Media:  Smart Meetings (7/08)
Team building for a good cause
By Zach Cohuteau

Take the concept of company teambuilding and mix it with philanthropic activities that make a community and the world a better place, and what have you got?  A new wave of company outings that might be taking corporate group bonding to a whole new level. 

In those unsteady economic times, the opportunity is greater than ever for groups willing to step up and help those in need.  Whether assembling bicycles for disadvantaged children, constructing a prosthetic limb for an amputee, or building a home for struggling family, planners and attendees today can gain as much as they give via “meetings that give back.” 
Odyssey Teams based in Chico, California with an office in San Francisco, is a company dedicated to such philanthropic group activities.  Their team-building workshops are completely focused on bringing meaning to people’s work, and offer a variety of charitable activities for groups wanting to go beyond helping each other through a ropes course.  In Odyssey’s “Life Cycles” program, for example, groups can build bikes for children during a fixes amount of time – with both attendees and the children surprised by the presentation.

“It was very, very emotional,” says DeeAna Breckenridge, director of human resources and training for Modesto, California’s Valley First Credit Union, who recently had her company’s staff of about 110 participate in the Life Cycles program for their annual team-building function.  Valley First rented a large meeting space, and Odyssey Teams provided the parts for about 22 bicycles; teams of five worked together to build the bikes, which Breckenridge says took about one hour.  Parts and tools were intentionally mixed up a bit, to make teams communicate smoothly with other teams.  Very few of the participants had any idea of the final purpose of the bike-building, although Breckenridge and a few senior executives were clued in. 

“It was amazing to see the staff coming together, and knowing the gratification they were going to feel,” she says.  “When the kids came out (an were given the bikes), it as great to see the, and the emotion of our staff members.  The children’s eyes lit up and they had huge smiles on their faces – it was Christmas.”

Each group had a designated child to give their bike to and interact with – like helping them put on their helmet and teaching them to use the lock.  Odyssey also had several staff members on hand to help and techs from a local bicycles shop to safety-check the cycles. 

Breckenridge has normally organized more typical team gatherings in the past for the company, including sit-down seminars, and says the general feedback she heard about the Life Cycles program was “this was the best event ever.”  She adds that the “facilitating skills, and dedication and focus” of the Odyssey staff was the icing on the cake.

“Helping Odyssey programs provide a tangible impact that lasts beyond the experience of the activity itself,” says Bill John, Odyssey Teams’ president.  “This ‘real’ outcome to the ‘simulation’ inspires a deeper level of participation and engagement that takes much longer to attain in other events and activities.  People want more value for their time spent at work and are looking for something unique and relevant that connects to things beyond the workplace.  When they can understand what’s in it for them while providing something that is “in it for others,” everything else begins to connect in the workplace and outside the workplace.”

Other Odyssey programs that can hit a homer for your group include “Helping Hands,” where groups of three construct prosthetic hands for landmine victims and other amputees around the world.  Through Odyssey’s relationship with Rotary Club, these hands are delivered at no cots to the recipients – and allow participants to make a profound impact on needy and deserving people all over the planet. 

The Playhouse Project is yet another way the organization helps groups make a difference while bonding as a team.  Parties of 10 cooperate to build playhouses for youth shelters, hospitals and schools.  The process allows groups to strategize their plan of attack, build communication and inspire each other’s creativity.  Participants in the Playhouse Project and Odyssey’s other endeavors improve their relationship while making positive change on their community and even the world.  What’s not to like?

“This is the convergence of training and philanthropy that has not been harnessed until now,’ John says.  “It cannot be copied by companies that just provide the typical scavenger hunt but have no experience in training.  It is also difficult for philanthropic organization to overlay training and curriculum for the same reason.  This is the sweet spot that we have developed that makes perfect sense to our client.” 

And their client list is both lengthy and impressive.  Odyssey Teams customers include tech companies like Dell, Google, Microsoft and Yahoo; financial giants such as American Express, Merrill Lynch and Wells Fargo; hospitality firms such as Hilton and Marriott; and many other groups that have bonded while bettering the world. 

Benefits and advantages to “giving back” programs go beyond team building and philanthropy, however, John says, “The main differences (from ropes-course type of team building) are accessibility, tangible, impact and tie.  Helping Odyssey programs – Life Cycles, Helping Hands and The Playhouse Project – are all designed to be conducted at the meeting site or venue.  More traditional team-building events, including ropes courses often require going off-site.  This saves travel time ad associated costs.” 

Laurel Coote, president of The Laureli Group, Inc., a Torrance, California based event management and marketing company, says, “Standing side-by-side with your coworker on your boss and you work to improve another’s life is life-changing.”  TLGI recently launched a division that is entirely focused on group functions that help others – Meetings That Give Back.  The newly created division has already had one major event – a capital campaign kick-off for a children’s hospital that included volunteers from a number of organizations – and interest has been strong from other groups looking to make a difference.

“Events that ‘give back’ leave participants different than when they arrived,” she says.  “They know with certainty that the time they gave has made a significant impact o the life of another, and has left the world better than the way in which it was found.  They can carry that with them forever.”

Coote is most energized about the impact and accessibility of such charitable team building exercises.  “What I find most exciting about his concept is that it changes the world, a little at a time.  Any size company can participate – any kind of organization can contribute; and each and every effort is worthwhile. Change doesn’t have to be earth shattering – reading to a child who never receives that gift is life-changing for that child, and can also be for the reader.  Giving an elderly person help with modernizing their home or making it ADA-compatible can alter their existence beyond measure.”

She adds that the greatest gift people can give is their own time, interest and effort.  “Offering oneself, especially when one isn’t sure they have what it takes to make that difference, is the best.  Because inside each of us lies someone who can make a difference.  And one day, we may need someone to do that for us.”