A Real Leader Creates Another World For You…

When my former company, LexBlog, was planning to make some major platform updates by early 2015, we knew we’d need help if we hoped to maintain business as usual. To the rescue, Joshua Lynch, LexBlog’s Director of Product Development. He researched and discovered Chris Murray and his team of WordPress experts at Oomph.

I insisted we visit Oomph’s Boston office before getting started. Josh and I like to meet potential business partners in person. I’m happy to report that the combination of Josh’s steady guidance coupled with Oomph’s professionalism, experience and dedication, enabled us to successfully update our WordPress blog installations and migrate those blogs to new hosting at WP Engine in February of this year.

Our trip solidified our relationship with Oomph. At our first meeting over breakfast, Chris and I were talking about leadership and culture at our companies. He shared a story with me that I thought you’d enjoy so I encouraged him to consider writing a guest post. He did. In Chris’ words:

Walt Disney’s Impact

I was at Disney last week with my family. As you may know, the park is constantly undergoing improvement projects but they do a great job concealing the work with nicely designed fencing that incorporates quotes from Walt Disney under the heading “Dream Builders.” One of these quotes really resonated with me and aligns with why our most recent company retreat was such a success and why we’re still feeling the lasting effects of our investment of time and money today.

I don’t want the public to see the world they live in while they’re in the Park. I want them to feel they’re in another world.

–Walt Disney

Three years ago at a quarterly all-company retrospective, I tasked a number of small teams with providing one ‘big idea’ they thought could be relatively easily implemented and have a big impact on the company in some way. One of those big ideas came from two of our best team members. They called for an all-company remote work week.

Our first attempt to implement this in 2013 was a success, but our second “retreat” earlier this year turned out to be life-changing for me, and likely for many on our team.

I am the Founder and CEO of Oomph, a Boston-based digital agency where we work with a phenomenal group of clients to build engaging digital experiences. Day in, day out, we constantly challenge ourselves to do our very best work for our clients. Getting out of the office and cultivating our team is a welcome break from our usual day-to-day client focus.

This year we put a heavy emphasis on getting outside of our element and comfort zone. I wanted the team to forget about the office. Although most of the faces would be familiar, like Walt Disney I wanted them to feel they were in another world.

Make the Location Special

The location is part of the experience, and I can tell you that hosting in a hotel conference center isn’t going to be memorable. It’s too close to resembling the office and very simply, not personal.

We chose a 40 acre estate in Maine for our retreat this past September. It was on a pristine lake with unique houses and plenty of outside space. There was nothing that remotely resembled an office. We also took five days in which to let people soak it all in. Striking the right balance between too much time away from families and the needs of clients, but enough time to settle into the moment, is crucial.

Avoid the Same Old Same Old

We typically do one serious company meeting per quarter. These are helpful and important, but when you’re taking a break as a team, no one wants to hear more formal presentations from the people they hear from all the time. Although I felt compelled to present at the retreat kick-off to set the stage, and also do a close-out session, for the most part I shut up.

Passions Outside of Work Matter

There are lots of flavors of “fun” for different people. And on the ground, every single one of Disney’s “Cast Members” personally contribute to the experience. Embrace your team as cast members of your own retreat. It may seem simple, but having someone tinkering on a grand piano over breakfast adds considerably to the experience. Folks passionate about board games make time after dinner an absolute blast.

Put a Roller Coaster in the Mix

You leave Disney with a favorite ride (Expedition Everest was mine!), and your retreat needs one too. We brought in Eric Kapitulik from The Program. The Program is a leadership development company that works with many of the best sports teams in the country. He and his colleague Tom put our team through some incredible exercises that made everyone re-think what it means to be a great leader, and what it means to be a great teammate.

I don’t want to spoil his entire program for everyone, but the highlight of the retreat was full-on boat races in inflatable whitewater rafts on the lake. Let’s just say there was serious competition and we all finished up very, very wet.

Craft Another World

In the spirit of getting everyone out of their element, we opted to host a formal “jacket and tie” cocktail party and dinner on the terrace. We’re a very casual company, and there was plenty of moaning and groaning about this beforehand. But swapping tee shirts for ties opened a world of new conversations, plenty of humor, and I know for sure we’re all better for it.

Let the Magic Happen

Transplanting your team to another world can be an incredibly special experience. It is so easy for people to get lost in the weeds in the day-to-day at work that sometimes it is hard for a teammate to really rise up and show their talent. I’m lucky to have quite an amazing team and there was magic nearly everywhere. But for me the most special piece of magic was watching a former intern turned newly-hired developer step up and take a leadership role in many of our activities. Previously heads-down in a corner, learning furiously, he showed our entire team a new side of himself, one he may have not seen before either.

Recap

Three months after our retreat, we have embraced so much of what we learned as a team. We have changed up some roles, including this team member’s. We have tweaked our client engagement methodology. We have refined and streamlined our company values of being Driven, Smart, and Personal. And many of the lessons and memories from the retreat have simply become part of our new day-to-day.

Thank you, Chris. Check out Oomph’s top-notch work at oomphinc.com.