BSG (Business Solutions Group) Conference

20/2/2013

This was one of my most amazing and fun experiences related to work. The BSG Conference was held over two days at Terrigal and involved everyone from Finance, IT and Support staying overnight at the Crowne Plaza to learn more about each other and our company. Right before the conference, everyone was required to do the StrengthsFinder 2.0 Survey to discover our top 5 strengths. This included doing approximately 72 timed questions which probed into our personality and the final product was a summary of our top 5 strengths which we needed in preparation for the conference. The purpose of this exercise was to find out where our strengths and those of our team members lie so that we can leverage upon them and create synergy for more efficient and effective outcomes at work.

The first day at the conference was filled with team-building activities where we were split into smaller teams and mentally and physically challenged. We had puzzles similar to those we had at leadership camp like the Tower of Hanoi and we were on a timed mission to dress up as a superhero and do a presentation of their strengths and weaknesses while simultaneously on a scavenger hunt. It was during those activities that everyone shared their past personal experiences, communicated their ideas and opinions and worked together as one and it was then that I felt integrated and part of the family despite everyone being of different cultures and ages.

The second day we focused on building and leading with our strengths. A report was produced for each department showing how many people from that department had a particular strength. What I learnt from our guest speaker who talked to us about our Top 5 strengths was that the purpose of the report was for us to become more aware of what we can excel at and to acknowledge and play to our strengths rather than focusing on our weaknesses. Of course that is not to say that we forget about our weaknesses but to recognise how we can use what we are already good at in our work and personal lives. An activity which I found really accentuated people’s strong qualities was when we went around in a circle identifying a particular individual’s strength and having others reflect and share how their strengths have evidently come into play at work. This was another way we got to get-to-know people and their personalities better which in turn helped to form tighter bonds between us.

This conference was invaluable because it helped create stronger, more personal relationships between people in our team and in other departments. It is through knowing people on a more personal level that we are able to work more cohesively and efficiently through trust, smoother communication and mutual understanding.