How PebblePost Completed 2 Months of Problem-Solving Work in 2 Hours

When it comes to a company meetup, no one wants to zombie-walk from session to session. But if there's no schedule at all, nothing gets done.

It's all about finding a happy medium.

John Germinario, the Head of People at PebblePost, knows from his 15+ years in HR that the right company event empowers your staff as workers and as people.

Today, John shares how PebblePost gets that done.

How In-Person Co-Working Benefits Companies

According to John, remote workers tend to drift apart from each other about 4-6 months after the last time they got together. That drift is the road to misunderstandings and less productive teams.

An Atlassian study found that an in-person team event gives workers, on average, a 27% increase in feelings of connection. They also learned that 98% of executives agree that location of teams doesn't matter – it's how that team works together.

John wanted a way to foster strong connections when he gets everyone together, which is why he implemented an approach to team gatherings that he calls "running the business." Picture: a massive ballroom where coworkers just do their work as usual in the same room.

He thinks that when you gather everyone together, you should be simulating a high-energy coworking environment instead of shuttling everyone into meetings. It's a method that sits in the middle between expensive quarterly off-sites and virtual team-building.

Building Your Annual Gathering

Here's how he puts together a gathering that's just structured enough to keep everyone moving, but not so structured that it gets in the way of relationship-building. The process takes about 8 months (in this example, John works from September to April, but you can work this backward from your event).

Step 1: Lock Down Logistics 8 Months Out

"We start that planning in September," John says. "My goal is to always have a location, a budget, and a date locked in before Thanksgiving."

That budget factors in each person, including their hotel, flight, per diem, and ground transportation. Travel criteria is important too. Consider factors like whether you're looking for an airport within 45 minutes of your event or if you need to aim for direct flights.

Step 2: Design the Hybrid Schedule Structure

"Give people a morning or afternoon of all-company content," John suggests. Then, for the time that isn't devoted to company presentations, "Let them do their day jobs. Let them meet with teams they don't normally meet with."

For example: Schedule all-hands content from 9:30am-12:30pm, then set aside 1:30pm-5pm as "run the business" time.

John also builds in 90-minute gaps between work and evening events to let people rest and recalibrate, so they're not going into a relationship-building dinner with their work brains turned on.

Step 3: Collaborate on Content with the C-Suite

As a one-person HR team who's building an in-person meeting schedule, John needs to stay close to all the leaders for event topics. That way, the meetings are full of the most important information, delivered well. Sessions should focus on vision, product roadmap, and market positioning – that's how you get everyone aligned.

Also consider the value that can come from an expert outside perspective. When John brought in external speakers who spoke on topics tied to the company's goals, for example, he saw a 95% approval rating from employees.

Step 4: Take Care of Your Employees' Happiness

With all the logistics sorted out, it's time to plan a great experience. John's suggestion? Make sure you have great food. It's one of the most important things.

He suggests 90-minute breakfast windows with full hot options, plus free-flowing coffee and snacks during sessions.

He'll also bring a peer-voted award ceremony to the final dinner so workers get some recognition after their work.

What this boils down to is treating your employees like adults, not children. Give them room to breathe, and let them feel like they're navigating their own day instead of being pushed through mandatory hoops.

What Effective Events Can Do For You

How did John's approach help PebblePost? During the event, John noted, "We did 2 months' worth of work in 2 hours."

That's not a typo. When they brought cross-functional teams together, their problem-solving skyrocketed.

Afterward, John turned toward the workers to hear how they could improve for the next meeting, asking about every session.

Out of the feedback, there were some great signs:

• 98% of attendees rated the event 4 or 5 out of 5
• 91% responded to the survey (and responses weren't required)

When you bring teams together for a mixture of company sessions and in-person coworking, the next few months can look like a busier, louder Slack; fewer meetings now that async goes smoother; and higher retention.

Successful company meetups strike the perfect balance between structured all-hands content and unstructured "run the business" collaboration time – and that means getting work done and building relationships too. The right event can strengthen remote teams and improve their output for months after.