google Workspace, Mural, and OffSite Co to create a virtual experience that provided connectivity, creativity, and a platform to produce a really awesome, cohesive experience. Ampersand Island, an idea that was formed after seeing a similar creation from Bryter, was our home base for the week.
Mural:
Team members could move their personalized icons around the island, join breakout sessions, or morning breakfast on deck sessions. With the power of Mural, everything had clickable links so none of our teammates ever got lost. While this Island may seem like a simple graphic aesthetically, it bridged the gap between not physically being together in a shared space but wanting to feel connected.
On top of having a lot of fun, we also wanted time to brainstorm, solve problems, and improve. Mural is the best tool for virtual brainstorming and collaboration. With the use of some custom brainstorm templates, we were able to capture multiple visions, ideas, and inspiration that we can use as a foundational base for improvements moving forward.
Offsite Co:
What team retreat wouldn’t be complete without a friendly competition? Offsite Co offered some amazing self-led and curated events. The team loved Treasure Mountain, and found the ability to problem-solve in a different way to be really worthwhile.
During the course of the week, the team spent 40 hours together, had 5 brainstorming sessions, built 10 lego ships, participated in 2 hackathons, drank 10 cocktails out of tiki glasses, and had 1 very successful virtual retreat week. Got what it takes to be a part of this crew? Check out our job openings!
