Siobhan Meaker of Better Strategic Consultancy ponders why an away day may prompt heartsink in your teams rather than generate the breakthrough you want for your people and vision.
Being a long-time follower of AFC Bournemouth men’s football team I have plenty of tales which would fall into the category of away day blues. (Carlisle 2008 anyone? A 720 mile round trip to relegation town and a truly appalling pie.) But before you click off, I am not talking about football today, I promise. I mean the complex feelings that arranging an organisational away day brings.
You’ve given the team the grace of getting there for 9.30am, but with the extra travel time to the out-of-town hotel your budget could stretch to, most of your people have had to get up at least 20 minutes earlier. Which is all you can seem to hear as they crowd round the tepid tea urn...and those are categorically not the pastries you ordered...
And this is before you’ve even got your people in the room. There’ll be those that love the limelight and speak up willingly, but perhaps you’d rather they could share the space a little more. And then there will be those that hold insight you really want to hear but don’t feel comfortable to share. Perhaps it’s the peeling name label stickers or the dizzying carpet pattern that just isn’t conducive to being one’s best self?
Now I appreciate that being away from your usual work surroundings is ‘a good thing’ and that it can bring different perspectives. But I feel a lot of away days bring with them a whole set of new barriers – both for you as a host and your attendees.
At Better, we’ve got experience of helping you break through these school disco levels of awkwardness. We’ve run a host of different events and collated all our favourite ways to help people arrive in a space ready to shine and there is not a loo roll game ice-breaker in sight. (google it, maybe not on a work device.)
If you are considering getting a fresh perspective on your strategic away day or team planning session, why not drop us a line? We might be just the thing to help your team reach new heights.
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