3 Lessons Learned From Our HQ Planning Retreat and Working Lab!

The commonsku team from all over North America gathered for our annual mid-year planning session in Toronto but did so with a twist: by building a working lab!

To inspire collaboration and explore more ideas for platform enhancements, each team member was tasked with building a commonsku presentation for a mock client, submitting orders to Connected Suppliers, and then sharing those suggestions at our HQ planning session. Three perspectives were gained through our experience:

1. Client Perspective: Nothing builds empathy like stepping into your client’s shoes. Our team felt the pressure of putting together projects under deadline with the additional challenge of building a multi-product campaign for a purpose-driven project (we used our own client creative brief –an employee onboarding kit– that included three products from three different suppliers). Navigating the platform, sourcing products, building presentations, and submitting sales orders to suppliers gave everyone a well-rounded glimpse into the client experience. 

2. Industry Perspective: Promo seems deceptively simple. But as every industry pro knows, it’s hella complex. For those brand new to our team, understanding the complicated supply chain and the broader industry is crucial to building future-thinking solutions for our clients. 

3. User Perspectives: Since everyone on the team has a unique professional expertise –from developers to finance to marketing and more– each department has a distinct viewpoint. It’s one thing to get feedback from your client success team (who works with customers all day long) but it’s another entirely to get platform enhancements from the finance department! Bringing these perspectives together for a round of creative brainstorming sparked new ideas for a stronger client experience. 

But it wasn’t all platform work! A commonsku gathering wouldn’t be complete without some strategic planning and creative play woven in to make our team stronger.

From improve-led exercises to a team-building scavenger hunt around downtown Toronto, we worked the commonsku way and put into practice one of our most sacred company values: making work [fun and] delightful!

Want to learn more about the only platform solution built by promo for promo? Take a quick spin with our team here!