Corporate Retreats: 9 Tips for Balancing Business and Fun

Corporate retreats are essential to promoting teamwork, sparking creativity, and improving organisational goals. However, organising a work-based corporate retreat may not be enjoyable, and participants may feel like they’re still working in a different venue.

So, if you want the corporate retreat to be a success, you should find a balance between fun and business. If it’s your first time arranging a retreat, hiring corporate event planners can be one of the most helpful things to do. However, if you want to accomplish this on your own, here are some tips you should try!

1. Define Clear Objectives

Before you start planning the retreat, the first thing you should do is to define clear objectives. Establishing clear objectives can significantly help with the planning and execution of the corporate retreat.

So, what are the goals you want to achieve for this corporate retreat? It can be to strengthen the bond of the team, improve creativity, or help the participant spark new ideas. Keep in mind that it’s important to address the needs of the participants and the company when setting the objectives of the retreat.

2. Pick the Right Venue

As you start the planning process, one of the most essential parts would be choosing the right venue. As early as possible, start looking for the venue that suits your company retreat. For instance, if your ideal retreat is at the beach, then you should check out options for resorts. The same goes if you prefer other types of locations.

When choosing the right venue, you should consider the number of attendees, types of activities, and budget.

3. Create a Balanced Agenda

Since you’re aiming for a balance between work and fun, the agenda should also be balanced. For instance, after a strategic meeting, you can have a short break, and proceed with a team-building activity, like a relay race when teams get together and strategies on how they’ll win.

In the evening, you can arrange a semi-formal dinner where participants can socialise or talk about work. Of course, it’s best to give them enough time to prepare for every activity they’ll participate in.

4. Incorporate Team-Building Activities

As mentioned, to balance the whole corporate retreat, you should think about some team-building activities, such as escape rooms, relays, and collaborative games where the participants can work together, and enhance their problem-solving skills.

If you’re planning to hire corporate event planners, they can suggest options to help you decide. It’s best if you can pick activities or challenges that everyone’s not familiar with, so they can have the same experience.

5. Make Time for Relaxation

Although it’s ideal to be on schedule and add as many activities as possible, you should also make time for relaxation. Besides, not everyone is used to having continuous activities, so give them time to enjoy the place, and get to know their colleagues more.

Usually, the ideal free time would be at lunch and in the afternoon. It’s when people need to recharge with all the activities they’ve done in the morning.

6. Hire External Facilitators

Aside from corporate event planners, you can also hire external facilitators. This allows you to participate in the activities, and also have fun. Besides, if you’re handling everything from the planning to the execution, you won’t be able to feel that it’s a retreat. Instead, it’ll just feel like you have an additional task while everyone is having fun.

In addition, professional facilitators know how to handle group activities, and they can guarantee that the objectives are met.

7. Encourage Participation

Whether you’re hiring experts or not, you can ask the participants to participate in the planning process. They can select their ideal corporate retreat by choosing the venue, activities, and other factors that can guarantee that they’ll have fun.

You can create an online poll for each category you need their opinions. For instance, when it comes to food, you can ask them about the specific cuisine they prefer, and the dishes they want to include. Additionally, don’t forget to ask if they have allergies or a specific diet.

8. Celebrate Achievements

A corporate retreat is another great opportunity to celebrate achievements and recognise the hard work of the employees. So, you should include the awarding and celebrating of achievements in the planning process. Usually, it’s done during dinner, as the final part of the retreat.

Of course, aside from the work-related achievements, you should include the awarding of the winners of every activity in the retreat.

9. End with a Call to Action

As the retreat comes to an end, let everyone know the summary of the outcomes of the retreat, and the next steps the company is about to take. In addition, don’t forget to send emails about what they think about the retreat, comments, and suggestions, which can significantly help improve the next ones.

Final Thoughts

A well-balanced corporate retreat is a great way to combine relaxation and improve work-related skills. By considering the tips given in this article, you can organise a smooth, and enjoyable corporate retreat.