Hi there,

NY, LA, SF… Where is everyone exactly? 

Today we explore the importance of ensuring your XFN off-site dates work for you – not against you.

It’s free. It’s easy. And it significantly reduces project risk.

Remote Octopus recommends proactively identifying and clearly communicating your team off-site dates with cross-functional teams.

Remote teams often meet several times a year in person to collaborate. Sometimes these off-sites are team-specific and not the entire company. It can be tough to keep track of who is meeting where and when.

Maybe Product is in New York in May but then Engineering is in LA in December while leaders from both of those teams are in San Francisco in June. 

It sounds like a riddle. But it’s usually all written down in one document at the start of the calendar year by HR or an events team or Chief of Staff.

Why does this matter?

It’s September and we’re mapping XFN dependencies and deliverables for a launch in December. Team leaders sign off on dates. Then it’s November and someone in Engineering says, “Oh wait! We’re in LA that week. We can’t meet these deliverables.” The project is now delayed. 😵‍💫

Entirely preventable. 

In September during planning, everyone was heads down and vaguely remembered that an off-site was coming up. No one double-checked. The dates were just sitting in one random document.

Proactively learn which off-site dates apply to you + your team. If you’re unsure, ask. Memorize these dates. Add them to a team calendar. Socialize them cross-functionally. Ensure they’re well-known dates.

Most importantly, leverage them during project planning. It’s easy. It’s free. And it significantly reduces project risk.

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