Beyond the stage: a retreat to align business operations

For two chilly February days, the entire Operations division of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival (OSF) gathered virtually to meet each other and define improved practices for collaboration and knowledge sharing to benefit the whole organization.

Starting with Silos.

The eight departments reporting to the Managing Director didn’t all know each other or work together frequently. These included: Contracts, Facilities, General & Company Management, IDEA, People & Culture, Safety, Security, and Support Services.

Work completed by departments was often invisible to others in the organization, resulting in redundant or conflicting efforts.

Retreat Goals.

Zahler Design brought together all 39 permanent employees across the eight departments for a portion of the event to meet each other and share an updated training on Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility (IDEA). For many, this was their first chance to attend a business retreat or share their thoughts and ideas with the larger group.

For the rest of the retreat, the 12 Directors, Managers, and Supervisors gathered for shared communication and planning as a cohesive operational unit.

Part of the digital whiteboard ready for group discussion

Themes to explore.

Create connections and reflect together. The first day of the retreat focused on building relationships and sharing collective genius across all of Operations. Managers first introduced themselves, their work, and their contact details to each other before moving into a guided analysis of Bright Spots, Challenges, Needs, and Opportunities for OSF.

Craft a shared purpose. The latter portion of the first day continued with managers and supervisors defining and sharing their department purpose, systems, key timelines, goals, guiding principles, and priorities for the year ahead.

Using a digital whiteboard, definitions and processes emerged with the conversation, creating visual documentation that had never existed before. The teams could see overlaps in shared priorities, with nuance for differing perspectives.

Tame the chaos. After spending the morning of the second day with the all employees, the managers gathered again to visually map key operational processes to support the artistic and production needs of the theatrical season.

A refreshed sense of community.

By the end of the retreat, participants began engaging other employees in conversation about their newly discovered areas of shared interest and concern. Many were not sure what to expect when the retreat began, but by the end were expressing a sense of accomplishment and desire to continue working across department divisions to make the theater an even better place.

The documentation generated was shared with the Board of Directors and the other business areas of the organization to demonstrate the power of collaboratively building supportive workflows.