January 15, 2012 | Read Time: 1 minute
Organization: KaBoom (Washington)
Number of employees: 80
The group’s approach: KaBoom works hard to create a playful organizational culture—think monthly peanut-butter-and-jelly-sandwich days and an annual Pumpkin Palooza at Halloween—both as a reflection of its mission to promote playground building and as a way to build camaraderie across the nonprofit and motivate employees. At the start of each year, the charity holds its Play Academy, a three-day retreat that brings employees from the group’s three offices together for learning, planning, and team building.
Why: The event gives employees in different departments and locations the opportunity to build relationships they can draw on in their work, and it gives senior managers a chance to discuss new projects with the full staff, says Kerryn Kent, a director at KaBoom: “It’s setting the tone for the year.”
Results: Bringing everyone in the organization together to talk about its work inspires employees and helps them understand how their jobs contribute to the larger mission, says Ms. Kent. “Someone may not be out in the field building the playgrounds or out having conversations with our funding partners,” she says, “but it’s important for everyone to know that even their role has impact on that conversation and on that playground build.”
