Find out how Invision Communications and Agios Pharmaceuticals supported hurricane relief in Puerto Rico with a charity team building activity.
“Everyone loved the activity, and it aligned very well with Agios’ culture of giving back. It was a fantastic way to start the meeting, and they are already talking about doing something like this again. So, we may have set a pretty big precedent…We’ll see if we can match it next year!”
– Sarah Gregory, Associate Creative Director, InVision Communications
THE CHALLENGE – Supporting hurricane relief in Puerto Rico with a team building activity
Quick Facts:
- A new client planning their first ever National Sales Meeting
- Wanted to kick things off with a charitable team building activity
- Needed a flexible and trustworthy vendor to help them make it happen
InVision Communications specializes in planning meetings and events that are truly engaging and creative.
So, when one of their new clients, Agios Pharmaceuticals, came to them with a special request for their first ever National Sales Meeting, the team at InVision immediately started brainstorming about the possibilities.
“This meeting was going to be the first time they were all getting together, so our client wanted something exciting to help them kick things off,” says Sarah Gregory, Associate Creative Director at InVision Communications. “They wanted it to be fun, but also charitable.”
The client had a specific cause in mind that they wanted to support.
“The hurricane in Puerto Rico had just happened, and their home office had done a campaign to raise money and supplies,” says Sarah. “They thought a charitable activity at the sales meeting would be a great way to piggyback on top of that.”
This was one of the first events that InVision was going to plan for Agios, so Sarah says the pressure was on to make sure it ran smoothly.
“It was really important that this went well for our client,” explains Sarah. “We could have probably attempted to build something ourselves, but we knew that we wanted to get it totally right. This was going to set the tone for the rest of the week, so it had to be planned thoroughly.”
Sarah decided to search for a third-party vendor to help InVision plan the team building portion of the event, but she ran into some challenges.
“A lot of the vendors we reached out to just never got back to us,” Sarah says. “The ones that did said they couldn’t make any changes or adjustments to their programs. They couldn’t adapt it for our group at all.”
Sarah knew that she just needed to find the right partner to make it happen.
“It was really important that this went well for our client…This was going to set the tone for the rest of the week, so it had to be planned thoroughly.
THE SOLUTION – A custom "Puerto Rico Support Mission" activity
Quick Facts:
- A custom version of Military Support Mission to support Puerto Rico hurricane relief
- An on-site professional event coordinator to run the activity
- Coordination with the Puerto Rico Family Response Center to ensure care packages got to those in need
Sarah discovered Outback Team Building & Training, and decided to reach out for a free consultation.
“I had been researching a variety of different vendors when I came across the Outback website,” recalls Sarah. “I had a great conversation with your staff about how you could customize things for us.”
Sarah worked closely with Jordan Menu, an Employee Engagement Consultant, to find the right solution for her client.
“It was great working with Jordan,” says Sarah. “He was very responsive and gave me all the details and sales information I needed. I think he made it easy to sell the idea to the client.”
Jordan informed her that they could customize one of Outback’s existing charity activities, Military Support Mission, and change its focus for Agios.
The new activity, dubbed “Puerto Rico Support Mission,” would get teams competing in different challenges in order to earn supplies and assemble care packages. At the end of the event, they would donate everything to aid the disaster relief efforts in Puerto Rico.
“You provided the right amount of existing structure with the flexibility we needed,” praises Sarah. “It made it really easy for us. And you guys, having so much experience with team building, along with tools like your app, made this such a good fit."
“You provided the right amount of existing structure with the flexibility we needed. It made it really easy for us. And you guys, having so much experience with team building, along with tools like your app, made this such a good fit.
THE RESULTS – A fun experience that directly supported 16 families affected by Hurricane Maria
Quick Facts:
- 16 care packages for families affected by Hurricane Maria
- Enthusiastic feedback from participants who felt truly engaged and excited about making a difference
According to Sarah, the first day of the Agios Pharmaceuticals sales meeting could not have gone better.
“At first, people were really surprised about what was going on,” laughs Sarah. “They expected to go into the room and hear a bunch of presentations for three hours. Instead, they were so excited to do some fun team building and support a great cause.”
In the end, the teams managed to put together 16 care packages for the Puerto Rico Family Response Center. Each package contained much-needed household items, such as hand sanitizer, diapers, socks, and toothbrushes.
“Everyone loved the activity, and it aligned very well with Agios’ culture of giving back,” says Sarah. “It was a fantastic way to start the meeting, and they are already talking about doing something like this again. So, we may have set a pretty big precedent…We’ll see if we can match it next year!”
And best of all, the activity made a real difference for the families living in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria.
“I want to say thank you to Agios for all of your donations,” said Marytza Sanz, a representative from the Puerto Rico Family Response Center. “People from Puerto Rico will really appreciate it. They come here every day, and we will be able to give them help because of all of you. Thank you so much.”
“They expected to go into the room and hear a bunch of presentations for three hours. Instead, they were so excited to do some fun team building and support a great cause.
Support a cause that matters to your team
With a custom charity team building activity, your group can have a big impact on a cause that is important to your organization.
