Fostering connection at our summer offsite in San Francisco
Fostering connection at our summer offsite in San Francisco
Victoria Kwon · 8/21/2023
Every quarter, we come together for our team offsite to ensure alignment across all areas of our company: from strategy and product to how we work together. This time, we gathered in our old stomping grounds, San Francisco.
With the rise of remote work comes the challenge of maintaining team cohesion, collaboration, and strong interpersonal bonds. That’s where in-person offsites come into play, offering a unique avenue to bridge the gap between virtual interactions and face-to-face connections.
At our company, we recognize the immense value of these offsite gatherings, and our recent Summer Offsite in San Francisco underscored the importance of coming together as a distributed team.
Here’s a recap of the incredible experiences, team-building activities, and unforgettable moments that defined our time together in the City by the Bay.
The power of in-person gatherings for remote teams
For a distributed company like ours, in-person offsites play a vital role in addressing the challenges that remote work can sometimes present. They provide an unparalleled opportunity for collaboration and genuine human connection.
Through planning events for other organizations, we’ve had the privilege to see the significant impact offsites have on team dynamics, unity, and productivity. Yet, as powerful as it is to witness these effects in other teams, nothing can compare to when we experience it firsthand through our own team offsites.
Centering our focus on our offsite theme: Wellness & Connection
Incorporating a theme into your offsite provides focus, direction and enhances the overall experience and outcomes for attendees.
The theme for our Q3 offsite was centered around focusing on us, as humans. As a remote company, face-to-face time is valuable and this theme allowed us to focus on creating meaningful bonds and strengthening the ties that bind our team.
Discussing mental health in the workplace
In line with the offsite theme, we had experts from Mind Share Partners facilitate a workshop titled “Exploring the Spectrum of Mental Health” where we were able to have deep, meaningful discussions around the topic of mental health in the workplace.
"I found the mental health workshop to be incredibly insightful and eye-opening. It provided a safe space for us to openly discuss a topic that is often stigmatized,” said Director of Operations, Sarah Smith. “The workshop not only educated us about the different aspects of mental health but also encouraged empathy and understanding among team members. It was a powerful reminder that we're all in this together, and our well-being matters just as much as our productivity."
Hiking and connecting in the heart of nature
One afternoon, we stepped away from our laptops and screens and embarked on a memorable hike to viewpoints overlooking the iconic Golden Gate Bridge. This outdoor adventure not only provided us a chance to take a break to immerse ourselves in nature but also gave us a genuine opportunity to connect with one another outside the confines of the office.
A new approach: cross-team dinners
Unlike our past team offsites where we shared every meal together as a group, this time we opted for a different approach. For one dinner, we met with 3-4 other people we might not have had the chance to engage with extensively before. These intimate gatherings helped foster cross-team connections and allowed for meaningful conversations that might not have transpired in a large setting.
Strengthening existing bonds and forming new ones
With quarterly offsites, some of us are familiar faces, reconnecting for the third or fourth time—a rhythm that strengthens our existing bonds. However, for new team members, this marks their first opportunity to meet their colleagues face-to-face. “I had a fantastic time at our team offsite! The activities, insightful discussions, and camaraderie among the team made it a truly memorable experience,” said HR Generalist, Sara Wong who joined the team shortly before the offsite.
As our Summer Offsite drew to a close, the air was filled with a sense of camaraderie and excitement for the future. "This offsite was a great reminder of how important it is to get together in person as a team,” said Evan Noll, VP of Sales & Marketing. “I am glad we could take the time to not only connect over team dinners and co-working, but also during activities like hiking and workshops.”
Our time in San Francisco not only recharged our motivation but also reinforced the power of teamwork and collaboration. Every moment was a testament to the incredible experiences we have had the privilege of helping other companies plan every day.
If you want to see more, you can watch a quick recap of the offsite on our Instagram.
