Looking back on a year is always fun, especially when you discover tons of forgotten moments that made up the year in question. From that perspective,2013 was filled with clients, projects and moments that have blurred quite a bit in the rearview mirror – some better forgotten, and many others worth remembering.
But 2013 also had some solid standout moments for the team at Floricane, and we’ve picked 13 that we just happen to really love. They’re not in any particular order, so enjoy!
- Tilted: The small business unconference we organized with a dozen other business owners last February was not only fun, it had a real impact. More than 140 people attended the full-day event, and it was such a hit we’re bringing it back later this winter!
- TEDxGraceStreet: On a whim, we decided to partner with Wren Lanier, Lauren Boynton and a few other local creative stars to host a urban-centered TED event. It was part of a global TEDxCity program, and we think the 13 speakers who tackled Richmond-specific topics for a crowd of 150 people at the Richmond Times-Dispatch building were all pure genius. It was a day thick with inspiration.
- Summer of Self-Discovery: Our four-part, public workshop series on leadership and self-awareness was a fun romp – and we were delighted to have more than 75 people join us as we dove into concepts like emotional intelligence and situational leadership. We’re doing a winter series in January, and will be back in 2014 with another summer program.
- Sales Effectiveness Pilot: Theran and Debra pulled together a very cool pilot program designed to leverage the Insights Discovery self-awareness tool to boost sales effectiveness. A dozen-plus employees from One South Realty and Dodson Properties Management agreed to be guinea pigs in the pilot, and provided us with great feedback.
- Library of Virginia Feedback: Speaking of feedback, inviting a small group from the Library of Virginia to sit down and pepper us with very candid, and useful, feedback about our long-term engagement with their organization was huge for our team. You can read more about it in a future blog post, but suffice to say – we got an earful!
- The Daily Planet: It’s hard to pick a favorite client, but it’s also hard to beat the day we spent with the entire 70+ person team from The Daily Planet. Huge energy, strong relationships and a massive sense of purpose characterized this team of providers who serve Richmond’s homeless community. We left energized and uplifted just by being in the same room as these guys.
- First Chair with CarMax: Our collaborative leadership project with the Richmond Symphony is always a blast, and sometimes everything just clicks when Maestro Steven Smith, the musicians, 60+ employees from a local company and I take to the stage. That’s what happened with CarMax last fall. We’re hoping to do five First Chair events in 2014 with the Symphony.
- Coaching Takes Off: When Debra’s coaching calendar goes from zero to one hundred in a matter of weeks, it’s a good thing. The amount of executive, leadership, personal and group coaching our team did in 2013 was nothing short of astounding. Clients like Bon Secours, the Library of Virginia, Richmond Association of Realtors and Draper Aden Associates took full advantage of our professional coaches. (Our coaches are staggering into 2014, ready for more!)
- Caroline Goes Full-Time (and Theran Joins the Team): Caroline Moyer didn’t miss a beat when she transitioned from part-time to full-time – our first full-time employee, by the way – in May. And that was about the time Theran Fisher joined our team to provide project support and facilitation on a project (and then another, and another, and then many more). We’re so lucky to have them both on our team.
- We Got a Bookkeeper: It sounds silly, right? Having Terri Andrus stop by our offices every two weeks to reconcile our books has been completely liberating.
- Two weeks of unplugged vacation: My family may have been the biggest beneficiary in 2013, as I took two weeks of unplugged time away from the business to be with them. Next year, the goal is four weeks!
- Gelati Celesti x2: In addition to working with the Gelati Celesti team as they worked to identify what makes the world’s greatest ice cream employees – and how to treat them like gold! – we parked their truck outside of our offices in July for an ice cream social. With Floricane ice cream. Yum!
- 1E: Our collaborative home in the Richmond Times-Dispatch building is almost completely full, and we’re exploring growth plans with the RTD team for 2014. With more than a dozen creatives from five companies working in the space, it has become a lively, fun home. We can’t wait to see how things shake out in 1E in 2014.