How to plan a corporate retreat
Whether you’re keen to celebrate the efforts of your staff or want to build up their skills through additional coaching, there’s nothing more effective than running a corporate retreat for your workplace’s most valuable asset (your team).
Not only can a corporate retreat signal to your employees that you value their contributions but it’ll also boost their morale in knowing that you’re investing in them through training they can take with them well into the future. If a corporate retreat is something on the cards for your wider business or your specific team, here are some things to keep in mind prior to, during and after planning for your retreat.
Consider the main aim of your corporate retreat
It’s important to consider why you’re holding your corporate retreat in the first place. What are you hoping to achieve? Is the retreat goal to celebrate your staff? Perhaps an all expenses paid trip overseas may be on the cards. Is the retreat to facilitate training sessions to help boost staff knowledge in a particular area? Then maybe a weekend long stay in the city may be more appropriate in order for an expert speaker/educator to attend.
Knowing the goal behind your retreat will help to not only choose a location that will facilitate this but you’ll also be able to determine the schedule and requirements needed to help you plan each day of the retreat more efficiently.
Research venues that help you accomplish the mission of your retreat
Now that you have the aim of your retreat in mind, you can now begin researching venues. Not only do you want to find a space that will help you achieve your vision, but you’ll want to find a space that’s inspiring, cosy and adds a ‘wow’ factor to your time away, helping make your event one that your staff will remember in a positive light.
Could a venue surrounded with natural beauty be just the ticket for a team building retreat? Alternatively, perhaps a fully contained retreat location could provide staff with enough activities to keep everyone engaged when they’re finished with their training sessions?
Finding a corporate retreat space through Venue Crew will help you uncover an ideal location that’ll help you achieve your goals but also impress your team.
Strike the right balance with work and fun
Now that you’ve found the ideal venue for your retreat, it’s time to consider the schedule. While you may be tempted to cram as much as possible into every hour of the day, be sure to consider break times for staff to recuperate and even explore the retreat space. Free time can provide staff with the ability to wind down, exercise and participate in activities that will renew their sense of wellbeing and be more responsive to more cognitively heavy work-based training and discussion.
You may also want to consider some ‘ice breaker activities’ or team building exercises that may provide a bit of reprieve from heavier sessions, which also provide the added benefit of facilitating team bonding as well as recuperation.
Get your team involved throughout the planning process
While you may have a specific set of goals for your retreat, it’s important to also consider how your team can be involved in the planning process beforehand. Giving your team a voice regarding the type of training or venue they’d like the retreat to be held at can help the team feel respected, creating an environment where their voices are heard and acknowledged.
A great way to achieve this is to provide your staff with a poll on the types of activities they’d like to participate in during the retreat. You may even seek out particular staff who you think could effectively run certain sessions, helping create a sense of ownership that will contribute to the overall success of the event.
Work with an event expert
After pairing staff input with your overall retreat planning, consider chatting with a ‘corporate retreats veteran’ with expertise regarding how to run an effective retreat. Not only will you be able to glean insights from their experience, but you may be exposed to options you may not have considered before that could enhance your retreat.
One thing you could also consider is discussing your vision with an event planner from your selected venue. Not only will they be able to discuss how to best plan your retreat but you’ll also be able to uncover what has worked well in previous retreats held at that location, and how those things can be implemented at your own.
Plan to collect feedback at the end of your retreat
Once you’ve completed your retreat (after months of meticulous planning and staff participation) you can now collect feedback from the wider team regarding their experience. Collecting data surrounding what worked well and what could be improved for future retreats will ensure that future planning can be more streamlined and aligned to the desires of the team as well as remove any identifiable barriers in future retreats.
Along with questioning what worked well and what could be improved, you could even ask staff about their ideal/dream retreat to gauge ideas as to new things that could be introduced, helping to mix things up a bit and show staff you value their ideas (all within reason of course).
Find the perfect venue for your corporate retreat with Venue Crew
We’re all in favour of taking the hassle out of finding the ideal location for your corporate retreat. Streamline the planning process by finding a location through the Venue Crew team’s extensive directory of event spaces. Not only will you be able to find unique locations to cater to retreats of all sizes but you’ll also be able to work with experienced staff who will help you curate your ideal retreat with catering options, AV support, entertainment and event planning assistance that’ll help everything run smoothly.
Get in touch with the team at Venue Crew today to discuss your ultimate corporate retreat.
