Spatial Networks 2017 All Hands Week recap

Q: What did the staff do on Monday?

On Monday, the staff played a game of Fun Facts where they all wrote something interesting about themselves on a small piece of paper, which was then folded and placed in a bowl. One by one, each fact was read aloud and they all guessed who they thought it was about.

Q: What did the staff do on Thursday?

On Thursday, the staff held their first annual SNI banquet on the rooftop of Station House. The party-planning committee went all out with a DJ, a photo booth, a delicious buffet of enchiladas and fajitas, and a gorgeous SNI-themed cake. TQ gave a heartfelt speech about the future of Spatial Networks and the importance of teamwork.

We just concluded our 2017 All Hands week, a semi-annual event where every Spatial Networks employee meets up at the company’s headquarters in St. Petersburg, Florida for a fast-paced week of projects, teamwork, and planning for the future.

Being our first All Hands since Fulcrum merged back into its parent company, Spatial Networks, it was great to have the whole SNI family together to reconnect and assess our collective plans for growth.

The week was both busy and fun, filled with lots of team-building activities — both inside and outside of the office — and food. Lots and lots of food.

2017 All Hands Recap

Monday

Walking into an office full of new voices and energy Monday morning was exciting. Several new employees have joined the staff since our last All Hands week, so we took the opportunity to get to know everyone a little better.

After a delicious breakfast from Mickey’s Cafe, we played a game of Fun Facts, where we all wrote something interesting about ourselves on a small piece of paper, which was then folded and placed in a bowl. One by one, each fact was read aloud and we all guessed who we thought it was about.

Customer Support Specialist Alex Helms won the game, but we all learned a lot about our co-workers! For example, we learned that:

One of our engineers owns 11 bicycles
One of our intelligence analysts was voted homecoming queen in high school
Danger, Thunder, and Lightning are the middle names of the children of one of our engineers

Monday evening, much of the group hopped across the street to Proper, a barbecue restaurant near the office for dinner, and then to a local watering hole. A handful stayed out until the wee hours of the morning to catch up.

Tuesday

On Tuesday, the staff gathered in the “dev pit” to talk about this year’s accomplishments and next year’s goals. (The “dev pit” is the room where our developers do most of their work, and it’s hardly a pit! It’s actually a large room with couches and a nice view of some of St. Petersburg’s most historic buildings.)

We ended the day with our first-ever AMA (ask me anything) featuring CEO Tony Quartararo, aka TQ. TQ graciously answered a wide range of questions from an eager audience. He discussed Spatial Networks’ past and future, shared stories from his travels, and gave tips for dining abroad (bring Pepto). He has logged over 1 million miles on just one airline!

Wednesday

Hats off to Kelli Conlin, our IT Manager, for planning a fun Wednesday. After a filling lunch of tacos and burrito bowls, the staff broke into 7 teams to build and race robots.

Creative Director Tim Campbell, Marketing Director RJ Jacques, and Professional Services Manager Bryan McBride won medals for the fastest robot (which won the race by approximately 100 miles). Director of Finance Sherry Murphy, HR Generalist Meagan Earley, Designer Caleb Sanderson, and GIS Data Manager Todd Pollard also won medals for their team’s robot (named SNI Warrior), which was named best designed.

After the races, the team gathered in our kitchen to eat birthday cake (in honor of the three staff members with October birthdays)!

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Thursday

Thursday evening, we held our first annual SNI banquet on the rooftop of Station House. The party-planning committee went all out with a DJ, a photo booth, a delicious buffet of enchiladas and fajitas, and a gorgeous SNI-themed cake.

The party included an awards ceremony that had the team in tears (with laughter). Some highlights:

Integration Engineer Joe Larson won “Mr. Congeniality”
HR Director Stephanie Bartenope won “Utility Player”
TQ won “Most Likely to Tweet About this Award” (Guess what? He did!)

Friday

We said our goodbyes Friday as all hands week came to a close – but not before getting takeout from our favorite Vietnamese restaurant, La V Fusion and squeezing in a group photo op.

2017 All Hands takeaways

In between all the fun and camaraderie, much was accomplished. Staff from each department saw firsthand what their colleagues do and met with senior management. Together, they celebrated recent victories, addressed future challenges, and planned for the months ahead.

“I believe this has been a vitally productive week for everyone to get a true glimpse of SNI’s vision and potential,” said President Jason Jones.

We ended All Hands week a stronger, more focused team with a solid foundation and lofty goals. Big things are ahead for Spatial Networks — bring on 2018!

About the author

Fulcrum is a field inspection management platform built to streamline safety and quality processes, field operations, and asset inspections, especially for mobile teams.