Collaboration and celebration in Oxford - The Bright Network Offsite 2022!
Building a great team that enjoys collaborating together is a key mission of ours at Bright Network. That’s why we recently got the entire Bright Network team together in Oxford for our annual off-site!
Team members based in London, Edinburgh, Germany and even Abu Dhabi came together for our fantastic two-day event which included collaborative strategy workshops, fantastic keynote speakers and fun, outdoor activities like zorbing and archery.
"My main takeaway from the off-site was what a great company culture Bright Network has!"
Events like this are a critical part of maintaining a strong sense of culture and collaboration amongst our fast-growing team, not to mention a great chance to celebrate our wins together!
We caught up with four team members who were attending their first ever Bright Network offsite: Charlotte Slocombe (Community Executive), Diksha Babbar (Events Marketing Intern), Daria Vormfenne (Content Marketing Intern - Germany) and Iain Sandison (Training Operations Executive - Edinburgh), to hear their thoughts on the event.
So, how was your first ever Bright Network off-site?
DARIA: I had a great time! As someone who works remotely from Germany, I think the biggest highlight was definitely meeting my colleagues in person for the first time. I got to know people during the workshops as well as the social activities, which was so important! I also loved being a tourist and getting to see a new city in the UK that I’d never visited before - Oxford is so beautiful!
CHARLOTTE: My first off-site was fantastic. One massive highlight was hearing from our tech team when they presented the innovative concept of tech hackathons to the business. Some of the ideas were AMAZING! It made me realise just how creative everyone in the team is. They come up with some fantastic ideas and it made me really appreciate how talented my colleagues are! They’ve all been employed for a reason and they’re incredible.
DIKSHA: I'm with Charlotte - for me, one of the major highlights of the whole off-site was the collaborative workshops with people from different teams. They allowed me to get a deeper understanding of the business, its strategy and its culture. The whole event was a perfect mix of collaboration and celebration of our achievements!
CHARLOTTE: I also have to mention another highlight of the offsite was seeing James, Bright Network’s founder and CEO, getting stuck in with Zorbing. I particularly enjoyed a heated battle between James, our International Expansion Director Ben, and our Performance Marketing Lead Alex all knocking each other over and looking like they were having a fantastic time.
"Nothing beats an in-person event for building up connections with others!"
Why do you think off-sites like this are so important for Bright Network?
IAIN: As someone who works primarily remotely in Edinburgh, off-sites like this are so important to me as a point of contact to everyone else in the business. While we have all grown to appreciate how working remotely can bring its own range of benefits, nothing beats an in-person event for build up connections with others.
DARIA: Yeah, I’d agree with Iain. The offsite is a chance for everyone to feel like part of the team, especially if you don’t usually see your colleagues face to face. Even though people at Bright Network are really good at welcoming you even if you work mostly from home (in Germany, in my case!), it does make a huge difference to meet co-workers and spend some time with them during workshops and social activities.
CHARLOTTE: I think offsites are really important for inclusivity. The team is expanding so much at the moment, and at times it can be hard to keep track of who’s who and which teams people are in. But if you’re sitting next to someone during a strategy session or dinner, you will naturally talk to them, learn about them, find out more about their work and their life. This is particularly relevant now that we’re becoming an international company. It was lovely to finally meet Daria, who lives in Germany, to have a proper face-to-face conversation with her after so many Zoom calls!
"The whole event was a perfect mix of collaboration and celebration."
What were the main takeaways of the off-site for you?
DIKSHA: My main takeaway from the two days in Oxford is that culture is the foundation of Bright Network and that upholding our values is so important as we grow and as our future strategy develops.
IAIN: That inspiration is everywhere - from the fantastic keynote speech about entrepreneurship and culture by our external speaker Priya Lakhani, to hearing about the great projects some of our teams are working on, to the beautiful city of Oxford. Inspiration really is everywhere!
DARIA: For me it was what a great culture Bright Network has as a company. I’m so grateful that everyone was really welcoming, and I am really happy to have met so many great new colleagues since joining the business.
"Events like this are so important for inclusivity"
What advice would you give someone joining Bright Network in the future to make the most of their first off-site?
DIKSHA: My advice would be to use this opportunity to get to know other team members and their roles. This is also a fantastic opportunity to put your ideas forward which can then contribute positively to the company’s growth.
CHARLOTTE: As a socially anxious person, I appreciate how social events like offsites might be a cause of stress for some people. But don’t worry, there are many ways you can get involved - and free drinks at the end of the day to look forward to! Don’t be scared to get stuck in! Also - always be prepared and bring a swimming costume JUST IN CASE the hotel has a pool (spoiler alert - it did, and I had a lovely time!)
IAIN: Don’t be scared to reach out and make connections! Speak to anyone and everyone. There’s something about the people at Bright Network that make it so easy to relax and bring your authentic self -- even if you have never had direct connection with someone!
Growing and maintaining our fantastic culture through events like our off-site are of paramount importance at Bright Network. We regularly run business-wide social events to get together to collaborate on strategy, and celebrate our wins as a team!
Sound like something you’re interested in being a part of? Check all of our vacancies below!