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Spherion Corporation teamsassembled prosthetic hands, whichwere donated to children who areland-mine victims from Pasto,Columbia. Teams also decorated thewooden boxes that held the plasticparts and screws.Photo courtesy of Spherion Corporation
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Feature - March 2010
Bill John, president of OdysseyTeams, addresses SpherionCorporation’s meeting at LoewsCoronado Bay, where attendeesparticipated in the philanthropicteambuilding program “HelpingHands,” which donates prosthetichands to those in need.Photo courtesy of Spherion Corporation
By Andrea Montello
There was a time when teambuilding events were held for one reason and one reason only: to havefun. This is no longer the case. Today, concurrent with the trend emerging in virtually all of corporateAmerica, teambuilding activities must show a return on investment or ROI. And with many companiesreducing staff and expecting them to accomplish more, teamwork and teambuilding have never beenmore important.
The main premise behind teambuilding activities is that the things that happen on the course usuallymirror what is happening back in the office.
When looking for the teambuilding activity that will workbest it’s important to honestly assess the group. What is thegroup’s physical prowess? Average age? Size? Breakdown ofmen and women? Any physical limitations?
Outdoor teambuilding courses such as ropes courses havebeen favored for years and have been used by many withmuch success. Cooking classes and you-build-it activities areextremely popular. These are teambuilding activities held for aspecific purpose.
Bike-building programs not only bring a group together butcan change the life of an underprivileged child. Increasingly,teambuilding incorporates donating time and manpower to dogood and make a difference in a community in need.
Helping Hands For HaitiTeambuilding strikes the deepest cord in hearts and minds
when it’s linked to humanitarian efforts, especially followingnatural disasters when needs take on a special urgency. Forexample, helping to rebuild lives through corporate
voluntourism programs in New Orleans after Katrina has profoundly touched the lives of countlessresidents and volunteers alike. Through these efforts, participants not only have served the communitybut recommitted themselves to their coworkers and their organizations.
Tragically, another, more devastating natural disaster has presented corporate groups with moreways to make a difference. Haiti’s massively destructive earthquake crumbled Haiti’s capital cityPort-au-Prince and crippled its population. Although cash donations are a chronic need, hands-onhelping transcends any other typeof giving, truly engaging and movingthe spirit.
In the earthquake’s aftermaththere were countless injuries that
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resulted in amputations, creatingunimaginable suffering andlife-changing disabilities. Inresponse, the Ellen MeadowsProsthetic Hand Foundation andOdyssey Teams have partnered tooffer a philanthropic teambuildingprogram “Helping Hands for Haiti,” in which participants will build prosthetic hands that will be donatedto the injured. A prosthetic of this type would typically cost $3,000, making it unaffordable for themajority of victims.
“From what we’re hearing, there have been so many injuries in which someone’s hand has beencrushed and later needed to be amputated, not to mention the amputations necessary because ofinfections, that we know there will be a huge need for prosthetic hands in Haiti,” said Lain Hensley,COO and co-founder of Odyssey Teams Inc. and a board member of the Ellen Meadows ProstheticHand Foundation. “With that in mind, we hope to start production on the LN-4A [designed for adults]hand as soon as possible, and to be able to begin giving them away free of charge to earthquakevictims in Haiti and 25 other developing nations in six months time.
“It’s amazing what giving someone a hand, literally giving them a hand, will do,” Hensley continued.“I’ve heard stories of children and adults who have gone into isolation after losing a hand due to atragedy. And when they receive a new prosthetic, the light goes on. They go from being a shell of aperson to being whole again.”
Odyssey Teams (odysseyteams.com) is known for creating the original “Helping Hands”teambuilding program through which more than 1,000 children in developing countries have received thesmaller LN-4 prosthetic hand to replace hands lost due to land mines, accidents or birth defects.
Blue chip companies that have participated in the Odyssey Teams Helping Hands programs haveincluded Wells Fargo, Abbott Laboratories and eBay.
Spherion Corporation, a Fort Lauderdale-based recruiting, staffing, and work force solutionsprovider, has used the services of Odyssey Teams for years.
“I’ve planned hundreds of bike builds but Odyssey’s have exceeded any I’ve ever done,” saidDahlton Bennington, CMP, CMM, director of business meeting services for Spherion.
A Spherion incentive program for 315 winners and special guests was held last March at the LoewsCoronado Bay in San Diego, CA. The company wanted to incorporate a teambuilding program thatwould be philanthropic as well. It contacted Odyssey Teams about its Helping Hands program.
Three teams from the Minneapolis law firm Krass Monroe competed in anenvironmentally themed “Amazing Race”-style scavenger hunt dubbed theKM Quest. At the end of the race, participants were offered bonus points forjumping into the lake.Photos courtesy of Paydirt
‘Extraordinary And Humbling’“We were able to build relationships, foster camaraderie and make a significant impact on more
than 100 children’s lives,” said Bennington. “It was extraordinary and humbling at the same time.”Bill John, president of Odyssey Teams, was the facilitator for the Spherion program. Wooden boxes
were in front of each subgroup of six. In each were bags of plastic parts and shiny screws. He askedwhat they could be for. No one guessed a prosthetic hand.
“When they were told that was what they were making the emotions were overwhelming,” explainedBennington. “That these little pieces could significantly impact someone’s life.”
The group got busy assembling the pieces and decorating the wooden boxes. Those who finished
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first helped the others.“It brought everyone together with a common purpose. Odyssey orchestrates incredibly moving
programs,” said Bennington.She is also impressed by the way Odyssey takes the time to understand a company’s goals and
objectives.“Helping Hands is extraordinary. Anyone who has the opportunity should definitely jump on board. It
will be well worth the financial outlay for what you get in return. It’s not that expensive as it will defineyour meeting for your attendees and convey your message in a meaningful way.”
The hands the Spherion group constructed were donated to children who are land-mine victims fromPasto, Colombia. There has been fighting in this area — the border between Colombia and Ecuador —for years.
Wagons GaloreThe Hyatt Regency Tamaya Resort & Spa in New Mexico — The Tamaya, meaning “a quiet and
special place” — is located on 500 acres on the Pueblo of Santa Ana, adjacent to the SandiaMountains along the Rio Grande River. Along with its unique cultural environment offering a spectacular
collection of Southwestern and Native American art and tribal danceperformances, the Tamaya also offers a variety of teambuilding options.Groups can choose from activities such as chili cook-offs, mystery tours,craft car building, strategy games and more. For one local financialservices company, a customized community service project wasincorporated into their meeting.
The group of 200 was divided into groups of six, and each was givenwagon parts, hammers, screwdrivers and paint. Each group assembledand decorated a wagon. The uniquely decorated wagons were thendonated to PB&J Family Services, a child-abuse prevention agency thatserves tens of thousands of children and families throughout central NewMexico.
Green Team QuestTreasure hunts and scavenger hunts are extremely popular. They
have even become high tech with the addition of global positioningequipment. Called geocaching, hidden containers called geocaches arefound using GPS devices.
Krass Monroe, a Minneapolis-based law firm, took the concept of atreasure hunt one step further. The firm was looking for a uniqueteambuilding activity that would expand upon its sustainability themeinitiated by the firm’s Green Team. They contacted Paydirt, aMinneapolis, MN-based company, which helps organizations buildsustainable strategies and programs that improve environmentalperformance, establish market differentiation and advance key businessobjectives.
The event objectives were to encourage friendly competition amongstaff, strengthen team member relationships and integrate an environmental theme in interesting andunexpected ways. To meet those goals, Paydirt designed an “Amazing Race”-style scavenger huntdubbed “KM Quest” highlighting natural resources and historic landmarks in the Northwoods ofMcGregor, MN.
