BEACON is not just a club of project managers who pull off difficult innovation projects every day. It is also a safe haven, a team of colleagues who appreciate, trust and help each other. In addition to a pleasant working environment, this also ensures higher quality work for our clients. Issues are discussed, advice shared and help offered. But it doesn’t come naturally, you have to actively build it, facilitate it as management. Team outings help with that. That is why at BEACON there is always room for fun initiatives to do things together. For example, in September the entire BEACON team went mountain biking in Ermelo Netherlands.
It was raining heavily. The route was long, tough and muddy and it was cold. In short, great conditions for a team outing! We enjoyed it, trudging through the mud, racing up and down the hills. A short rest from time to time and afterwards, tired but satisfied, we enjoyed our stories and warmed up with a soup in Simon’s vacation home.
Start planning your next team outing!
The calendars are still empty and in a few months we will hopefully be allowed to do it again. The planning and anticipation is already fun, too.
5 tips for a successful day:
1 Everyone is participating!
Make sure well in advance that the whole team can and appointment/call/mail free. Too bad if people can’t get their heads around because they actually have something to take care of.
2 Inspiring location
Provide an inspiring location that everyone is unfamiliar with. This increases the feeling of “getting out there.” I always find outdoors works best, even in bad weather: forests, moors, caves, beaches … wonderful!
3 Doing something difficult
Provide an activity with some level of difficulty where team members can help each other. Not too stressful but not something everyday either, somewhere between parachute jumping and biking to work. In our case, we warned about roots and potholes (not puddles), discussed routes, pumped up tires, repaired bikes and shared snacks and drinks along the way. In short, teamwork with a touch of competition for the enthusiasts.
4 Many pauses and chats
Make sure there are plenty of breaks to chat and rest. During short breaks, you often talk again with someone else you don’t see very often in daily work, and that way you get to know each other just a little better.
5 Extended closing moment and share experiences afterwards.
Wrap up with a communal rest and evaluation moment such as eating or something similar. That moment may well be as long as the activity itself!
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