Working at Lantana: Annual Retreat

March 20, 2017

This blog post is part of a series on the work culture at Lantana. We talk about what makes working here unique – like your first day in the “office” and the perks that make a big difference.

The most memorable event at Lantana is the annual retreat. Lantanans from around the world meet at a single location to match familiar voices with unfamiliar faces.

It’s a time when we connect with peers we may not work with everyday. This concept is foreign for many coworkers sharing office space.

Retreats are about having fun, eating too much, hanging out, reflecting on our past, and planning for our future.

We traveled to Oracle, AZ for our last retreat. We hiked, hosted an employee cocktail competition, sang karaoke, toured an artist commune, explored Biosphere 2 (my personal favorite), and stargazed from a certified dark sky park. You may notice the retreat is not a time for rest.

That’s not to say the retreat is all fun and games. The retreat is a time for growth. You learn more about the company’s internal pieces. Here’s what you can expect on a typical day at the annual Lantana retreat:

Wake up and eat breakfast (the amount of coffee increases each day).
Congregate and listen to department heads present what they do and how they plan to improve.
Present specific processes, cases, or projects.
Break for lunch and midday activities.
Form teams to discuss avenues for improvement, future suggestions, and feedback on new policies and projects.
Present findings from team discussions.
Record main points and develop action plans and goals for future planning.
Enjoy a locally-sourced dinner with coworkers.

Some of my favorite takeaways from Oracle are:

Lantana values feedback from every employee.
The company practices transparency and openess.
greenLantana is alive and well (see Lantana Selects Cool Effects Projects to Offset Carbon Emissions).
Awards night – yes, there’s more…
Arizona is home to at least one tarantula [see picture below].