“Many of our clients struggle with ways to make environmental stewardship engaging and enjoyable.After helping Krass Monroe form a green team earlier in the year, Paydirt was excited to help the firmplan an event that would bring their employees outside for some good old-fashioned fun andcompetition. The Quest participants had an opportunity to explore the north woods of Minnesota in anunexpected and often offbeat way. Not only did the attorneys enjoy it, but we had a blast planning it,too,” said Eliza Clark, JD, LEED Accredited Professional and a principal of Paydirt.
Each team was tasked with completing a series of challenges with only a map, camera, vehicle andtheir team’s skill, dexterity and resourcefulness to support them. Each participant received a McGregortourism map that contained all of the information required for completing the scavenger hunt. However,the clues were designed to force the teams to be patient and work together.
The three teams (Team Awesome, the Killer Bees, and the Left-Handed Spatulas) set out for their
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Culinary competitions remain a teambuildingstaple. Here, HealthSouth employees competein a Chile Cook-off at The Hyatt RegencyTamaya Resort & Spa in New Mexico.Photo courtesy of The Hyatt Regency Tamaya Resort & Spa
Quest on a sunny afternoon in late September. Allof the teams started at the same retreat locationbut were then sent to different second sites. Questchallenge locations included Savanna Portage StatePark and the Long Lake Conservation Center, aswell as a local “honey wine” tasting winery and icecream shop.
Teams were also given the option to complete“bonus play” to subtract from their finish time, butwere required to verify their completion of bonustasks by documenting their participation on a digitalcamera. Once the teams arrived at the final Questlocation (a hammock!), the Quest captains verifiedtheir performance and documented their final time.
Although the winning team (Team Awesome)was undoubtedly the happiest, all of the participantshad a great time. Quest participant ShannaStrowbridge noted, “The Quest that Paydirt puttogether for our firm was not only a great competition but also valuable for teambuilding. All of the teammembers had to be involved to help solve the clues and determine the best course to take. Unliketeambuilding exercises we’ve had in the past that were mostly lecturing by ‘experts’ on how to worktogether or make the most out of people’s different styles and personalities, our eco-challenge allowedfor a real case study in how to evaluate the best person for each task and to devise mutual ways tosucceed at the challenges.”
“Attorneys are by their nature very competitive, and they went at it eagerly and aggressively,”explained event organizer Deb Amundson, paralegal for Krass Monroe. “Some of the spots they had togo to were 20 to 30 miles away,” said Amundson. “In order to be successful, they had to work togetheras a team. They had to figure out the best and fastest ways to get to the destinations. At itscompletion, they had the opportunity to earn extra points for jumping in the lake, and all of them tookthe plunge.”
Seasonal TeambuildingNot all teambuilding programs need to be involved or elaborate. Take Rymax Marketing Services, a
Pine Brook, NJ-based company with 120 employees. The company sponsors seasonal teambuildingexercises to motivate its departments to work together.
In July, for example, it celebrates Independence Day with a red, white and blue day. Eachdepartment works as a team to show its creativity, and patriotic and Rymax spirit. It also throws a
company Fourth of July picnic withSimon Sez and a watermelon-eatingcontest.
She pointed out that it can costroughly 21/2 times an employee’ssalary to replace him or her, so bykeeping everybody motivated andhappy, costs are reduced. Byfocusing on team camaraderie,Rymax’s turnover rate has been lowand employee morale high.
No matter what the teambuildingactivity, it must require that the
group work together — communicating, trusting, supporting one another, thinking creatively, planningand following through in order to succeed. Successful training activities such as these emphasize teamproblem solving.
When choosing a teambuilding company or consultant, research its track record, educationalbackground and safety record. Some consultants, for example, possess recreation experience but nobusiness or corporate experience.
Think about it, professional sports teams spend 95 percent of their time practicing skills but only fivepercent actually performing. In the business world, an executive spends 95 percent of his or her timeperforming. What better way to practice skills than outside the work environs where business resultsare not the measure of success?
Executives who have participated in teambuilding programs agree that the end result is a newfoundcamaraderie that opens new avenues of cooperation and collaboration back at the office. Taking it astep further, when teambuilding helps to bond an employee with his or her company’s mission (read:brand engagement), the return on investment is a sure bet. C&IT
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Destination Hotels & Resorts Partners with Odyssey TeamsAugust 31, 2009Offers groups charitable team-building programsBy Alex Palmer
Groups staying at any Destination Hotels & Resorts can now give their events acharitable boost. The hospitality management company has partnered withOdyssey Teams to offer philanthropic team-building activities at its more than 30hotels, conference centers and resorts.
Odyssey Teams creates programs that allow groups to strengthen their teams bycollaborating on charitable projects. Among the programs Odyssey offers are LifeCycles, in which a group of participants assemble bicycles to donate to children inneed, and Helping Hands, in which teams put together prosthetic hands which arethen given to amputees in developing countries.
Odyssey has created programs for corporate groups at companies like Walmart,Wells Fargo, Pfizer and Kinko¹s.
"We get people connected to who they are, who they work with, what they do atwork and why they do it, which in turn helps them improve their connections tocustomers, customer service and their lives outside the office," said Bill John,president and co-founder of Odyssey Team, in a statement.
The new partnership is part of Destination Hotels & Resorts larger corporate socialresponsibility efforts, which includes the sustainability program Destination Earth,launched in 2008 to protect the communities in which the organization operates.
Maureen Callahan, vice president of marketing for Destination Hotels & Resorts,said in a statement that the company's properties "are very much a part of the localcommunity where they reside and Odyssey Teams' programs, which encouragegroups around the world to give back to their communities, fit in perfectly with ourcompany's core values."
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1 of 2 1/7/2010 11:24 AM
Kendaija Freeman is allsmiles as she visits withthe Taylor Corporationemployees whoassembled the bike shewas presented with.John Cross
Taylor Corporationemployees (from left)David Daffner, ChristinePhelps, Gary Camaratoand Stacy Augeson teamup to assemble a bicyleas part of ateam-building exerciseThursday at the VerizonWireless Center. Thebikes were thenpresented to youngstersfrom the YMCA BigBrother/Big Sisterprogram. John Cross
Taylor Corp. builds bikes for children in BigBrother/Big Sister
By Dan NienaberThe Free Press (http://mankatofreepress.com)
MANKATO — About 150 leaders from 48 TaylorCorp. subsidiaries in 15 states gathered inMankato this week to learn leadership skills and,to their surprise, bring big smiles to the faces of30 children.
Those executives broke up into groups of four orfive and, with the guidance of national consultingfirm Performance Unlimited, learned aboutteamwork and customer service. They did that bybuilding bikes in the Verizon Wireless Center.
At the same time, about 30 children were taking a tour of the city facility. Most were kids who hadonly dreamt about owning their own bicycle. At the end of the tour, they were asked to imagine whatit would be like to get a special gift from someone. Then they were told to write notes thanking thoseimaginary gift givers.
Neither the executives nor the children knew what was coming next. Once the bikes were finished,the children were brought in.
The executives immediately learned who their “customers” were and the children found out thosespecial gifts were real.
The executives hopefully got the clear message that their “customers” are real people who appreciatea job well done, said Kim Corbett, one of the consultants. The children enjoyed the excitement ofreceiving a special gift while learning that there are people out there who want to give back to theircommunities.
It’s a program called Life Cycles.
August 21, 2010
Life Cycles program makes kids’ dream gifts a reality » Local News » The... http://mankatofreepress.com/local/x865117634/Life-Cycles-program-mak...
