Wednesday, December 13, 2006

Bonding, Building, Beaches and Blackjack in the Bahamas


Well, the MAVERICK Public Relations team is back from our annual offsite a bit more relaxed, enlightened and definitely hung over!

Every year, I plan a retreat from the office with the entire staff in tow. This year the MAVERICK crew was put on two planes and we headed south to sunny (and very windy) Bahamas for four days.

The retreat included a full day PR workshop and presentations from various staff members, group activities and our “Campaign of the Year” presentations. We added an “amazing race” element, which brought the entire hotel and its staff into play. We have an ultra-competitive bunch so thankfully, there were no injuries to speak of.

Retreats in recent years have included destinations like Hockley Valley and the Niagara region but our most recent voyage marks the second time the MAVERICKS headed to the Bahamas. Why? It’s a pilgrimage reserved for those years that are punctuated by exceptionally hard work, strong revenue, surpassing goals and keeping the MAVERICK culture alive and well. It was money, time and energy well spent.

Other than the full day of work, everyone enjoyed three days of beach and poolside lounging, shopping and of course, making much-needed deposits at the Atlantis Casino. This picture was taken at the Atlantis Casino, a number of MAVERICKS are MIA, no doubt at the bar.

Some of us spotted celebrities (Bahamas International Film Festival -- BIFF -- was on at the time) while others danced up a storm at the nearby nightclub until the early morning sunrise.

Personally, it was the best offsite ever. We all needed to blow off a little steam, bond as a team and sit back and be proud of our accomplishments over the past year.

Now, onwards to 2007 … where shall we go next year?

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Julie,
It was definitely a great offsite and a chance to bond together as a group, celebrate the year, and look towards 2007. I'm already packing for next year's!

Anonymous said...

Julie,
What a treat!
Although we didn't have much luck at the tables (well, really no luck at all), I couldn't have asked for a better time. Thanks for everything!

David Jones said...

Will you adopt me?

Anonymous said...

Julie,
I have attended all but one of our offsites and this one by far surpassed the others, thanks again for an amazing few days,we didn't bring any money home just lots of great memories which at the end of the day is worth more. Yet another great MAVERICK experience. Steph and I are going to set up a PR shop there! Looking forward to an equally great 2007.

Anonymous said...

This was my fifth retreat with MAVERICK and without a doubt it was the best for team building, bonding and reinforcing the culture that makes MAVERICK the best the PR firm in Canada. I am looking forward to 2007. Thanks Julie!

Chris Wood said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Chris Wood said...

Nice shot! What you can't see from that vantage point is the gaggle of onlookers who stopped to check us out. If there was a nicer and better looking bunch of people in Bahamas that weekend, I didn't see them!

A great time that I'm looking forward to repeating next year!

Anonymous said...

Blackjack in the Bahamas? Does it get any better?! If only my company had this kind of stuff! Hope you all appreciate the treats.

Anonymous said...

I’ve always been sceptical about gambling. At University friends did a lot in the casinos in the city and lost a load of cash to some dodgy people and places. But eventually a friend said “Play online casino”, and I agreed to give it a go (after about four hours and debating the risks). So I signed up and played my first game of online casino blackjack, I lost but it was fun! Kept playing and was lucky enough to break even until I got the hang of it!
Has anybody got any tips or any success stories?