Thirty years into our work as a company, Digital Wave has had various company-wide gatherings, such as a getaway to the Pocono Mountains for team building and problem-solving, in-house discussions about entering new markets where our collective passion lies, and a big ol’ meet ‘n’ greet in Chesapeake, VA. with sack races and BBQ when we merged with Antech Systems, Inc.

Gathering for Work and for Fun

Last spring, however, a new tradition began. The lockdown and isolation of COVID increased everyone’s appreciation for in-person connection, and new employees had joined our team that we’d never met. It was Digital Wave’s first time in years to be in the same room together. Even the bosses agreed it was valuable enough to make it an annual event.

So this May, we made it happen again, sandwiched between active project timelines and busy personal spring schedules. Digital Wavers from Virginia, Indiana, Michigan, Colorado, Arizona, and Texas joined together in our Huntingdon Valley, PA offices for a second year of camaraderie and collaboration. Building on trust and good will from last year, we packed two solid days with sessions including cultural humility and conflict management training (thanks to Jinada Rochelle LLC and GDL Insight), in-depth conversations about processes and documentation between teams, ethical use of AI, the future of eLearning, and group and individual photography sessions (credits to Daniel Moyer).

When we weren’t in session, we devoured delicious food (a la the Be Well Bakery & Cafe, Jules Thin Crust, catering by Jency Durand, and Provecho Mexican Grill), took spontaneous walk breaks around the park, laughed ridiculously around a witchy-colored fire pit, settled down for a mid-afternoon bliss-out meditation (led by Dhuni Yoga’s Michelle Synnesvedt), and even honed our ax throwing skills without hurting ourselves or each other.

Strengthening our Vision… and our Warm Fuzzies

After so much socializing and team building, can you believe that the top request for next year was to do more work together?

Digital Wave has settled comfortably into a remote culture. Many of us don’t ever go to an office outside our own homes, and we rarely travel to see clients anymore. We are proud of our low carbon footprint and effective use of online meetings, chat, and a myriad of collaborative tools. But what a treat it is to share space, even for a few days, with the people we work so closely with, and to discover, and re-discover, how much we not only like each other, but care about working together to help our clients.