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1. Why Companies Should Organize Retreats for Their Employees
1.1. Motivate Team Members
Keeping employees engaged in the workplace is essential for maintaining profitability. Company retreats can form part of an overarching motivational strategy that ensures you are getting the best out of your team, developing a sense of camaraderie between individuals.
1.2. Boost Employee Morale and Self-esteem
Recognizing your staff’s hard work through a fun company outing boosts employee morale and demonstrates to employees that they are seen and appreciated. Building this kind of culture of recognition promotes self-esteem in the workplace, which in turn leads to greater proactivity and better communication.
1.3. Enhances Productivity
Companies that have corporate retreats for employees are likely to see a spike in productivity thanks to increases in morale and staff camaraderie. Workers who feel connected to a company through activities like company getaways were even shown to perform 56% better in one study.
1.4. Fosters Creativity and Innovation
Unique corporate retreat locations spark innovation. When you take staff out of their normal work environment and their usual daily schedules, their minds are freed up so they can hone their creativity and problem solving skills much more, and that can, in turn, benefits practical work applications. This is especially helpful if you boost your getaway routine with relevant seminars or workshops that promote creativity.
1.5. Lowers Stress and Burnout
The best resorts for corporate retreats reduce staff stress, providing a much-needed circuit breaker from the grind of the office. Short breaks away help diminish the likelihood of employee burnout, absenteeism and turnover, while showing staff that you care about their physical and mental well-being.
2. Top 3 Companies That Have Corporate Retreats
2.1. Salesforce
First on our list of companies that have corporate retreats is Salesforce. As a result of the Covid pandemic, the sellers of sales software decided it needed to balance out the increase in remote working with a dedicated site where employees can become immersed in the company’s culture. In March 2022, they announced their Trailblazer Ranch, a getaway concept that is being temporarily held in Scotts Valley, California, while the company looks for a permanent spot.
Trailblazer Ranch hosts an ongoing series of employee engagement programs, from onboarding and talent development, to training and skills building. As the name suggests, the ranch is set amidst spectacular natural scenery, with activities like guided nature walks, yoga classes, meditation sessions, group cooking lessons, and art journaling designed to bring staff together for real-life socializing.
2.2. Buffer
Buffer used to be rather well known for its twice-yearly annual retreats, but the social media management platform has since trimmed down its getaways to one big annual affair for all staff as well as mini-retreats for separate departments, teams, or goals spread across the year. While Buffer is headquartered in San Francisco, it has organized corporate retreat locations USA wide, as well as further afield in Europe.
The annual retreat is principally an opportunity for staff to bond and let off steam while enjoying a range of recreational and social pursuits. All costs are covered for the duration, including airfare, accommodation, meals, and activities. Previous retreats have been held domestically in places like San Diego, Lake Tahoe, and Honolulu, as well as internationally in Iceland, Thailand, and Australia.
2.3. Zapier
Prior to Covid, Zapier used to count itself among the companies that have corporate retreats in the USA. These would usually take place twice a year in states throughout the United States, including California, Washington, Florida, Colorado, Alabama, Utah, Texas, and Louisiana. More recently, the workflow automation tool has experimented with holding metaverse retreats, connecting teams around the world in a virtual environment.
Zapier’s retreats combine recreational and social activities with more practical workshops and seminars. The company’s ethos regarding getaways (either real or virtual) is to balance party game fun with discussions around hot topic issues such as data analytics and productivity management.
3. FAQs
3.1. How many companies do retreats?
While the exact number of companies that have corporate retreats is hard to estimate, it’s fair to say that they are fairly common throughout the business world. Since the advent of remote working, they’ve actually enjoyed a bit of a renaissance, as organizations aim to bring their dispersed teams together for some real-world socializing and team building.
3.2. Are corporate retreats worth it?
That depends upon how the corporate retreat is managed. If you set out a clear series of objectives beforehand, they can often provide a good return on investment, simultaneously sparking creativity and bringing colleagues closer together.
3.3 Why do companies have corporate retreats?
There are many reasons companies organize getaways, whether it’s to bolster employee engagement or reinforce the organization’s culture. Usually, corporate retreats combine several goals together, uniting aspects like team building, stress-busting, and skills training within one event.
