How to Build Retreats that Increase Employee Engagement
It’s Summer in the PNW, the sweet and all too fleeting days where the sun lights up our outdoor playgrounds and we can finally enjoy afterwork and weekend activities not in the dark, clouds or rain… for the most part. While employees are savoring every off the clock moment, this time of year also hosts an opportune moment for teams to retreat – gathering around BBQs, bonfires or books, summer retreats can bring teams together and increase employee engagement.
The PointNorth team just returned from Camp PointNorth – our bi-annual retreat filled with laughs around a beach bonfire, a little competitive scavenger hunt and connection over thinking preferences. What it wasn’t filled with? analyzing charts and graphs, reviewing decks filled with policy and procedure, or strategy mapping.
While we have hosted retreats with those elements, we aimed to achieve one key goal at Camp PointNorth 2025: increased employee engagement.
We know engaged employees feel better and perform better. Today, just 32% of U.S. employees are engaged in their work – a challenge organizations cannot afford to ignore.
Employee engagement as a KPI
Gallup defines employee engagement as the emotional commitment to the organization's goals—measured in means of feeling valued, having opportunities to learn, having meaningful relationships at work and other elements that promote interest in organizational success.
How does this track to an organization’s KPI’s? Latest data from Gallup shows that about 1 in 3 U.S. employees feel connected to their organization’s mission or encouraged to grow. What’s the cost of those who feel disengaged? Nearly $2 trillion in lost productivity.
When employees are engaged, teams experience 78% less absenteeism, 70% higher employee wellbeing, 14% higher productivity, 51% less turnover for low-turnover organizations, and 18% higher sales productivity – all of which result in a 23% increase in profitability.
Employee engagement is a critical lever for an organization to control for positive, measurable, outcomes.
Retreats as a catalyst for engagement
Retreats offer the space for teams to gather, connect and learn – increasing employee engagement. They can help build trust and relationships as people are more likely to collaborate when they know each other. Retreats create space for connections that day-to-day work doesn’t and help to break down silos. They reinforce mission and values with a shared physical environment to reconnect with the organization’s why. Trusting relationships, cross-functional collaboration and connection to mission are indicators of engagement and high-performing teams.
High impact retreats
At PointNorth, we jam on retreats and often function as retreat conductors for our clients – building seamless, fun and purposeful connections. We also recognize the amount of thought, resources and sweat that goes into making a high impact retreat. Whether you’re considering a small and short gathering, or a larger and longer retreat here are a couple of considerations for planning high impact retreats that encourage employee engagement:
Clarify your desired outcomes – are you interested in connection and engagement, planning and strategy alignment, recognition and celebration, learning and growth or visioning and voice? Whatever the outcome(s) may be, identify those from the beginning to design a high impact retreat experience.
Anchor retreat planning in engagement – regardless of the outcomes, consider how programming is advancing positive outcomes for engagement. What will the experience of the participants be and how will they feel engaged? Take a look at Gallups 12 engagement factors to consider how your retreat planning aligns with engagement outcomes.
Balance structured programming and unstructured connection time – curate an agenda that allows for structured programming aligned with your intended outcomes and also has planned unstructured connection time. At Camp PointNorth we had structured activities around thinking preferences, a team scavenger hunt and sharing some personal flexes while balancing unstructured planned time to connect on the beach, enjoy meals together and participate in an optional physical activity.
Ensure psychological safety – this includes strategies like sharing the agenda and expectations in advance, leaders model openness and vulnerability, there are inclusive structures that mix up workplace power dynamics, there is active listening and shared respect and there is a balance between transparency and care, allowing for people to engage at the levels they feel comfortable.
Follow up post retreat – share gratitude and outcomes of the retreat, capturing actions that carry momentum back into daily work. Consider creating a mechanism for retreat feedback, like a survey, where participants are able to share feedback and help identify curiosities moving forward.
Measuring success
Measuring your investment in time together is valuable. Teams can look at pre and post retreat surveys that include elements of Gallups engagement factors to measure engagement outcomes. You can also look for shifts in team sentiment, collaboration and general performance metrics. Success stories and anecdotes shared in regular team meetings can underscore the momentum of retreat and engagement outcomes as well.
Engagement can erode if people feel heard during a retreat and then ignored when back in office. Acting on feedback collected, transparently communicating next steps and showing how input influenced decisions are critical actions for sustained employee engagement.
Retreats aren’t just perks; they are strategic investments in building employee engagement that results in real ROI.
Interested in planning a retreat that leaves your team feeling more engaged and results in better business? We’d love to connect!