Team Week

At the end of every quarter, the whole company comes together to spend a week at our main office in Stuttgart, otherwise known as Team Week. This time is dedicated to in-person connections, but also to company-wide alignment and planning.

Here we’ll break down the ins and outs of Team Week, and you’ll see why it’s a fundamental characteristic of the way that K15t works.

The Transformation with Remote Work

A few years back, K15t was a company primarily working from the office, boasting a lively culture. Back then, there were only a handful of remote team members. Since then we’ve wholeheartedly embraced the concept of remote work. However, we felt like a very important aspect was missing- our culture.

The first Team Week was held virtually, and even so, it brought tremendous benefits to the company. You could feel an instant change in morale. It was great to see some friendly faces and connect about work. So we scratched our heads and thought, “Hm, let’s do this more often…”

Since the first virtual Team Week, it has evolved into a quarterly in-person event for everyone to look forward to. The culture is alive and well at K15t, whether you’re working remotely or from the office every day.

A Deeper Look

So what does Team Week really do for us? It brings us together. As a company, we need to regularly align and connect in order to stay on track and not progress in different directions. Team week is also to build relationships, focus on personal development, and take a break from the regular work routine.

"In an age of hybrid work, we should remember the importance of in-person interaction for a healthy team. Team week provides the perfect opportunity for that!"

- Umer Sohail

What’s Happening at Team Week?

The office is always buzzing during Team Week, and how could it not be? It’s exciting to reconnect with wonderful people.

Team Alignment and Knowledge Sharing

• Opening Keynote: To start the week off, our CEO, Stefan Kleineikenscheidt, delivers a motivating speech that reinforces K15t's core values. General updates from the coordination team and important news are also shared.

• Quarterly Demos: Each team showcases their progress over the past few months, highlighting successful strategies and lessons learned. These presentations are prepared by each team in advance.

• Barcamps or "Unconference": Informal and spontaneous meetings where knowledge-sharing takes center stage. Anyone can host a barcamp session, and everyone is welcome to join discussions on a wide range of topics. They don’t need to be prepared presentations, rather anyone can just start chatting about a topic that they feel passionate about.

• Planning: On the last day of Team Week, teams present their goals and plans for the upcoming quarter, which aligns everyone's focus and ignites inspiration for the following months. These presentations are prepared in the weeks leading up to Team Week.

• Retro: The final gathering that gives everyone the opportunity to provide feedback on Team Week, both positive and negative. We learn from our mistakes, so it’s safe to fail sometimes.

Connections and Culture

Since it can’t be all work and no play, here are some ways that we bond at K15t:

• Health Sessions: Workshops focused on mental and physical well-being, offering options like crossfit, midday yoga, and webinars on workplace mental health.

• Team's Choice Dinner/Activity: Each team selects an activity or restaurant to spend an evening together, sponsored by the company.

• After-Work Gatherings: Self-organized group activities, including game nights, clothing swaps, movie theater outings, and community volunteering.

Morale-Boosting Events

While everyone is already in Stuttgart anyways, we host our company events at the end of our Team Weeks. These include:

• Friends and Family Party (Summer): A local celebration in Stuttgart, providing an opportunity to conclude the week with colleagues, friends, and family.

• Company Outing (Fall): An invitation for all colleagues to enjoy a weekend getaway together.

• Christmas Dinner Celebration (Winter): A festive event to close out the year, accompanied by a week-long break from work.

What We’ve Learned

It’s good to keep in mind that this concept won’t work with all types of companies. But, with several years having gone by since our first official Team Week, we’ve learned that it creates a perfect balance between alignment and bonding, and is exactly what our company needs to be a successful group of remotees and office regulars.

We’ve also gathered that the concept of Team Week continues to evolve as demands change, and that’s okay! For example, we used to hit the ground running on Monday, but we gathered that it’s too stressful for colleagues who just traveled. So, we adjusted.

We’re constantly learning, growing, and improving. What we know for sure is, it’s pretty motivating to have so many strong minds in the same place. Team Week may not look like this for every company, but this is how we do it at K15t.