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“When you see the smiles on their faces, that tells the whole story,” Corbett said.
The Free Press, Mankato, MN 418 South Second Street Mankato, MN 56001
Life Cycles program makes kids’ dream gifts a reality » Local News » The... http://mankatofreepress.com/local/x865117634/Life-Cycles-program-mak...
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ViewPoint - June/July 2010
Social Responsibility
More and more, the workplace as well as association membership, is comprised ofmany different demographics. Possibly the most challenging thing to do whendesigning a meeting or conference is to ensure that it is engaging for all of theparticipants.
Think about taking your family to Disneyland. Your immediate family is one thing,but the stakes are higher, the game more complex, when you bring the wholewonderful, slightly dysfunctional, lot — the extended family ranging in age fromtoddler to retired — to the Happiest Place on Earth with all of their egos,idiosyncrasies, personalities, preferences, etc.
Diverse GroupNow think about bringing a variation of the above to an association meeting offsite.
Throw in baby boomers, Gen X, Gen Y; the possible R.I.P. (Retired in Place)participants who have been with the organization for years, as well as the New Kids
on the Block with fresh ideas, energy and optimism. This diversegroup also brings with it a vast mix of cultures, personal andprofessional life experiences, and perspectives.
A quality designed and facilitated philanthropic/community-basedteaming event — where people do good and feel good — can be agreat unifier and equalizer.
Since 1987 Odyssey Teams has traveled the world working withcorporate and other groups in more than 20 countries to benefitmore than 150,000 people. It’s been shown again and again thatpeople want to be nice to each other and to “do good.” It’s a human,cross-generational thing. It seems that people are just waiting forpermission (or a safe place) to do so, and it’s even better if it’s all
laid out for them: the boundaries, logistics, what to do etc. Although people want todo good, usually it’s just a little bit easier not to. After all, life is full, busy, anddistractions are everywhere. Most people just never quite get around to it.
A meeting with a well-designed and facilitated Social Responsibility (SR)component can be a sure bet emotionally and physically. When we do good, levels ofour body’s feel-good hormone serotonin rise. The wonderful thing about thesefeelings is that those who participate firsthand, those watching from the sidelines andof course the recipients of the good deed, all experience the benefits.
More good news: The other side of the coin is engagement. It’s impossible toexperience the feelings described above and not be engaged. With these highengagement levels, people are more open, optimistic, and they see the relevancy ofthe content that is embedded in the SR program.
Regardless of the activity — whether the group builds prosthetic hands,playhouses, bicycles etc. — they are dealing directly with humanity. At some level it’swhat we are all wired to do — to connect. Our programs help to connect peoplethrough activitiessuch asice-breakers,discoveryconversations andbusiness simulations,all of which aredesigned to remindpeople of how theymove in the world,the choices theymake, the influencethey have and how all of these affect their personal and professional pursuits.
Furthermore, with quality design and facilitation, these sessions can provideunique opportunities, where with context and relevance established, people end uplearning about themselves, their teams and their association. Participants leavefeeling engaged, ambitious and optimistic about what’s next and proud of their
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association.
Compassionate LeadersThe Center of Creative Leadership took on a 10-year study to determine what
makes the best leader. The results were simple and profound. The final outcome hadnothing to do with what quadrant or color the person is in a Meyers Briggs or DiSCtool. Rather, the bottom line was that the optimal leader exudes and embodies asincere caring for people. We are all leaders, and the more opportunities we cantake (or that are provided for us) to show compassion — locally and globally — thebetter practice we have at being the best leader possible.
Maybe as much as the “customer”/recipient benefits from the project/widget thatwas built or service that was provided to him by the group, he and his family andcommunity feel a part of the global village and will tell stories of the goodwill fromcomplete strangers for a long time to come. The participants will share stories, too. Itcan’t be helped, it’s a story worth sharing, and they continue to feel good even whentelling it. That’s meeting shelf-life!
It gets even better. Often, an SR event can provide a situation wherein theparticipants can see their “end customer” or hold in their hand a gift that willprofoundly change the life of someone across the globe. These are visceralexperiences that people will remember for a lifetime. And each memory will takethem back to the day, the place, the leaders and the organization that provided theexperience for them to do good and feel good. ACF
Todd Demorest is lead facilitator for Odyssey Teams Inc. He conducts philanthropicteambuilding workshops designed to motivate individuals within organizations andcommunities. Helping Hands, a new Odyssey program in which teams assemblefree prosthetic hands for amputees, exemplifies how Demorest delivers Odyssey’smix of inspiration and practical philanthropy. He has a B.S. in recreation and privateenterprise from California State University, Chico. www.odysseyteams.com
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Column - May/June 2010
Engagement
Engagement: The “E” word is everywhere. How to increase employee engagement is the businesstopic du jour in seminars, workshops, speeches, books, etc.
Enough already. No more talking, reading or writing about engagement. Yourchoices and the behaviors that follow will determine (and model) your level ofcommitment that ideally, is best suited for you, your teams and your business.
If you’re tired of the E word, focus on some of these other words, whichaccomplish the same goal: commitment, accountability, initiative, pride, etc. Oftenthese qualities/characteristics are the telltale signs of the emotional connection peoplehave at the workplace.
Take pride for example. It’s easy to tell if people have pride in themselves, theirteams and their business. It shows in their body language, their mood, the tones andoptimism in their conversations and, for sure, in their actions. Create a sense of pridein a person and everything else will fall into place.
Instilling PrideGiven the current landscape, there has never been a more pivotal time to shift moods, realign
teams, and give people an opportunity to embody company values and create a sense of pride.Pride doesn’t come from a mug, backpack or jacket with the company logo on it. Rather, if the
person has a sense of pride they will wear or use the above with their chin up in the process. Pridederives from a mutual understanding, an alignment on a vision or purpose and how to get there. Pridecomes from knowing who is on your team, what they care about and the assurance that you have eachother’s back. These notions can develop over a long period of time, by random or as the result of a wellthought-out plan. It’s time for the well thought-out plan. Part of the plan may already be in place — TheIncentive Trip.
Incentive trips can be a finely orchestrated experience: a certain amount of time for a generalsession with company and keynote speakers; regional team time; breakouts; lavish cocktail parties;giveaways in guest rooms upon arrival; and, of course, teambuilding. The goal for teambuilding is oftenfun: beach olympics, photo safaris, cookoffs, etc. The target — fun — may have been achieved, yet somuch more value slipped away.
Use Teambuilding Time WiselyIf the incentive trip is in place, and a block of time is allotted for teambuilding, use it wisely. The
world is watching closely how companies spend their money andhuman capital. If there has yet to be time allotted for teambuilding,then beg, borrow, steal and create some. In fact forget teambuilding:Let’s call it “Bringing Values to Life,” an “Engagement Session” or…?The people are already there, things are in place to meet and createvalue with face-to-face experiences. They may not be together inperson for another year. Be creative and harness this potential.
No time or money for it? Get rid of the giveaways, have one lessopen bar or cocktail party, choose a less expensive buffet one night.Yes, your participants may be shocked — possibly more thanshocked if there’s any entitlement, resignation or cynicism in the mix.However, the shock of missing out on something or the gap inexpectations will be short lived once they participate in what you’veplanned.
Enter: Philanthropic, community-based teaming events. Programs are now designed for your teamsto become aligned and attuned by making a difference at a larger more profound and personal scale.The wonderful thing about these programs is that if properly designed and facilitated, they are not justassembly lines of people stuffing teddy bears, filling wagons of toys, assembling backpacks forsoldiers, etc.
