Business Style: March

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On Your Mark, Get Set... Regroup

by Jeanne Winnick Brennan and Carol McCain

Every organization needs to periodically regroup, check its position, and stay the course or plot a new one. However, that doesn’t mean the corporate retreat or annual meeting has to inflict needless pain. Put some panache into your planning for a successful outcome.

Not Those Ropes Again
You don’t have to make your group jump through hoops or scale cliffs to enhance its interaction. There’s a lot to be said for just increasing communication in a less-harried setting. The good news is that executive retreats don’t really have to entail swinging from ropes to test compatibility and leadership credentials. Company retreats can be great opportunities for networking with the department down the hall or learning more about anticipated changes in your field or industry.
    Worried about the cost? With proper advance planning, a focused agenda, the right attendees and an appropriate setting, a company retreat for even one or two days can produce results and stay within the budget. To ensure the retreat’s success, it is critical to set the agenda well in advance.  Get participants’ input, and let them know what you will expect from them. Be sure to allow agenda time for new business items not previously listed.

Out of Site, Out of Mind
Office personnel and management staff all need new inspiration. A tried-and-true recipe to invigorate most groups is the off-site retreat. On-site retreats have a poor success rate. Too many interruptions, too many excuses to take phone calls, too many reasons to not give the meeting your full attention can all throw it off track. Off-site meetings often promote the “big picture” perspective that’s being sought.
    Off-site can mean overnight or just nearby with staff traveling home each night after a dinner to wrap up the day’s discussions. For example, down on the Delta at the river’s edge and only 25 minutes from downtown Sacramento, is the historic Grand Island Mansion in Walnut Grove (916) 775-1705.  In only minutes, you’ve traveled to an elegant estate from another era — a world away from today’s fast business pace.
    Built in 1917, the architectural excellence of the Italian Renaissance-style villa can inspire attendees with its gracious atmosphere. If you choose to arrive by boat at the mansion’s private dock, the trip will be longer, but it’s a great way to start the group activity. The amenities include an English hunt lounge and bar with its huge hearth that promotes a private, club-like setting. The meeting rooms have fireplaces, and there is a charming, state-of-the-art theater, a bowling lane, billiard room, swimming pool, basketball court, and an assortment of rooms and suites.
    “For weekends, we’re booked up with weddings until 2007,” says sales coordinator Brenda Saiers. “However, we’re well-suited for private business meetings Mondays through Thursdays.”
     If the location you select is more regional, such as Napa or San Francisco, send the staff off mid-afternoon and give each person equal accommodations. Do not skimp by forcing people to double up. After drinks and dinner, be sure to keep it strictly social: Play darts, pool or cards; this is an evening for fun and conversation.
     If you select a nearby hotel, you can give staff the option of spending the night or returning home, but the dinner social should include everyone.
    Often January and February can be an excellent time to secure a hotel or country inn and negotiate a good price when occupancy may be low. A brief mid-week retreat can be ideal, with a dinner preceding the all-day meeting and then back to the office the following day. Begin your meeting with breakfast, a mid-morning break to allow staff to return calls or answer their emails, then lunch, followed with mid-afternoon refreshments. Conclude with another dinner or group activity.

Make It an Event
Hunt Drouin, owner of Capital Event Management in Sacramento, often provides meeting site-selection services. If it’s going to be a hard-working session, don’t choose a theme park. There is too much that can distract. Drouin’s company won’t set up a ropes course for you, but they will provide team-building exercises with a specific theme such as the 2006 Olympics or offer multimedia presentations in a game-show format that reflects your corporate culture.
    “We strive to take care of the logistics that help the client reach the goals and objectives of their meeting or event,” says Drouin. “The right location is important, and we can help make it a fun event, as well as useful.”
    For out-of-town meetings, Drouin likes to steer clients to Jackson in the Gold Country or to small wineries or inns such as Villa Toscano in Plymouth, south of Placerville. These facilities offer secluded atmospheres. Participants shift from their meetings to a tasting room and then to the evening dinner. In the Sacramento area, to get that out-of-the-way feeling, he often suggests the new Lions Gate Hotel & Conference Center at the McClellan Business Park. “It’s quiet, private; and many people, even in this area, haven’t seen it yet,” says Drouin.
    At times, it can be useful to hire a motivational speaker, futurist or trainer to get the group thinking in a different mode. Lilly Walters, owner of Amazing Motivational Keynote Speakers, offers suggestions on how to hire people to move your retreat forward. Trainers, in particular, often help to get the group’s creative juices flowing. There are dozens of topics that can be covered by an effective trainer, such as business ethics, protocol, manners and new sales strategies.
    What you put into the retreat will come back to you proportionately with your effort. Next year, your senior staff will be clamoring to attend. 

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