Over 110 managers from Swanton Services across the UK got together for an inspiring two-day meeting themed around the importance of working together.
The event at Chesford Grange in Coventry included workshops, a mini sports day and presentations from every department.
It all began with a celebration of the year gone by, as Operations Project Director Simon Rook and Group Development Director Noel Davies showcased the new services and businesses acquired in the past 12 months.
Next was a workshop focused on teamwork and communication, where managers could mingle with new colleagues and learn new tools for better working practices.
According to Chief Operating Officer Tom Pick, the afternoon’s events got people showcasing their teamwork talents.
Tom said: “We hosted a mini sports day, which immediately got super competitive.
“We had eight teams doing events like tug of war, building marshmallow and spaghetti towers, blindfolded Pictionary and other weird and wonderful games.
“There were also some wildcards you could play to swap team members or steal people from other teams. Tony Davies, Stuart Healer and Connor Turnbull were particularly popular to steal, and there was a lot of laughter.”
After the exertions of the sports afternoon, everyone retired to get ready for the evening’s entertainment.
After a slap-up meal, there was a disco for those with enough energy to throw shapes on the dancefloor.
The following day, it was back to business and a chance to get fascinating insights into how colleagues work.
Tom explained: “We had presentations from every department, and we’d asked them to show us ‘a day in the life’ of their work.
“There were funny videos from the HR and Learning and Development teams and interesting insights into other departments.
“It was so useful to get a flavour of what the working day looks like to different members of the organisation, and a chance to understand better their challenges and strengths.”
Following a final teamwork session and a buffet, everyone headed home.
Tom said: “I’ve had a lot of feedback from the Managers Meeting with people telling me just how much fun it was and how valuable the workshops and presentations were.
“I want to thank Kat Walsh for being our compere the event, Lucy Williams for providing the balloon arch and brilliant table decorations, and the working group of managers who helped design the day using feedback from last year. Leone Branski also gets a special mention for helping to organise the day.”
“I’ve been told it’ll be difficult to top this year, but we already have a plan to make the Managers Workshop 2024 even better!”