While these sessions are worthwhile, something is still left on the table, and the ROI is less thanwhat’s possible for the participants and organization.
Align Philanthropy With Company ObjectivesWith quality design and facilitation, these sessions can provide unique opportunities: With context
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and relevance established, people end up learning about themselves, their teams and their business.Participants leave feeling engaged, ambitious, optimistic about what’s next and proud of their team andcompany. This sense of pride is priceless. Studies, surveys and bottom lines confirm this again andagain.
By way of example, Julie Carroll, vice president, partner and industry relations, at BCD Meetingsand Incentives, who experienced one of my Odyssey Teams philanthropic workshops, commented,“Since quality time together as a management team is difficult to come by, it was not easy to convinceeveryone that spending an afternoon away from the tactical necessities of business planning would bewell spent. By the end of the afternoon, however, and even still today (three months later), our teamunanimously voted the three hours with Odyssey was the most beneficial part of the meeting.
“They do an amazing job of packaging the positive energy of a philanthropic event with the goals andobjectives a stakeholder has set for their meeting. By clearing your mind and embracing theexperience, you’re able to gain wonderful new insight, not only about yourself and how you behave inboth personal and professional settings, but also about your colleagues and your company — whichultimately can lead to some powerful brainstorming and flow of new ideas that can set the tone for avery successful future. Our folks walked away feeling extremely positive about themselves and ourbusiness. There’s not much more you can ask for as a result of a management meeting!” I&FMM
Todd Demorest is lead facilitator for Odyssey Teams Inc. He conducts philanthropic teambuildingworkshops designed to motivate individuals within organizations and communities. Helping Hands, anew Odyssey program in which teams assemble free prosthetic hands for amputees, exemplifies howTodd delivers Odyssey’s signature mix of inspiration and practical philanthropy. Todd has a B.S. inrecreation and private enterprise from California State University, Chico. www.odysseyteams.com
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HOT BUZZ
Thoughts+Leaders
+Elling Hamso Managing Partner European Event ROI Institute
Meetings and events create value by infl uencing the behavior of participants; this is the only known mecha-nism for generating ROI. We usually aim to infl uence participant behavior after the event, but incentives are different, as the behavioral change happens before the meeting takes place. When the best salespeople win an incentive reward, the increased sales account for most of the value.
It is not enough to just measure the increase in sales and profi t and subtract the incentive costs. What exactly do they do when they sell more? Are there any negative side effects that need to be subtracted? Is the higher level of sales sustainable or will it drop when the incentive is over? Is the sales increase only due to the incentive, or are you running an advertising campaign at the same time? Incentives can be effec-tive, but take care, the ROI is not always what it seems at fi rst sight.
Lain I. Hensley COO and co-owner Odyssey Teams Inc.
Most of the ROI of an incentive program can be calculated before the trip or reward is given. You simply need to determine the goals the candidates need to achieve to deserve the incentive and be sure the P&L [profi ts and loss] justify the reward. In some cases you might need to calculate turnover rates, engagement surveys or job satisfac-tion to measure the performance. For sales staff or sales managers it is simple. Set the high bar and let the games begin. If the incentives are good enough the internal buzz will drive performance and inspire the entire team to higher levels of output, even if only a select few get to enjoy the spoils of their labors. It is true that the best performers are internally motivated, but internal motivation does not stand alone. The perfect blend of external rewards, peer acknowledgements and internal drive will compel the best to exceed goals and the mediocre to their full potential.
28 one+ 06.10
How do you calculate ROI for incentive programs?
Hugo Slimbrouck Director of global sales and strategic partnershipsOvation Global DMC
We as an industry have an obligation to position events as an essential part of marketing. Corporate executives (=budget own-ers) will not part with cash for motivational events unless they can prove the fi nancial benefi ts to their companies. Some brand experiences might not be seen again because they were largely acts of vanity, but as companies recruit and unemployment sub-sides we will see clients revisit recognition events.
What is the value that incentives and motivational programs generate in terms of professional development, knowledge trans-fer, motivation and investment generation? Meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions are primary engines of both economic and professional development. They are key vehicles not just for sharing information but building the kind of understanding, rela-tionships and confi dence that can only be achieved on a face-to–face basis.
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36 NCM+E l Northern California Meetings + Events » SUMMER 2010
Odyssey TeamsTalk about a “hands-on” experience…Participants in Odyssey Teams’ signature teambuilding program assemble prosthetic hands for people who suffer from birth defects or have been disfigured by land mines, natural disasters or as a consequence of political violence,
Helping Hands works with Rotary International District 5160, which delivers the prosthetic hands to recipients in developing countries. With some 1,500 hands created thus far, the Chico-based company’s goal is to provide 10,000 by the end of 2010.
Groups enter into the Helping Hands exercise with no idea of what’s in store.
“After a series of presentations and reflective reasoning exercises, the group goes to a table where there is a package containing 30 pieces of plastic and metal,” explains Odyssey Teams’ Co-Founder Bill John. “First they brainstorm about what they think it could be or what it could become. Rarely do they guess the right answer. The intention is to slowly have the vision become their vision. Then, when they are done building the hand, they put their thumbprint on it by decorating a carrying case. Into that goes a picture of the group who made it.”
Perhaps the most powerful part of the four-hour pro-gram is the debriefing session at which participants watch a video featuring past recipients and their families.
After being knocked down a rung or two during the recent economic shift, many companies are looking to kick employee morale up a notch through activities geared to enhance collaboration, communication and leadership skills. But with share-holders and CFOs eyeballing each and every expenditure, team-building programs need to serve double duty. ¶ Increasingly, com-panies are looking to make the experience more meaningful by adding a philanthropic element that connects participants to the company and its customers in a whole new way. Here are three innovative approaches to corporate social responsibility that are making a difference in Northern California.
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SUMMER 2010 » www.meetingsmags.com l NCM+E 37
“This is when the real personal connection is made,” says John, adding that participants later receive photos of the recipients receiving the hands. At the end, he says, people can look around the room and think ‘wow, we—myself, my peers and my company—are responsible for making 33 hands that can change 33 lives.’”
Cindy Wilson, president of Wilsonwest, Inc., a San Francisco event management firm, has wit-nessed this transformation first-hand.
“Being in a ballroom with 500 people who are so moved is a very emotional experience,” she says of a Helping Hands program she scheduled for a corpo-rate group. “I remember there were four people who work at the back of the house and rarely connect directly to the customers. They were particularly moved by the connection they made with these cus-tomers–the children who were the recipients.”
Before they created Helping Hands, John and co-founder Lain Hensley established Odyssey Teams as an industry leader in philanthropic teambuilding with a bike building program and, later, a program called Playhouse Challenge. Both benefit deserving children.
“There is such a demand now to integrate social responsibility into an event,” says Sibylle Coe, direc-tor of proposals and planning for Launch Inc. a strategic event management company based in San Anselmo. “Odyssey is leading the charge in mean-ingful philanthropic teambuilding. They understand what the company’s goals are, and their execution is flawless. People are overcome with the joy of seeing the recipients of their work.”
Teambuilding unlimited, Inc.Lip balm? Check. Batteries? Check. Candy? Check.
These are just a few of the essential items that participants of Teambuilding Unlimited’s Operation Military Giving program might tick off their lists when assembling “care” boxes for U.S troops. In this charitable team building exercise, teams must brain-storm about which items might be most important to the solider.
“The group works with a facilitator who leads a discussion about why these men and women would want certain items,” explains Janet Rudolph, creative director for the San Francisco-based TeamBuilding Unlimited.
