Siemens – Think big – go big

“Coming together is a beginning, cohesion is progress, cooperation is success,” as Henry Ford already knew. And to ensure that 180 employees of Siemens Industry Software GmbH work together better in the future, the “Cus all hands meeting” took place at the Dorint Hotel in Bad Neuahr according to the motto “Think big – go big”.

The aim of the two-day event was to create a common motivation, appreciation and sustainable enthusiasm for the different subject areas of the Siemens division among each other. This results in efficient cooperation, which also leads to resilient employee loyalty. The contents were organised in such a way that the motto could be experienced by everyone.

Who hasn’t already experienced it? Frontal presentations quickly become tiring, and the listeners often remain in their usual thought patterns afterwards – because hardly anything sticks. So we rethought and made full use of the space. Ten “marketplace booths” were set up behind the plenary. The 180 participants were divided into 10 groups, given a walking plan in the form of flyers and each booth was also marked with clearly visible signs. This concept is familiar from classic rallies.

At each station, the participants had 20 minutes for exchanging information or doing sports. To ensure that this time was kept, there was a “time keeper” per group and an acoustic signal to announce the change. In order to get to the next destination without too much hustle and bustle, there was a five-minute break until the next booth.

A good presentation can work wonders for such meetings! Goals are explained, everyone is brought up to speed and the meeting is conducted in a goal-oriented and flexible manner. For the “Cus all hands meeting”, none other than Klaus-Jürgen “Knacki” Deuser could be won over. A real breakthrough in the German comedy, coaching and lecture world. “If there’s anything this country needs, it’s more humour!” is his motto, which he incorporated during his presentation and also in his expert talk.

The best-selling author, top coach and well-known influencer Hermann Scherer motivated those present with an impulse lecture. “Thinking differently and acting courageously” was the topic with which the famous consultant got the plenum thinking and discussing.

Another speaker was Dr. Jörg Wiewer – a specialist in internal medicine, cardiology and psychotherapy. In addition to his work at the Mediapark Clinic in Cologne, he also runs programmes for managers and employees. He devoted himself in detail to the topic of health and nutrition.

In order to support the load of technical information in a fun way, three additional “soft” booths were set up, dealing with the topics of sport, nutrition and team power.

In the Sport and Team Power Booths, the Siemens employees were able to collect additional points and compete against each other in a playful sporting competition. Various games demanded team spirit, ambition and skill. Thus, kilometres were collected together on fitness bikes, teams tried to keep a ping-pong ball in play as long as possible, or quizzes tested newly acquired knowledge.

The points were collected in the form of table tennis balls in large glass steles to create a visual incentive to be even better than other groups. Attractive prizes and a special eulogy on the big stage awaited the winning group.

It is also important to have an evening out together! So a night hike with torches and a brewery tour through Bad Neuahr were offered so that those present could end the evening together.