I always find that with these little retreats, you get out of them what the group is willing to put into them.

There’s an old saying in data processing: “garbage in, garbage out”. When it comes to conferences, it can be re-written as: “dickheads in, dickheads out”. Send a bunch of idiots to a team-building conference and you get back a team of idiots. Certainly some conferences are better than others, and as big bruv pijts out their quality is inversely proportional to their use of quasi-words like “learnings”. But the real measure of value here is whether the people picked to go have got the junket because they’re simply entitled by virtue of position, or whether they have anything to contribute.

gd:

Usually a good opportunity to get pissed shag the office bike and or watch the boss do likewise.

Not if it’s a NZ First party conference it isn’t. You’d hear the hip replacements popping all over the hotel.

It does sometimes reveal another side of people you work with when they are aware from the workplace.

I have heard of the world synergy, I put it in the same class as those other useless new age words like “wellness” and “learnings”.

People who use them are to be avoided at all costs.

For you to suggest that everybody must attend with the goal of agreeing with everything the facilitator says is asking them to leave their brains at home in a jar.
It is one of the worst example of the group mentality and works against the basic human nature to question what you are being told (fed)

Big Bruv, I did not say that everyone must agree with what is being said, I said that everyone should attend wanting to get the most out of them as possible. Every heard of the word synergy?

As for the “different attitude” remark, I would suggest (as I stated) that if some one turned up with the attitude that it was a waste of money, then that would be a bad attitude, not just a different one as they will only make a half arsed attitude at any activity or planning session and end up making everyone else wish that person had just stayed at home.

BTW, if a facilitator is spoon feeding the group then it is not a group planning session its more of a lecture.

Having been to a few of these things I have an intense dislike of those who accuse others of having a “bad attitude”, it is usually not a “bad attitude” that these people have simply a different attitude.

For you to suggest that everybody must attend with the goal of agreeing with everything the facilitator says is asking them to leave their brains at home in a jar.
It is one of the worst example of the group mentality and works against the basic human nature to question what you are being told (fed)

If someone can’t work as part of a team in a team job at their place of work then perhaps their employment sholuld be reconsidered.

I am surprised at you, these type of corporate jaunts are always a complete waste of time and ultimately a complete waste of money.
They are usually facilitated by an individual who uses phrases like “going forward” and the god awful term “learnings”.

As a general rule avoid any event or conference that insists on having a “team bonding” session, I am constantly amazed at the poor judgment of corporates and middle managers (no doubt intent on justifying their positions) who are sucked in buy the sharks selling the idea of these “team bonding” sessions , they are a waste of time in the corporate world and an even bigger waste of time in the political world