Kappi Bowen, Manager of Meetings and Events
for Abbott Diabetes Care, found participation in this exercise to be especially profound for her group.
“It was around the holidays, and we have a large number of vets on our management team,” Bowen says. “We wanted to put items together, to work out strategies and have it be heart-felt. I still get com-ments from the team on how great it was.”
TeamBuilding Unlimited has woven the phil-anthropic spirit into other events as well. Popular offerings that pay it forward to those in need have themes such as “Bears That Care,” “Trikes For Tots” and “Project Green Thumb.”
Based on the theme, different warm-up activi-ties address the competitive side of teambuilding and prepare the teams for the charity portion of the challenge.
“More and more teambuilding is being blend-ed with community service,” Randolph observes. “Many companies have time set aside for employee community service, so it’s the perfect marriage. Teambuilding takes the place of entertainment at many meetings, and the fact that there is a charitable aspect is all that more meaningful and fits into the company’s goals and objectives.”
Corporate gamesCynthia Shon, founder and president of Pleasanton-based Corporate Games, Inc., believes that in today’s corporate culture, a teambuilding event is more important than ever—so long as it is addresses the company’s needs.
“Companies want the teambuilding experience to be meaningful, but there also needs to be a fun fac-tor,” Shon notes, adding that virtually all Corporate Games events can be tailored to benefit a charity.
For instance, in “Team Monopoly,” groups must collect, negotiate and bargain for items that are later donated to Second Harvest Food Bank or Meals on Wheels. Similarly, “Project Landscape” benefits Habitat For Humanity.
Corporate Games also offers events with themes such as “Designer Holiday Tree” and “Bikes For Tykes.” In “Apprentice Entrepreneur,” the challenge is how to make the most money for the group’s selected charity in one day.
“There is a thrill and satisfaction that people get from helping someone and meeting the person who benefits from what they made,” Shon says. “There is a lot to be said for physic income.”
get connected
OdyssEy TEaMs INC.Chico800.342.1650www.odysseyteams.com
TEaMBuIldINg uNlIMITEdsan Francisco510.845.3600www.teambuilding-unlimited.com
COrpOraTE gaMEs, INC.pleasanton800.790.4263www.corporategames.com
Teambuilding
April 2010
To Meet or Not to Meet?
by Lain Hensley
The days of the “over-the-top” sales meeting are history as we know them. Or are they? The real question is, “Howwill you go over-the-top without going over the budget?” How will you continue to exceed the expectations of yourparticipants without political blowback after the final gratuity is paid? Not only is the general public more interested inhow big businesses are spending hard-earned profits, so are the internal employees and actual participants included insuch meetings.
What is the solution in the face of the challenges? We know we need to meet. We know we need to reward our teams.We know we need to inspire our people to work twice as hard for less money in a market that requires them to bemore in touch than ever with their customers and clients to even stay in the game.
In 2010, teams are running on skeleton sales forces, profits are slim, competition is fierce and it is more and moredifficult to enjoy your company spending unnecessary amounts of money on a getaway when many of your friends andcoworkers have been let go. But we know we still need to meet and we need to celebrate. The ROI on face-to-facecompany off-site meetings is still amazing and it is a necessary part of building a healthy culture.
It is not enough to just throw tons of money at the meeting to make your participants happy. Employees areinterested in new and creative ideas to get together around purpose and vision. They want to have a sense of socialresponsibility as they architect the plan for the upcoming year or examine the past year’s successes and failures. Theywant to know that you see the things that really interest them and the things that really concern them. They also wantto be recognized as an important part of the company success.
Here are a few of the do’s and don’ts I have seen as I’ve traveled around the world for the past 18 years observingand participating in some of the worst and some of the best meetings:
Don’t kill them with PowerPoints and flashy presentations that have no heart. People are interested inthree things when you present: Who are you, where are you going and can I trust you? They think the samething about your company. Don’t get together and not address those questions. If your teams are stuck onthese, forget anything else. They will not remember what you said, but how you made them feel. Be sure thatthey feel every word of your presentation is something you really believe in and the information inspires you.They will not remember if slide No. 27 in your financial projection had the correct graphic, but they willremember if you seemed truly honest and optimistic. They will get a sense of who you are and if you understandwhat they need to hear.
1.
Salespeople are people of action, keep things moving! Most of them got into the sales part of the businessbecause they love people, they love to talk and they like action. Play to those qualities. Keep it interactive andfun. Involve them in the discussions and give them a chance to be heard. The biggest challenge they probablyface at a meeting is staying awake or running out of paper to doodle on.
2.
Break the ice. I don’t mean get them all drunk. I mean, have some kind of structured activity that forces themto interact and get to know other people in the group. They will always stay in their cliques unless you makethem branch out and get to know other people on the team. People typically get to know each other just enoughto get business done. They will gravitate toward people in the group that think like them, walk like them, talklike them and so on. We know they will learn more from the people in the group that think differently fromthem, people who see life and work from a new perspective. In the safest way you can, get them together andteach them to respect that diversity and value the challenges it presents as well as the benefits it provides. Mostof the key lessons learned at a team meeting will be between the team members, if you get them talking.
3.
Do something good for the world at the same time. One of the hottest trends we helped create was thePhilanthropic Teambuilding sessions. This is a combination of team building, leadership development, salestraining, ice-breaking and volunteering. It is impossible for someone to participate in a program that benefits agroup in real need and not feel something positive. I have never heard of a participant saying that we should nothave given those kids a bike, a playhouse or prosthetic hand. During the Life Cycles bike-building program, thechildren actually come into the conference room to receive the bikes. This interaction breaks the walls of eventhe toughest attendee and helps reconnect everyone to the real purpose of the work. Whatever you do, dosomething that makes them feel good together. They will have something to talk about besides the news orlatest office gossip. Something that reminds them that the purpose of all business is to give real value tosomeone who needs what you are together to provide. If you don’t do this at some level, then it might seemlike you are just going through the motions without any emotion.
4.
Lain Hensley, 40, is chief operating officer of Odyssey, which specializes in team building and leadership skillsdevelopment, and co-founded the company in 1991. Lain once worked in a bicycle shop, and that experience and his
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love of bike-related movies helped inspire the creation of Life Cycles, Odyssey’s groundbreaking (and nowmuch-copied) program in which organizational teams build free bikes for children. Lain shows clients that questioningassumptions can be a powerful tool for beneficial change. For more information on how Odyssey can help “build”individuals and teams, visit www.odysseyteams.com.
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Odyssey Teams Helping HandsProgram has gifted over 2,000 LN-4
hands to people in developingnations. Photograph courtesy of
Odyssey Teams.
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Team-Building Project to Donate LN-4 Hands in Haiti
April 1, 2010
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As the dust settles after the devastating January 12 earthquake in Haiti, the need forprosthetic hands to replace those lost due to injury or infection becomes more and moreapparent. But with a typical prosthetic hand costing thousands of dollars, most Haitianearthquake survivors will never be able to afford one, potentially dooming them to alifetime of greater hardship.
Recognizing the immediate need for replacementhands after the earthquake, the Ellen MeadowsProsthetic Hand Foundation and Odyssey Teamshave joined forces to create the Odyssey TeamsHelping Hands for Haiti™ program, which willbuild and distribute free of charge the EllenMeadows Foundation LN-4 and LN-4Aprosthetic hands to Haitians who are in need ofthem. The Helping Hands for Haiti program is aphilanthropic team-building program organizedby Odyssey Teams. According to OdysseyTeams, companies of all sizes have participatedin the original Helping Hands Program,providing prosthetic hands to more than 1,000children in developing countries. Odyssey TeamsHelping Hand for Haiti plans to take the original concept and brings it to adults in needof a prosthetic hand.
