Team Practices Group/Planning offsites

How to use this page
'''WMF STAFF: As soon as you start to plan an offsite, contact the Admin team. They are experts with a lot of these issues, and can take care of a lot of it for you!'''

An offsite typically requires planning and execution by multiple people. Early on, it's helpful to clearly identify who will be responsible for which aspects. Then, if you are someone responsible for some aspect of an offsite, you can focus on the sections that are relevant to you. This page is on a public wiki, as we believe the information could be helpful to anyone in any organization planning an offsite. However, it also includes details specific to the WMF.

Over time, as this page grows, it is likely to be split into multiple pages. Some major sections might become their own sub-page, and some of the bullet points will almost certainly become pages of their own, full of details. Whenever possible, we should link to existing information, rather than duplicating it here.

After every offsite, any new lessons learned should be added here, so future offsites can benefit.

Why?

 * What is the primary purpose/goal of this offsite? What are secondary goals?
 * Examples: Integrating new team members; launching a new initiative; planning for the next year/quarter; gaining shared understanding of the team vision, mission, roadmap, etc.; resolve simmering issues; face-time for remotees; stepping away from the work environment to gain perspective; general "teamy-ness".

Who?

 * Who will be responsible for logistics (venue, supplies, transportation)?
 * Who will be responsible for planning the content (goals, session formats)?
 * Who will be responsible for facilitating the sessions? Note-taking?
 * Who from the team should be invited?
 * Should anyone outside the team be invited?
 * Should local Wikimedians (who aren't directly relevant) be invited to some sessions, since the travel cost will be minimal?

When?

 * Avoid conflicts with other Wikimedia events (Wikimania, All-hands)
 * Avoid major holidays
 * Try to avoid the end of the quarter (late-March, late-June, late-September, late-December)
 * (If the location is set) Check for conflicts with major events in that area at that time (e.g. The Olympics)
 * How long should the event be? Should it consist of fully-structured days, or half-structured/half-unstructured?
 * Everyone should arrive in town at least the night before (ideally the afternoon before)
 * Facilitators should arrive even earlier, if possible, to check out the site and make final arrangements
 * If at all possible, don't have people leave before the event actually ends

Where (in the world)?

 * Consider cost and time (including connections) for all participants
 * Consider time zone differences for all participants
 * Cell phone coverage (especially data)
 * (If the dates are set) Check for conflicts with major events in that area at that time (e.g. The Olympics)

Where (venue)?
WMF STAFF: Reminder: The admin department should be able to take care of most of this for you!
 * Consider the ground transportation options between the airport and the facilities
 * Ensure good wi-fi access, including range, potential port filtering, and enough bandwidth
 * Check for meeting room(s) of appropriate size, auditoriums,
 * A meeting room that is too large can have poor acoustics or can feel uncomfortable
 * Do you need whiteboards, walls to stick things on?
 * What type of A/V equipment do you need, including cables and adapters?
 * Get guidance from experts as needed (for example, within the WMF, there is an OIT group)
 * Keeping the same room(s) for the whole events has logistical advantages
 * Can stick things to the wall and come back to them
 * Psychological comfort
 * Avoids needing to set up a new space, confirm whiteboards and A/V, move materials between rooms
 * If possible, visit the site, and ideally bring a teammate with you
 * Bring a list of questions
 * You might need to make a deposit (for the WMF, work with Director of Administration on payment options)
 * Check reviews of the venue on sites like Yelp
 * Ask co-workers for recommendations and reviews of venues they have used in the past
 * Questions to consider regarding costs, contracts, and policies:
 * What is the flat cost to book the venue?
 * What is their booking policy? Is there a deposit needed or a payment plan available?
 * What is the cancellation policy?
 * What are the payment terms? (WMF accounting asks for net 30)
 * How late can you cancel without incurring any costs?
 * How much notice must the site have to give you without incurring any costs?
 * What are the insurance requirements?
 * Does the venue have a list of required suppliers?
 * Has the venue ever held an event like yours before?
 * Have the space provide you with references and really find out how others’ experiences with the location have been
 * Catering
 * What are the catering costs?
 * Is there an on-site caterer, or will you have to find an independent one?
 * Is there a fee for using an independent caterer?
 * Does the venue have its own wait staff?
 * How many employees will be available on the day of your event?
 * What are the venue’s A/V capabilities?
 * If there is no A/V production then you should inquire about costs of set-up. Big productions can take a lot of time to put in place and you may have to rent the for more than just the event day.
 * What is the wifi bandwidth, is it enough for the number of participants? (Ask OIT if you have additional technical questions)
 * How will this venue support our remote staff for this event?
 * How much production will you need to provide?
 * Is there a freight elevator or way to load-in/load-out any equipment that has to be brought to the space?
 * [Factor in load-out cost for money and time. Something that takes a long time to put up will most likely take some time to take down.]
 * Is there an area to store equipment out of sight of guests?
 * What are the best ways to get to and from the venue location?
 * Are there parking facilities, cab and public transportation options?
 * Are there any on-site amenities? Is there an on-site computer or printer? Is there an office for you to work out of?

