30 teambuilding
In sailing, teamwork is essential and unavoidable
Sunsail is the world‘s largest sailing holiday company, but from its base at Port Solent in Hampshire, it specialises in on-the-water team building, corporate hospitality, regattas and sailing events. With a matched fleet of 40ft cruiser/racer yachts – it offers the largest one-design fleet in the world. Sue Hughes reports
Team Building Solutions is new from Sunsail, which has redesigned its corporate packages, recognising that organisations have cut costs in the downturn, eschewed past corporate jollies, but still value investing in their workforce in a distinctive way.
Sailing is unique in that it gets people out of the office and into an environment centred on water- based, not land-based, activity – such as the predictable golf, karting or clay-shooting day.
Offering a suite of flexible team building and development solutions designed to improve understanding, performance, and create ‘best in class‘ teams, Sunsail works with a hand-picked group of experts to provide a three-tiered solution for businesses looking to improve or develop teams.
”It appears businesses are looking for a means to jump-start the growth and development of existing or new teams as a cohesive group rather than individuals,” observes Kate Bray, distribution director for Sunsail at its Port Solent headquarters. ”Our combination of programmes allows any organisation, no matter what size, to fully understand how it can work together more effectively, with the opportunity to put learning into practice in the sailing environment, where teamwork is key. Sailing is a powerful platform to achieve this and with packages tailored to different requirements, including bespoke, everyone can get involved, regardless of prior experience.”
Andy Wallace, senior account manager, who went back to the drawing board with colleagues to formulate the three fresh teambuilding options, stresses how much is gained from the entry-level, one-day package: ”This focuses on teamwork and relationship building. Delegates are off land, they can‘t get
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racing cruisers, a matched fleet of 36 Sunsail F40 Yachts (racer/ cruiser yachts made by Beneteau) and Wallace adds: ”We saw an opportunity to get a full racing fleet established on the south coast and have built up regatta participation, but the boats are also ideally suited to teambuilding.”
Yachting is a high-end sport, but aside of the prestige and kudos of big events, Team Building Solutions is getting the Sunsail name out there, both throughout the UK and targeting an international market. It has received very high levels of interest in the three packages, due to providing so much at a competitive price, which it can do because of its strong fleet resource.
Sailing is the ultimate teambuilding activity, providing the perfect platform to help staff improve and excel. Communication plays a key role in successful sailing and team members have the opportunity to showcase their individual talents, which are perhaps not seen in an office environment.
But the bottom line is – sailing is accessible and fun, and digging out hidden talent is an essential part of any successful business in the current climate.
away – and they emerge saying they feel like new people.” The day starts from £125 per person. A one-and-a-half day teambuilding programme, which utilises Insights Discovery and a qualified facilitator, is more about development than initial bonding. Primary colours are used to identify key personality types and teams take part in related challenges and competitive events. Popular with firms across the Solent region and further afield, these start at £315pp.
Wallace admits: ”The beauty of these choices is that despite cutbacks, organisations can affordably utilise professional and facilitated training in a completely unique and enjoyable environment, where teamwork is key and unavoidable.”
The three-day Team Development programme, run in conjunction with Sunsail‘s experienced partners, is aimed at senior leadership. From £550pp, it appeals to blue-chips who want full development from a skipper who has completed the BT Global Challenge. ”They have the time, the staff resource and get more out of it, because they stay here and participate for longer,” adds Wallace.
As Sunsail uses local hotels for those who cannot drive down to Port Solent, it has further cemented its links with nearby businesses and boosted the local economy.
The company has also concentrated on increasing racing business with its fleet of high-performance
THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE – SOLENT & SOUTH CENTRAL – APRIL 2013
Chris Tackaberry, CEO Clinithink, based in London and Bridgend, Wales, congratulated Sunsail for delivering an outstanding leadership team event: ”Our senior team is made up of highly-seasoned and experienced individuals brought together relatively recently to drive our business, a rapidly-growing technology company. The combination of the Insights methodology to gain an understanding of how we can work together more effectively with the opportunity to put that learning into practice in the sailing environment where teamwork is key was extremely powerful.”
Details:
0845-527-1767
www.sunsail.co.uk/team
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