“From what we’re hearing, there have been so many injuries in which someone’s hand has
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been crushed and later needed to be amputated—not to mention the amputationsnecessary because of infections—that we know there will be a huge need for prosthetichands in Haiti,” said Lain Hensley, COO and co-founder of Odyssey Teams and a boardmember of the Ellen Meadows Prosthetic Hand Foundation. “With that in mind, we hopeto start production on the LN-4A hand as soon as possible and to be able to begin givingthem away free of charge to earthquake victims in Haiti and 25 other developing nationsin six months time.” The LN-4A prosthetic hand is an adult-sized version of the currentLN-4 hand, which was created by industrial designer Ernie Meadows as a basic butfunctional artificial hand designed primarily for children. According to the Ellen MeadowsFoundation, thousands of LN-4 hands have been delivered free of charge to amputeesaround the world through partnerships with Rotary Clubs, church and youth groups, andOdyssey Teams’ philanthropic team-building programs for corporations.
“It’s amazing what giving someone a hand, literally giving them a hand, will do,” Hensleysaid. “I’ve heard stories of children and adults who have gone into isolation after losing ahand due to a tragedy. And when they receive a new prosthetic, the light goes on. Theygo from being a shell of a person to being whole again.”
The Odyssey Teams project said that it is currently seeking funding to complete themolds necessary to begin production of the LN-4A prosthetic hand, and the OdysseyTeams Helping Hands for Haiti program is also seeking partner organizations to identifyHaiti earthquake survivors in need of the artificial hands.
For more information, call Lain Hensley at 530.342.1650.
Comment on this news story by sending an e-mail to [email protected]
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prevueonline.net - DESTINATION HOTELS + ODYSSEY TEAMS
file:///C|/...nts/Abbi%20PR/My%20Dropbox/Abbi%20Public%20Relations%20Server/Projects/Odyssey%20Teams/441-destination-hotels-odyssey-teams.html[3/17/2010 10:46:41 AM]
DESTINATION HOTELS + ODYSSEY TEAMSProgressive hotel group + teambuilding company join forces to change the world
Terranea Resort is located in Palos Verdes, south of LA
The following was supplied to Prevue by Todd Demorest, lead facilitator with Odyssey Teams
Business is all about relationships and the ability to create value. The more value that a person, team or businesscan provide—the more opportunities they will have to do so again in the future. Recently, two leaders in theirrespective industries—Destination Hotels & Resorts (DH&R) and Odyssey Teams, Inc.—have created a strategicalliance that increases the level of value they can both offer and deliver to clients. DH&R is known for their luxurious, unique and one-of-a-kind properties. Odyssey Teams, Inc. is known as theinnovator of the community-based philanthropic/CSR teaming events such as Life Cycles (Build Bikes), HelpingHands and Playhouse Challenge programs. Both companies pride themselves on creating the best experiencespossible for their guests that will be valued and remembered for a lifetime. DH&R first learned about Odyssey while Odyssey was delivering a multi-hundred person event at one of theirflagship properties. What they saw (and heard from their clients) was not cheesy, contrived or cookie-cutter.Rather, it was a high quality product that lined up perfectly with the type of rewarding experiences that DH&R'sguests expect. At the same time, DH&R was hearing interesting news from their ‘Affinity Teams’ (cross-functionalteams spread around the country that focus on sharing best practices and supporting each other'sproperties). Many of these teams said that many of their clients/guests were looking for a teambuilding sessionthat was a mark above the standard. Thus the courtship began. Having become DH&R’s exclusive Teaming Company, Odyssey had sent marketing, video links, etc., to DH&R sothey could begin to promote the partnership and offerings to their guests. Quickly DH&R realized their internalteam could best represent Odyssey and support their guests needs if they went through an Odyssey sessionthemselves. In January 2010, the relationship was cemented at DH&R’s newest resort surrounded by 270 degree views of thePacific, the Terranea Resort in Palos Verdes, CA. It was here where Odyssey presented their Helping Hands
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prevueonline.net - DESTINATION HOTELS + ODYSSEY TEAMS
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event at DH&R’s “Partners Showcase” that included 225 pax from the various Affinity Teams. The reviews and results thus far are outstanding. The group was profoundly touched by the value of the sessionat many levels and could see many opportunities for this new relationship to bring even more value to theirguests. Less than two weeks after the program, while listening to the needs of a corporate group customer, a DH&RSales Manager was able to offer Odyssey as a solution. Having spoken of the program from a personal view, theclient saw the potential immediately. The program was delivered a week later, and rave reviews and gratitudefollowed. The Odyssey facilitator of the program met the DH&R Regional Director of Sales &Marketing, who reported all oftheir locations will be leveraging this relationship at every opportunity. Bill John, Odyssey Teams Inc. founder isgrateful for the trust DH&R has in his company and the future of their strategic partnership. Note: At time of publishing, negotiations were taking place for another alliance bringing value to another team in adifferent DH&R region.
There was a time when teambuilding events were held for one reason and one reason only: to have fun. This is no longer the case. Today, concurrent with the trend emerging in virtually all of corporate America, teambuilding activities must show a return on in-vestment or ROI. And with many com-panies reducing staff and expecting them to accomplish more, teamwork and teambuilding have never been more important.
The main premise behind teambuild-ing activities is that the things that happen on the course usually mirror what is happening back in the office.
When looking for the teambuild-ing activity that will work best it’s im-portant to honestly assess the group. What is the group’s physical prowess? Average age? Size? Breakdown of men and women? Any physical limitations?
Outdoor teambuilding courses such as ropes courses have been favored for years and have been used by many with much success. Cooking classes and you-build-it activities are extremely popular. These are teambuilding activi-ties held for a specific purpose.
Bike-building programs not only bring a group together but can change the life of an underprivileged child. Increasingly, teambuilding incorpo-rates donating time and manpower to do good and make a difference in a community in need.
Helping Hands For HaitiTeambuilding strikes the deepest
cord in hearts and minds when it’s
linked to humanitarian efforts, espe-cially following natural disasters when needs take on a special urgency. For ex-ample, helping to rebuild lives through corporate voluntourism programs in New Orleans after Katrina has pro-foundly touched the lives of count-less residents and volunteers alike. Through these efforts, participants not only have served the community but recommitted themselves to their co-workers and their organizations.
Tragically, another, more devastat-ing natural disaster has presented cor-porate groups with more ways to make a difference. Haiti’s massively destruc-tive earthquake crumbled Haiti’s capi-tal city Port-au-Prince and crippled its
Together We Stand
Purposeful Programs That
Build ROI
population. Although cash donations are a chronic need, hands-on helping transcends any other type of giving, truly engaging and moving the spirit.
In the earthquake’s aftermath there were countless injuries that resulted in amputations, creating unimaginable suffering and life-changing disabili-ties. In response, the Ellen Meadows Prosthetic Hand Foundation and Odyssey Teams have partnered to offer a philanthropic teambuilding program
“Helping Hands for Haiti,” in which par-ticipants will build prosthetic hands that will be donated to the injured. A prosthetic of this type would typically cost $3,000, making it unaffordable for the majority of victims.
“From what we’re hearing, there have been so many injuries in which someone’s hand has been crushed and later needed to be amputated, not to mention the amputations necessary because of infections, that we know there will be a huge need for prosthet-ic hands in Haiti,” said Lain Hensley, COO and co-founder of Odyssey Teams Inc. and a board member of the Ellen Meadows Prosthetic Hand Foundation. “With that in mind, we hope to start production on the LN-4A [designed for adults] hand as soon as possible, and to be able to begin giv-ing them away free of charge to earthquake victims in Haiti and 25 other developing nations in six months time.
