A Corporate Retreat Like No Other
Throughout my career as an organizational development leader, I have had the opportunity to plan and facilitate over a hundred company retreats. The stated goals of the meetings have varied as have the size of the groups, the locations and the types of companies represented. I have found several factors that influence the impact of these offsite meetings. The most impactful meetings I that I have had the opportunity to plan and facilitate, have taken the participants out of their comfort-zones and combined business with fun.
Companies plan retreats for a myriad of reasons. Goal alignment sessions, strategic planning sessions, turnaround meetings, sales meetings, innovation sessions, leadership development, new leader assimilations, new hire orientations, award and recognition, and specific training needs are just some examples. These meetings are intentionally held offsite because they separate the participants from their day to day work. The physical act of traveling to a new place sets the tone and expectations for the event.
At Groove Management, we encourage our clients to host meetings offsite whenever possible. This frees participants from the distraction of the day to day and creates separation between those in attendance and those left to hold down the fort. Planning and coordinating offsite meetings can be an arduous task and that discourages a lot of companies from following through. Our firm does much of the heavy lifting for our clients.
Last year we launched a public leadership development program called LeaderSurf. The program takes a very unique approach to leadership development. Six to ten executives from various companies and industries spend a week together in Nicaragua enhancing their leadership capabilities through a mix of classroom sessions, business challenges, one on one executive coaching, participation in a humanitarian aid project and daily surfing lessons. The program has received great feedback and international recognition.
As an outcome of the program, Groove Management has been approached by several companies looking for our firm to plan and facilitate corporate programs that blend LeaderSurf with specific company objectives. As a result, we recently launched the LeaderSurf Corporate Retreat offering. LeaderSurf Corporate Retreats are customized programs delivered by Groove Management that leverage the LeaderSurf learning model and LeaderSurf partners.
We can arrange corporate retreats for groups ranging in size from 5-10 participants. These turn key programs offer an all-inclusive price for a week-long retreat for organizations. Agenda planning and facilitation is done in partnership between Groove Management and the client. These programs are all hosted at the Buena Onda Beach Resort in Playa Santana, Nicaragua. Buena Onda is an award-winning beach resort that has been awarded with the Trip Advisor Certificate of Excellence for several years. The resort offers the right climate for learning. Through our partnership with Buena Onda, we can provide rooms, meals, meeting facilities, ground transportation, daily activities and excursions.