“Quick, use the wire to disconnect the alarm before the jeweller returns!” says one Genesis Research team member, nervously checking her watch.
“But what about these symbols,” says another. “We need to decipher these before we can break into the glass display cases.”
“The note says we need a key! We need a key!” pipes up a panicky voice from the other side of the room as he notices there’s only five minutes left before the police arrive.
“I’ve got it!” Someone cries triumphantly… “Now, where’s the lock?”
No, this wasn’t a scene from a new reality TV show, ‘Burglars do the funniest things’, but instead the culmination of a team-building event as Genesis Research’s UK-based team took on an escape room in Newcastle.
It was just one element of a two-day team-building programme that took place in July this year, designed to provide both our Newcastle-based team and other UK colleagues the opportunity to come together for some fun team-building activities and personal development.
The event began at our Newcastle office with an introductory talk by Head of EU Client Management Stephen Ralston, and Senior HR Business Partner Ceri Liddell, the designer and coordinator of the programme.
After this, the 20+ attendees were split into groups, and each was set the challenge of completing a jigsaw puzzle. Little did they know that several pieces from their set had been given to other teams! Everyone had to work together.
The afternoon was spent playing a very competitive (but mostly skill-free!) game of indoor golf before the day finished off with a restaurant meal and an evening out together.
The second day saw each team member being presented with a personality test and learning about DiSC®, a personal assessment tool that’s used by more than one million people every year to help improve teamwork, communication, and productivity in the workplace. The acronym stands for the four main personality profiles described in the model: Dominance, Influence, Steadiness, and Conscientiousness. After the task, several attendees commented they’d definitely be applying the lessons learnt to their relationships at work!
The two-day programme culminated with the team once again being split into groups, this time to tackle the puzzles, codes, and conundrums at an escape room experience in the centre of Newcastle. Each group took on a different challenge: Volatile Laboratories, The Attic, Three Bears, and The Heist (the burglary scenario described above).
The whole event was a great success, with attendees delighted to have been able to spend time with one another outside a normal work situation.
“It’s great to be part of a company that puts value on personal development training, and getting to know your colleagues,” said Senior Scientist Clare Willis. “Through the DISC/Insights training, I feel like I understand the people I work with better, and I think our working relationships will benefit from the training.
“Also, I really appreciated having the time to talk to and have fun with my colleagues, whether it was at the golf, the escape room, during our shared lunchtimes, or the meal out together. It was fantastic!”
We are always in search of the right people to join our team, both in the UK and US, so please take the time to look at the Genesis Research Group career opportunities you’ll find at www.genesisrg.com or email us at recruiting@genesisrg.com.