“It’s amazing what giving someone a hand, literally giving them a hand, will do,” Hensley continued. “I’ve heard stories of children and adults who have gone into isolation after losing a hand due to a tragedy. And when they receive a new pros-thetic, the light goes on. They go from being a shell of a person to being whole again.”
Odyssey Teams (odysseyteams.com) is known for creating the original “Helping Hands” team-
building program through which more than 1,000 children in developing countries have received the smaller LN-4 prosthetic hand to replace hands lost due to land mines, accidents or birth defects.
Blue chip companies that have participated in the Odyssey Teams Helping Hands programs have includ-ed Wells Fargo, Abbott Laboratories and eBay.
Spherion Corporation, a Fort Lau-derdale-based recruiting, staffing, and work force solutions provider, has used the services of Odyssey Teams for years.
“I’ve planned hundreds of bike builds
but Odyssey’s have exceeded any I’ve ever done,” said Dahlton Bennington, CMP, CMM, director of business meet-ing services for Spherion.
A Spherion incentive program for 315 winners and special guests was held last March at the Loews Coronado Bay in San Diego, CA. The company wanted to incorporate a teambuilding program that would be philanthropic as well. It contacted Odyssey Teams about its Helping Hands program.
‘Extraordinary And Humbling’“We were able to build relationships,
foster camaraderie and make a sig-nificant impact on more than 100 chil-
dren’s lives,” said Bennington. “It was extraordinary and hum-bling at the same time.”
Bill John, president of Odyssey Teams, was the facili-tator for the Spherion program. Wooden boxes were in front of each subgroup of six. In each were bags of plastic parts and shiny screws. He asked what they could be for. No one guessed a prosthetic hand.
“When they were told that was what they were making the emotions were overwhelm-
ing,” explained Bennington. “That these little pieces could signifi-cantly impact someone’s life.”
Teambuilding
By Andrea Montello
Bill John, president of Odyssey Teams, addresses Spherion Corporation’s meeting at Loews Coronado Bay, where attendees participated in the philanthropic teambuilding program “Helping Hands,” which donates prosthetic hands to those in need.
Spherion Corporation teams assembled prosthetic hands, which were donated to children who are land-mine victims from Pasto, Columbia. Teams also decorated the wooden boxes that held the plastic parts and screws.
“When they receive a new prosthetic, the light goes on. They go from being a shell of a person to being whole again.”
Lain Hensley, COO, Co-founderOdyssey Teams
Chico, CA
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34 March 2010 • Corporate & Incentive Travel • TheMeetingMagazines.com TheMeetingMagazines.com • Corporate & Incentive Travel • March 2010 35
The group got busy assembling the pieces and decorating the wooden boxes. Those who finished first helped the others.
“It brought everyone together with a common purpose. Odyssey orches-trates incredibly moving programs,” said Bennington.
She is also impressed by the way Odyssey takes the time to understand a company’s goals and objectives.
“Helping Hands is extraordinary. Anyone who has the opportunity should definitely jump on board. It will be well worth the financial outlay for what you get in return. It’s not that expensive as it will define your meeting for your at-tendees and convey your message in a meaningful way.”
The hands the Spherion group con-structed were donated to children who are land-mine victims from Pasto,
Colombia. There has been fighting in this area — the border between Colombia and Ecuador — for years.
Wagons GaloreThe Hyatt Regency Tamaya Resort &
Spa in New Mexico — The Tamaya, mean-ing “a quiet and special place” — is locat-ed on 500 acres on the Pueblo of Santa Ana, adjacent to the Sandia Mountains along the Rio Grande River. Along with its unique cultural environment offering a spectacular collection of Southwestern and Native American art and tribal dance performances, the Tamaya also offers a variety of teambuilding options. Groups can choose from activities such as chili cook-offs, mystery tours, craft car building, strategy games and more. For one local financial services company, a customized community service project was incorporated into their meeting.
The group of 200 was divided into groups of six, and each was given wagon parts, hammers, screwdrivers and paint. Each group assembled and decorated a wagon. The uniquely deco-rated wagons were then donated to PB&J Family Services, a child-abuse prevention agency that serves tens of thousands of children and families throughout central New Mexico.
Green Team QuestTreasure hunts and scavenger hunts
are extremely popular. They have even become high tech with the addition of global positioning equipment. Called geocaching, hidden containers called geocaches are found using GPS devices.
Krass Monroe, a Minneapolis-based law firm, took the concept of a treasure hunt one step further. The firm was looking for a unique teambuilding ac-
tivity that would expand upon its sus-tainability theme initiated by the firm’s Green Team. They contacted Paydirt, a Minneapolis, MN-based company, which helps organizations build sus-tainable strategies and programs that improve environmental performance, establish market differentiation and advance key business objectives.
The event objectives were to encour-age friendly competition among staff, strengthen team member relationships and integrate an environmental theme in interesting and unexpected ways. To meet those goals, Paydirt designed an
“Amazing Race”-style scavenger hunt dubbed “KM Quest” highlighting natu-ral resources and historic landmarks in the Northwoods of McGregor, MN.
“Many of our clients struggle with ways to make environmental steward-
ship engaging and enjoyable. After helping Krass Monroe form a green team earlier in the year, Paydirt was ex-cited to help the firm plan an event that would bring their employees outside for some good old-fashioned fun and competition. The Quest participants had an opportunity to explore the north woods of Minnesota in an unex-pected and often offbeat way. Not only did the attorneys enjoy it, but we had a blast planning it, too,” said Eliza Clark, JD, LEED Accredited Professional and a principal of Paydirt.
Each team was tasked with complet-ing a series of challenges with only a map, camera, vehicle and their team’s skill, dexterity and resourcefulness to support them. Each participant re-ceived a McGregor tourism map that contained all of the information re-
quired for completing the scavenger hunt. However, the clues were de-signed to force the teams to be patient and work together.
The three teams (Team Awesome, the Killer Bees, and the Left-Handed Spatulas) set out for their Quest on a sunny afternoon in late September. All of the teams started at the same retreat location but were then sent to differ-ent second sites. Quest challenge loca-tions included Savanna Portage State Park and the Long Lake Conservation Center, as well as a local “honey wine” tasting winery and ice cream shop.
Teams were also given the option to complete “bonus play” to subtract from their finish time, but were required to verify their completion of bonus tasks by documenting their participation on a digital camera. Once the teams
Three teams from the Minneapolis law firm Krass Monroe competed in an environmentally themed “Amazing Race”-style scavenger hunt dubbed the KM Quest. At the end of the race, participants were offered bonus points for jumping into the lake.
“Attorneys are by their nature very
competitive, and they went at it eagerly and
aggressively. Some of the spots they
had to go to were 20 to 30 miles away.”
Krass Monroe paralegals Sheri Hoistad (left) and Deb Amundson were event organizers and Quest captains the day of the teambuilding challenge.
Phot
os c
ourt
esy
of P
aydi
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36 March 2010 • Corporate & Incentive Travel • TheMeetingMagazines.com TheMeetingMagazines.com • Corporate & Incentive Travel • March 2010 37
© BM
P / PHOTO BY JAMES PORTO
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arrived at the final Quest location (a hammock!), the Quest captains veri-fied their performance and document-ed their final time.
