Run your team bonding and strategy meet at a beach villa in Goa

When I left Dubai and packed my metaphorical bindle on a one-way ticket to Goa, I did not know what to expect. Fresh out of college, I knew a conventional career path was not for me. I strongly desired to contribute to something I cared for. But I didn’t know what shape that would take.

That’s when build3 came into the picture. After going through their website a year ago, I jumped at the opportunity to intern with them. A year later, I’m a full-time employee at the organization, and I handle the communications at build3 and growth for our new business vertical, cohub :)

I was quite green when I entered the organization, and words like quarterly meet made as much sense as pineapple on pizza (Don’t even try).

For my first quarterly at the organisation, we stayed at a mini eco-village called Khama Khetna in the south of Goa. (this tested how committed we were to living sustainably; some people did not use the washroom for 3 days, lol)

There’s a reason why the tagline I gave for the quarterly stuck (I called it “A well-calibrated kick in the butt”). For new folks like myself, it helped me get on the same page as everyone in the organisation. I understood the challenges of each department and the direction in which build3 wanted to forge ahead.

For folks who have been around the block before, it’s kind of like renewing your marriage vows. You reiterate your reasons for joining the company and think strategically about the direction you want to take your respective departments.

And thats what a good quarterly is all about. We are often stuck in the weeds during regular work days and can’t see past our most immediate task. A well-executed quarterly meeting allows the team to zoom out and see the bigger picture; see if we are making a dent toward achieving our BHAG (Big Hairy Audacious Goal, more on this later). It also offers space for reflection and boosts team camaraderie.

The benefits of a great quarterly are undeniable. So, I have a proposition for you, especially for startups/organisations on a budget.

We want to offer a slice of the Goa experience to folks who want to plug in their quarterly retreat at our beach villa (The blue villa) through our cohub program. With it, you have access to

• Programming to Rejuvenate and bond with your team

• Work stations

• Meeting rooms

• Lounges

• Community of founders and vetted mentors

• Unrestricted beach access

• Organic coffee lab

Also, if this is your first time running quarterly meets, we would be happy to help you run a successful quarterly. We have run tons of them in the past.

For reference, here is how we run our quarterly strategy and team bonding meets

1) We begin our quarterly by channeling our inner yogi first. We begin our quarterly with a 30-minute follow-along meditation session to help everyone zone in and focus on the day’s activities.

2) This is followed by crowd-sourcing the rules for our quarterly; this is an agreed-upon list of rules that the team adheres to help set the rhythm of the meeting. For example, stuff like no phones on the table, keeping our goal in mind, respecting people’s viewpoints, etc.

3) Review the Vision Tracker of the Organisation (VTO) and Big Hairy Audacious Goal (BHAG). Evolution is the only constant in life, and this also extends to the vision of a company. As the company undergoes a metamorphosis and new business verticals get added, the quarterly provides everyone time to review the company’s vision to see if it makes sense. Syncing on the vision is important to know where you are going and provides you with a common language that your team can use.

build3’s BHAG is to “empower 100k founders to build impactful startups benefiting the mind, body, and earth.” This is build3’s Northstar; everything we do at the company helps us achieve this.

4) Popcorn — Highlights of the past quarter: As the name suggests, everyone quickly shouts out anything noteworthy that happened in the previous quarter. We put it down on a site called Mentimeter and we get a beautiful wordle like this :) We end up with a snapshot of what happened in the previous quarter.

5) Renewing our vows to ourselves and build3: Everyone has a different reason for joining build3; this portion of the quarterly helps us reflect on those reasons. This section also includes reflections on your work and the changes you wish to make in yourself. Lastly, we write down our individual goals and suggest a common theme for the quarter. This portion of the quarterly is writing intensive. Here is a template for the same.

6) Read each other’s reflection notes. This section is important since it helps celebrate team members’ achievements and empathise with each other’s struggles. There is also a broad consensus on what the theme of the quarter will be.

7) Set the quarterly theme as a group: After reading everyone’s reflections and suggestions for the quarterly theme, the group decides to vote on the themes they like the best. After a bit of wordsmithing, the final theme of the quarter gets decided.

Here is the current theme at build3

“All 3 businesses (cohub, founders circle, accelerator) have launched; the early steps are critical, let’s be thoughtful and make them count. Let’s recognise that lasting change comes through consistent efforts made over a good amount of time. Ensure that all the departmental NPSs are above 80 at the end of this quarter and have a clear path to profitability.

We have added material value to the journey of 127/100,000 founders so far. Let’s increase that number significantly (reach 254/100,000) across product lines in the coming quarter.”

8) Fun team bonding activities — Time for fun after a hectic quarterly meeting. Not much needs to be said here.

So if you feel like Goa is calling and would like to plan your next team bonding and strategy meet at cohub Goa, please click here.

(Written by Elton Coelho)