Connecting with colleagues, brainstorming and planning the next year garnished with a little fun: after a virtual edition last year, it was time to spend the annual SparkOptiWeekend 2021 together again. Colleagues from Amsterdam, Düsseldorf and Zürich all met ‘in the middle’ at a venue in France.
Once a year, everyone at SparkOptimus packs a suitcase and the whole team travels to a venue abroad for a moment of collective reflection. With each and every colleague at one spot, we look back on past achievements, discuss new initiatives and develop new improvements. Traditionally, the internal organization committee keeps the destination secret until the last minute. That’s why it was only revealed a couple of days before our travel date, where our train would take us this year – to Paris!
Taking a step back to reflect
Inspired by beautiful surroundings somewhere in the Parisian outskirts and strengthened with good food, we started into the program: two days packed with presentations, discussion rounds and brainstorm sessions – all centered around this year’s theme: “Growing together”. What do our clients say about us and what can we learn from it? How can we work better together? Which skills do we need to develop? What do we want to achieve in the upcoming year(s)? How do we get there?
The SparkOptiWeekend presentations and discussions are an opportunity to revisit and evaluate shared values and a moment to live and breathe the company culture. The remote location allows the team to take a step back from the daily business in Amsterdam, Zürich, or Düsseldorf, and directly connect with each other. Colleagues who don’t usually work together, or new hires who don’t know everyone yet, can learn the most curious things about their teammates.
Time for some fun
Even during the most professional program there is always room for a little fun. As the Tokyo Olympic Games had just concluded, colleagues competed in several teams during the “SparkOlympics”. While most of the games are not expected to be added to the official set of Olympic disciplines any time soon, we had a great time playing them. And we got creative! Every department and several project teams had prepared short video clips to give the rest of the team an entertaining glimpse into their past year’s work.
But those were not all fun activities yet! The true team-building experience took the team off on a adventurous rally. Split into groups of four, we quickly learned how to drive a vintage Citroën 2CV. Then everyone swarmed out on the French roads, looking for the right clues to win the game.
In the end, the SparkOptiWeekend 2021 did not only spark a lot of new energy for the daily work, but also resulted in concrete input that will be put into action during the upcoming months. Who knows in which part of the world the results of these initiatives will be presented in 2022…
