Finally Face-to-Face at the Blanquarterly
After almost two years of virtual interaction through screens, Blanconians finally gathered together in person at Blanco’s first live event since the onslaught of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Blanquarterly was held on a farm in the East of Holland and welcomed colleagues from all Blanco offices, including Ukraine and Belgium.
The team event revolved around a combination of getting to know each other, knowledge sharing, Blanco quizzes and team building activities. Since the Blanco team grew continuously throughout the pandemic, this was the first opportunity for many to meet each other in real life. Blanconians connected through team building activities that challenged them to work in groups and utilise diverse skills. The event also introduced many to an uncommon new skill: shooting with a bow and arrow.
Bernadette Wijnings (co-CEO): “The Blanquarterly was a real pleasure. Magic really happens when people get together again. In the morning, we spent time realigning on strategy and giving updates on the team and the company. In the afternoon, we did some competitive games – the drive to win was big, but the joy of being together even larger. I’m already looking forward to the next edition!”
Diana van de Poll (Account Manager): “We had to wait for a long time, but the day finally arrived. It was great fun to finally meet and talk to each other live instead of via Zoom screen sessions. We were lucky with the weather and were full of spirit for the different activities in our Blanco hoodies. It was a nice day and, for me personally, the first big step in further integration with Blanco. On to the next Blanquarterly!”
Esther Wien (Delivery & Requirements Expert): “The Blanquarterly was a packed day, after which we were all on the same page. The presentations were interesting, the archery was cool, but what I liked most was finally seeing each other in person after months of video calling. More than ever, I feel like I am part of an amazing team.”
Matthijs ten Ham (Product & Customer Support / Product Owner): ‘’It was very refreshing and energising to see a majority of Blanconians packed in one room together. Finally, some business- and non-business-related real-life interactions after mostly digital encounters for such a long time. Seeing a smile face-to-face is so much more valuable than the pixel version via Zoom. To me, it felt like the Blanco isles were merging and hopefully, we can continue this process in our organisation as we need this to keep our plane flying high. I’m looking forward to the second edition of the Blanquarterly!’’
