The A-team back together again

At Ariad, holding regular standups, continuous communication and virtual coffee meetings are routine ways to keep up with teammates who are located elsewhere. We implement different asynchronous communication tools which encourage feedback and connection. While these activities have always been part of Ariad's culture, we fondly remembered a time where we would get together often for live team building events... and in 2022, all employees from Almería, Madrid and Brussels were finally able to meet again in person--and we celebrated this in a big way!

What did we do in 2022?

There is probably no better place to meet: where the sun is always shining, where you can cool off in the sea and where you can find tapas bars on every corner. How fortunate that our main operational office is located in Almeria, in beautiful Andalusia.

A-team members from Madrid and Brussels arrived early to grab some tapas and some Z's before the big event. The next morning, our colleagues from all 3 locations met in our sunny Almería office - the joy was huge to see everyone again. Some new colleagues met each other in person for the first time, despite knowing each other well from many online meetings. Our event committee had festively decorated the office the day before and prepared the personalized team jerseys for the A-team.
 

We started the day in the office with our Townhall, where all business units update each other on the latest happenings, what goals have been achieved and what topics are on the agenda for the next 6 weeks. Townhalls are a common part of life at Ariad, although we usually log on from our different offices (or our homes offices) so holding one together live is a treat. We also ran a practical workshop on "Expressing yourself in the most powerful way" held by our Managing Partner Jeroen Geleyn. Our team learned how to increase credibility and energy, and how to inspire and convince people to take action on their ideas.

After we shot new team pictures together with the photographer, we headed for the center of Almería: a city scavengar hunt. The A-team was divided into groups and each one had to solve different missions within a limited time -- giving photo evidence, of course. The most amusing shots were probably taken while singing a song by the Beatles in front of the John Lennon statue. Afterwards we all met at the beach to have a drink together at the beach promenade, to cool off in the sea or play volleyball - of course, representing Ariad in our team jerseys.

In the evening, the long-awaited gala was on the program at a beach restaurant in Almería's neighboring town of Aguadulce. We typically rock the casual side of business casual, but in keeping with the dress code "cocktail", the stars of Ariad appeared in suits, patent leather shoes, blazers, cocktail dresses and high heels - what a sight! Throughout the delicious 3-course menu, we played games and rotated through tables and conversation. At the end of the evening a DJ provided the right atmosphere and we ended the night with dancing and a few drinks at the bar.

The team building event in June 2022 allowed the entire Ariad team to get to know each other on a different level and build a foundation of trust. We leaned on our values, our roadmap, and literally each other, in the case of the scavenger hunt challenges. We can't wait to continue building, and see what the future brings.