Although the winning team (Team Awesome) was undoubtedly the hap-piest, all of the participants had a great time. Quest participant Shanna Strowbridge noted, “The Quest that Paydirt put together for our firm was not only a great competition but also
valuable for teambuilding. All of the team members had to be involved to help solve the clues and determine the best course to take. Unlike team-building exercises we’ve had in the past that were mostly lecturing by ‘experts’ on how to work together or make the most out of people’s different styles and personalities, our eco-challenge allowed for a real case study in how to evaluate the best person for each task
and to devise mutual ways to succeed at the challenges.”
“Attorneys are by their nature very competitive, and they went at it eager-ly and aggressively,” explained event organizer Deb Amundson, paralegal for Krass Monroe. “Some of the spots they had to go to were 20 to 30 miles away,” said Amundson. “In order to be successful, they had to work together as a team. They had to figure out the
best and fastest ways to get to the des-tinations. At its completion, they had the opportunity to earn extra points for jumping in the lake, and all of them took the plunge.”
Seasonal TeambuildingNot all teambuilding programs need
to be involved or elaborate. Take Rymax Marketing Services, a Pine Brook, NJ-based company with 120 employees.
The company sponsors seasonal team-building exercises to motivate its de-partments to work together.
In July, for example, it celebrates Independence Day with a red, white and blue day. Each department works as a team to show its creativity, and patriotic and Rymax spirit. It also throws a company Fourth of July pic-nic with Simon Sez and a watermelon-eating contest.
She pointed out that it can cost roughly 21/2 times an employee’s salary to replace him or her, so by keeping ev-erybody motivated and happy, costs are reduced. By focusing on team camara-derie, Rymax’s turnover rate has been low and employee morale high.
No matter what the teambuild-ing activity, it must require that the group work together — communicat-ing, trusting, supporting one another, thinking creatively, planning and fol-lowing through in order to succeed. Successful training activities such as these emphasize team problem solving.
When choosing a teambuilding com-pany or consultant, research its track re-cord, educational background and safety record. Some consultants, for example, possess recreation experience but no business or corporate experience.
Think about it, professional sports teams spend 95 percent of their time practicing skills but only five percent actually performing. In the business world, an executive spends 95 percent of his or her time performing. What better way to practice skills than out-side the work environs where business results are not the measure of success?
Executives who have participated in teambuilding programs agree that the end result is a newfound camara-derie that opens new avenues of coop-eration and collaboration back at the office. Taking it a step further, when teambuilding helps to bond an employ-ee with his or her company’s mission (read: brand engagement), the return on investment is a sure bet. C&IT
Culinary competitions remain a teambuilding staple. Here, HealthSouth employees compete in a Chile Cook-off at The Hyatt Regency Tamaya Resort & Spa in New Mexico.
“Helping Hands is extraordinary. ...It will
define your meeting for your attendees and convey your message in
a meaningful way.”
Dahlton Bennington, CMP, CMMDirector Business Meeting Services
Spherion Corporation Fort Lauderdale, FL
Photo courtesy of The Hyatt Regency Tamaya Resort & Spa
38 March 2010 • Corporate & Incentive Travel • TheMeetingMagazines.com
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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Odyssey Teams Inc. is a motivational team building and leadership skills company that is best known for
pioneering the development of a training course focused on philanthropy.[1] Groups from various organizationsand companies including eBay, Wells Fargo, Pfizer, Kinko’s and Hilton Hotels have participated in Odysseytraining sessions that have given away more than 10,000 bikes to at-risk children and have constructed 1,000
prosthetic hands for donation to amputees in developing countries.[2] Odyssey Teams Inc. was founded in 1991and began using philanthropy as a team-building exercise in 2001 with the creation of their Life Cycles programin which participants renew their commitments to their organizations and communities while building free bikes
for deserving children.[3]
^ Davidson, Tyler (January 2010). "A higher Calling" (http://www.meetingsfocus.com/Default.aspx?TabId=136&ArticleID=13148) . Meetings. http://www.meetingsfocus.com/Default.aspx?TabId=136&ArticleID=13148.Retrieved July 23, 2010.
1.
^ Tychonievich, Eliza (January 2009). "Philanthropic Team building Lends a Hand"(http://www.smallmarketmeetings.com/Article.aspx?id=171) . Small Market Meetings.http://www.smallmarketmeetings.com/Article.aspx?id=171. Retrieved July 23, 2010.
2.
^ Tychonievich, Eliza (January 2009). "Philanthropic Team building Lends a Hand"(http://www.smallmarketmeetings.com/Article.aspx?id=171) . Small Market Meetings.http://www.smallmarketmeetings.com/Article.aspx?id=171. Retrieved July 23, 2010.
3.
Tyler Davidson. "A higher Calling" (http://www.meetingsfocus.com/Default.aspx?TabId=136&ArticleID=13148) . http://www.meetingsfocus.com/Default.aspx?TabId=136&ArticleID=13148. Retrieved July23, 2010."Philanthropic Team building Lends a Hand" (http://www.smallmarketmeetings.com/Article.aspx?id=171) .http://www.smallmarketmeetings.com/Article.aspx?id=171. Retrieved July 23, 2010.
http://www.meetingsfocus.com/Default.aspx?TabId=136&ArticleID=13148http://www.entrepreneur.com/magazine/entrepreneur/2009/february/199642.htmlhttp://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2008/06/04/20080604sr-bikes0605-ON.htmlhttp://www.successfulmeetings.com/Event-Planning/Meeting-Planning/Articles/Leaving-a-Community-Footprint/http://www.smallmarketmeetings.com/Article.aspx?id=171http://odysseyteams.com/
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Odyssey_Teams_Inc."
This page was last modified on 11 September 2010 at 00:52.Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms mayapply. See Terms of Use for details.Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.
Odyssey Teams Inc. - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Odyssey_Teams_Inc.
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January 2010
Checking Out - West January 2010A Higher Calling
Current conditions in both the meetings industry and corporate America demand an inspiring break from traditionalteam building.
Chico, Calif.-based Odyssey Teams has attained that higher ground by offering programs ranging from anoft-copied Life Cycles program that has constructed more than 10,000 bikes for deserving children to a HelpingHands build that assembles prosthetic hands for donation to amputees in developing countries.
"Even the internal customer—the participant—is looking at the way their own company is spending money with amore critical eye," says Lain Hensley, COO of Odyssey Teams. "Event planners are in a critical point in that weknow that it will drive the bottom line if our teams are stronger. We know the truth of the market but we have to pointtoward hope.
"You can’t question the value to the market, and the optics are wonderful," Hensley continues. "No one can say weshouldn’t have built a hundred bikes for kids—no one can say that."
Although the leadership team at Odyssey Teams has always been keen on philanthropy—President Bill Johnorganized a running event to fight Lou Gehrig’s Disease more than 20 years ago—the company started off byoffering traditional team-building programs that incorporated balloon towers, paper horses, Flintstones-style cars,paper towers and the like.
"Event planners still do them, but I think, what a waste of potential—all this creativity, energy and enthusiasm, and inthe end the event planners say, "Now we have to throw it all away," Hensley offers. "In the end, instead of uswadding up a paper horse and putting it in a dumpster, why don’t we create something we can use?"
Hensley says Odyssey Teams, which has been in business since 1991, can also customize programs after meetingwith clients to learn about their organizations. Past customers have included eBay, Wells Fargo, Pfizer, Kinko’s andHilton Hotels.
"We have a background as speakers, so we can customize the training outcomes," he says, "but we’re not in thejust-giggle and just-fun business—that’s not us. And I don’t think the market is about that now."
For More Info:
Odyssey Teams(530) 342-1650www.odysseyteams.com
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