Going beyond games: how we hosted a virtual field day

The transition to remote life hasn’t been easy for most people, or most companies. With so many in isolation, we needed to find new ways to connect. Our teams are accustomed to working together and having in-office camaraderie, and it was a second blow when we realized we had to cancel our annual summer onsite and field day.

Typically, our annual field day intersects with our summer onsite, during which we bring all remote employees to the New York headquarters. There's a hackathon for our engineers and a variety of team workshops. The onsite culminates in an annual field day, in which employees are divided into teams to participate in outdoor games and competitions. After crowning one team the winners, we host a happy hour to bring all the employees together and unwind. 

That’s the way it normally works.

Thankfully, with input from our team, help from ZogSports, and the use of Zoom, we were able to create some unique experiences by creating a virtual field day tailored to the challenges of life during COVID-19.

We wanted to dedicate time throughout the workday so people knew this was time that they could take separately from work. It was a way to explore how we could both get people to relax, have fun, but also begin to address some of those challenges we all are facing in 2020.

Our virtual field day was composed of a string of five events that took place over the course of a month. Some were co-hosted by ZogSports, who ran our onsite field days in past years. In addition to traditional games, we also wanted to address the adversity facing the black community, especially at the height of protests in June. People needed answers and didn’t know where to turn, or what questions to ask. We wanted to allow our team members to come together and speak honestly and openly about their experiences. We also aimed to address the unique challenges people may be facing in their adjustment to remote working.

Game time

An obvious necessity during our virtual field day were points-oriented games to encourage employees to have some fun, get a little competitive, and spend some time with colleagues with whom they may not interact in their day-to-day. The games were hosted by ZogSports, who broke us off into teams that banded together for both point-based challenges.

• Scavenger Hunt: The first game was our scavenger hunt, in which the team captains downloaded an app with over 50 tasks on it. Captains shared their screens with their teammates over Zoom and the teams picked which tasks to check off. For example, teams were tasked with finding a book that everyone had in their library, taking a picture where everyone was hidden, or showing the craziest thing they’ve bought since quarantine. These activities gave the team a chance to be a little silly, share their personalities, and move around. A challenge with working from home is that it's sedentary if you allow it to be; this activity, while still at our computers, gave us the chance to get moving.

• Jeopardy: Our next activity was a classic trivia game. Each round had 10 to 15 questions, and the goal was to answer as many as possible in the allotted time. The teams were well divided in terms of ages, races, and genders, so individuals brought different perspectives to the table. It was a great opportunity to learn more about our team members, their interests, and what random knowledge someone may hold.

• Talent Show: We wrapped up the events with our talent show, which was a well-attended event. There were no points involved – the event aimed to give everyone an opportunity to share their talents and interests. There were nine acts that volunteered, and I hosted as my drag persona, Hazel. We had music videos made by parents and their kids, free skating, and a couple of live vocal performances. It was a great opportunity to see everybody in a different light, doing something they love.

Alternative field day events: addressing employee needs

Though most people appreciated the opportunity to relax and play games with their coworkers, we also recognized that with an ongoing pandemic and adversity facing the Black community and people of color during the height of protests against racial injustice, we had a responsibility to provide more extensive resources for our team. We wanted to look at different ways that we could help fill the gaps people were facing in this new remote life.

To kick off our virtual field day, we first hosted a wellness workshop, which discussed how to avoid burnout and offered tools to help during the transition to remote work life. A clinical psychologist spoke to our team about listening to your body, getting sleep, and eating healthier.

“We wanted to look at different ways that we could help fill the gaps people were facing in this new remote life.”

Importantly, one of the great opportunities that we had through ZogSports was to host a diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) workshop on talking about racism. We encouraged Black team members to share and take space, but also invited all team members to share the areas in which they needed help, improvement, or needed to change an opinion. It was a unique opportunity to let everyone unplug from work, but also discuss the issues that are facing us today.

That conversation helped us build our allyship reading list, which includes a number of anti-racism books that are reimbursable to Pager employees. The first book we read from that list in our Pager Book Club was The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander. Hosting this book club discussion during our month of virtual field day events was really impactful, and gave us a way to continue these conversations. When we look at all of the work that needs to be done, the first step is creating spaces for people to speak openly. We want to make sure we continue doing that.

How we continue improving

This event was unique in that it became a great equalizer. Pager has a number of team members that work remotely across the United States and internationally. It was an interesting way to reset and think about what work life is like for a remote Pager employee. Now that we're all in the same boat, we have the opportunity to make sure our remote employees feel a part of the team and have the same access to perks and benefits that our in-office employees do.

We sent a survey to all employees following our virtual field day. The feedback we received showed us that the event was a positive experience for many – 74% of survey respondents rated the event an 8 or higher. Multiple comments said that the DEI workshop was valuable, and that the events were a good mix of informative and fun, but one comment said because of their workload they weren't able to take part in the events. We hope to use this feedback to shape our events in the future. 

We hope to be increasingly intentional with our events. One thing we would like to focus on is ensuring that leadership participates, because it allows teams to see each other in a different light and get to know each other by unwinding together. While there's still more work to be done, our Culture Committee is always taking suggestions from team members and thinking of new ways that we can come together and interact.