If you’ve been following along on social, you probably saw a recent experience designed for a group as part of their offsite programming (we called this the Elves Workshop!). The leader of this group continues to impress us because not only does their company have a variety of donation matching and volunteer programs in place, she also makes a conscious effort to incorporate social impact programming whenever possible.
When we think of a leader who puts their money where their mouth is and is intentional with their team’s time, this one is it.
The custom Elves Workshop wasn’t fancy, and it wasn’t complicated (you may have even done something similar in the past), but the execution was thoughtful, and the results made a difference to so many.
Here’s what made it successful:
- The experience was designed as part of an existing meeting. No additional calendar invite and time block needed
- It got the group away from their devices for an hour
- It got people sharing stories and talking about things other than work (it even uncovered some secret gift wrapping skills!)
- It brought pride to the attendees to know that they were part of something positive for their community
- It was tangible, and the impact was immediate. They could touch and feel the difference they were making to families in need, and knew the items were being delivered that day, right there in their community
The group was engaged, they wore elf hats, they laughed, and they wrote holiday cards from the heart to accompany their gift boxes.
Together, we took one of their coffee breaks and made it a time to come together and give back. It doesn’t always have to be an elaborate event, it just needs to be intentional.