Welcome to the second post of Epoch’s Team Series! This blog series will introduce you to the team members of Epoch to get to know them a little better. Since our team is located in different cities across North America, having a strong workplace culture (virtually) is extremely important to us. It helps to boost our team’s morale at the end of each workweek and improves team collaboration. We don’t let distance get in the way of having a connected team.
The Team Series will follow each team member’s event to engage the entire team virtually, using the Epoch platform. Each Friday, a different team member hosts an event to bring the whole team together for some laughs and a good time through the screen. It will also introduce you to some exciting events ideas and best practices of using Epoch to create events for your team for improving workplace culture.
Meet Averil! Averil is on the Sales & Business Development team and is another new addition to our team at Epoch. Learn all about how Averil (a coffee expert) hosted a coffee tasting and social event for the Epoch team - using Epoch!
About the Event
Intro to Averil’s Event ☕️
I decided to host a virtual coffee tasting and social event for the team. I created this event to share my knowledge and passion for coffee with my team. We got to chat about all things coffee while each drinking our favorite kind of coffee. I also sent out Starbucks gift cards to everyone before the event so they could enjoy their favorite Starbucks drink during the event.
Event Creation & Preparing Attendees 🗓
It was super easy to create an event and set the reminders for the event all at once. I really enjoyed being able to focus the majority of my time on the preparation of the event rather than on the admin side of things.
Learnings from Hosting the Event 🌟
From hosting this event for my team, I learned that sharing something you are passionate about is fun for your team to get to know you and your team a bit more. When those who attend your event can truly feel your passion for the topic, it makes them more engaged and enjoy the event even more. It will also spark the attendees to ask questions and get involved in your event.
Another learning for hosting successful events is to send those who have confirmed into your event a gift card or kit before the event happens. Not only will it make employees want to sign up even more for your event if they see they are getting something, they are also more likely to attend the event. Everyone loved receiving the Starbucks gift card I sent and everyone ended up attending my event!
Event Feedback ✅
The Epoch team really enjoyed the event and learning all about coffee. The feedback I received was to dive in deeper about the history and types of coffee. If I were to host this event again I would definitely make it longer so I could talk more about the history and explain the different types of coffee.
What it’s like to Create & Host an Event using Epoch (as an Epoch Team Member) 🎉
The amount of work that goes into creating an event is very time-consuming. Even on top of the already time-consuming tasks of setting manual reminders, tracking attendance, recording orders, and dietary restrictions. Having a platform that takes a big chunk of the manual work off my plate, leaves me time for other tasks, and allows me to focus my energy on creating an awesome experience for my team.
About Epoch’s Remote Culture
Has Epoch’s Team Series helped you understand your team better?
Yes, connecting with my teammates in different time zones and the focus of our meetings not being work-related have been super fun. It is always amazing to see my coworkers share their hobbies and passions.
Do you think engaging with your coworkers socially improves collaboration?
Absolutely, this series had a range of activities for all to enjoy. It brought out the team's playful side and allowed us to connect on a personal level which helps create bonds between different departments and curiosity to learn more about each other.
How has the experience affected your motivation and engagement with your work?
I feel more connected with my team as I now know about their hobbies, pets and personalities. Epoch creates hallway chats that I wouldn’t normally get from working from home and fills the gap between teammates that I wouldn’t normally get to connect with due to time zones.