Where (lodging)?

 * Check for convenient access between lodging and the meeting facility
 * Ensure good wi-fi access, including range, potential port filtering, and enough bandwidth

Getting ready
See Workshop Planning

Session format/structure

 * Options include pre-planned, semi-structured, unconference, unstructured
 * Reserve at least a few hours near the end of the event to handle topics that arise unexpectedly during the event


 * Plan the entire event, but assume the plan will likely be changed during the event
 * Facilitator(s) should plan to spend 1-2 hours preparing for every hour of facilitated session time


 * Generating ideas
 * "World Cafe" method, using rotating small groups, then sharing back to the whole group
 * Prioritizing
 * Consider grouping options into an Urgent/Important matrix

Meals
WMF STAFF: An admin person should be able to handle this
 * Various beverages are essential to different people (coffee, tea, cold water, soda, etc.)
 * Having meals brought into the venue can save 2+ hours each day
 * Mid-morning and mid-afternoon snacks can help keep people engaged
 * Consider all the dietary restrictions (vegetarian, gluten-free, kosher, etc.)

Coordination and communication

 * The offsite "steering committee" should meet weekly or biweekly before the event (e.g. owner, logistics person, faciliator(s))
 * Create a shared google drive folder for the event, to hold meeting notes, photos, etc.
 * If etherpads are used for meeting notes, create a central list containing links to all of them
 * Set up a roster spreadsheet, listing attendees, flight arrival/departure, airport-hotel transport
 * Invite all attendees to a dedicated google hangout chat, to allow communication via smartphones
 * Create a list of needed supplies, with as much detail as necessary (e.g. chisel-point pens or 3x5" post-its)

Recreation/team-building/unstructured time

 * Focus on taking advantage of the team all being in one place
 * Unstructured (e.g. "hacking") time can be both productive and great for team-building; the value of informal conversations tends to be under-valued
 * Team recreation (e.g. sightseeing) can be excellent for team-building
 * Consider scheduling recreation at the start of the offsite (to break the ice) or in the middle (to break up the monotony)
 * Half-day structured, half-day unstructured has worked well for several teams
 * Unstructured time the first morning can be a nice way to allow jet-lagged people to wake up

On-site preparation

 * Facilitator should create a daily "punchlist" of materials that need to be prepared for that day
 * Ideally prepare each day's materials during the previous afternoon/evening

Facilitation techniques
Use a "talking stick" to be clear who is speaking (everyone else should be listening)
 * An alternative is to use a rubber ball, and the speaker bounces it to the next speaker when they finish

Retrospectives

 * At the end of each day, hold a retrospective with attendees
 * Each evening, facilitators should go over the retrospective notes
 * Each evening, facilitators should also have their own "faciliretro" to look for opportunities for improvement that the attendees might not have noticed or mentioned
 * Each morning, go over the previous day's retro notes with attendees, pointing out what will be changed as a result
 * Have a whole-event retrospective near the end of the last day

After it's over

 * Allocate (substantial) time to consolidate the notes, publish any public artifacts, follow up on action items, etc.
 * Post any great ideas from retrospectives back to this page