If you're a member of OrgOrg, you've undoubtedly already heard about Camp OrgOrg. Maybe you've already bought your ticket, and are counting down the days when you'll convene with your colleagues to learn and grow and hang out and eat delicious things together.

We've planned, we've brainstormed, we've coordinated, and queued up speakers and are ready to host you at the best, most authentic Admin // Office Management // HR conference EVER. 
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Friday, October 5, 2018. At Bespoke in San Francisco. 
Keep reading. Learn more. Get excited.

We're excited to announce our keynote speaker for Camp OrgOrg: Phoenix Normand. If you haven't heard of Phoenix (but really though, who hasn't?) you're missing out! Phoenix is a well-known career Executive Assistant with over 20 years of experience, and is the founder of Mega University and This. My Tribe. and an overall badass.

During our lunchtime keynote, Phoenix is going to dish some of his best secrets to taking your career to the next level. 

A HUGE part of OrgOrg is our lively and active Google Group. We wanted to recreate the best of that live, in person, and allow this awesome community to connect with each other IRL. There will be some tables set aside for facilitated discussions, shorter "lightening talks", and spontaneous breakout conversations, but we'll also have space for you and a buddy (or a group, or whatever) to get together and just talk.

Currently planned talks include a skillshare on saying no, wellness in the workplace, salary negotiations, making mentorships work, planning an office move, and how to make your coworkers' complaints into something productive. If there's a topic you want to make sure we cover, let us know and we'll try to make it happen! Otherwise, there will be empty tables just waiting for you to gather your own group and start talking!

You can also use the afternoon time to just break out and meet the people you've been talking to via email. It can be so hard to find time to make authentic connections during conferences, so we wanted to make sure to set aside time for you to meet and talk to each other.

​Or take a break. Breaks are important too.

We're bringing together a stellar group of executives to talk about Change Management: How to stay authentic to your values during times of change (things like the effects of fundraising, product pivots, and employee churn). What is your role as a PeopleOps person? How do you get executive support and participation? How the heck do you hold onto what you hold dear when everything's changing? Welcome to startups :)

​More on this panel to come soon!

An evening shindig featuring s'mores and crafts and games and quiet spaces and more delicious food and drink. Maybe even a few surprises, too.

Plus bonus activities throughout the day from Wise Guys Events. A nursing/pumping room. A recharging and quiet working station. Free headshots. Microkitchens. Bevi. Supplies in the bathrooms. Swag.

​I mean.

We're so excited to go to camp with you! 
​<3 Kim

When you’ve scaled a company fast, you learn the hard way where your free startup system ideas bend — and break.  It’s fun. I love happening upon a list of things where you say to yourself, “I’ll never do it that way again.” No, seriously. 😅

So, here’s a quick Google Admin trick that will help you set up an Out of Office (OOO) Calendar that’s cheap and won’t break at 75 team members.  You can also use this trick to create a general office events (HQ) Calendar.

​Note that I’m making some assumptions here​

• You likely are or are close with your Google Apps for Business Super Admin
• You have or want to create a cheap effective calendar for OOO or HQ events
• You probably have an unlimited or flexible PTO policy
• You trust your employees to do the right thing
• You need an OOO calendar mostly for scheduling team events and interviews
• Your HRIS doesn’t manage your team’s OOO

The Old Approach to an OOO Calendar
You’ve probably set up an OOO Calendar this way:

• On your computer, open Google Calendar
• On the left side, above "My calendars," click “Add other calendars” and then “New calendar”
• Add a name and description for your calendar: “OOO Calendar”
• Click “Create calendar”
• Click on it in the left bar to share your calendar, then select “Share with specific people”

3 Difficulties with the Old Approach to an OOO Calendar

1. This Calendar isn’t automatically visible to everyone in your domain
   • So, for every new hire, you need to manually share that calendar with them
2. To use this Calendar, your team needs to do something they’ve probably never done before unless they’re a Super Admin, EA, or Recruiter
   • They need to change the “Owner” of the event by selecting “OOO Calendar” in the dropdown menu
3. To make (2) possible, everyone on your team needs to have editing access to this calendar
   • Events start disappearing when everyone has edit access and you reach a large number of employees (75 is a typical breaking point). That’s because many people don’t realize they’re deleting an event for the entire company when they remove an event they’ve personally declined.

The Better Way to Build an OOO Calendar​
Start by creating an email address called OOO@yourcompany.com.  Yes, this will cost you $5 per month (or $4.17 when you have the Basic Annual Plan), but trust me — it’s worth it.

3 Benefits of This Approach

1. Anyone in your domain can search for and find it
   • You search for it like you would any other email address
   • You’ll want to set your Google Admin Calendar External Sharing settings to “Share all information, and allow managing of calendar”
2. To use this calendar, your team doesn’t need to learn anything new
   • To add an event to this calendar, they only need to add OOO@ as a guest to an event that is on their own calendar
   • As a bonus, this forces the team member to have their OOO on their calendar AND the OOO calendar
3. To make (2) possible, NOBODY on your team needs to have editing access to the calendar — no more missing events😜

How do I socialize this new OOO Calendar with my team?​
Here’s a quick template I drafted to help you educate your team about your new OOO Calendar. Have fun...and then book some personal OOO time to reward yourself for building a better process for your company!
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A big shout-out to Jane Stecyk for editing!  I couldn't do it without you.  If you have questions or want more information on this subject, leave a comment below and I’ll answer.  Thanks for reading!
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Set clear goals and stay organized

What is the purpose of your event? Are you celebrating your team’s accomplishments, enabling people to unwind after an intense campaign, hosting clients or community members, or sharing content with a speaker or panel discussion? Knowing your desired outcome for your event before you start planning can help streamline your decision making.

To stay organized throughout the process, create a checklist that includes all components of your event including:
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 - Budget
 - Date and time
 - Location
 - Expected attendance
 - Activities
 - Food and beverage menu
 - Swag and giveaways
 - Publicity
 - Logistics for staff and volunteers

Assign dates to your checklist to hold yourself accountable and put follow up reminders in your calendar. That way nothing gets left to the last minute. For a more detailed event planning calendar, download The Complete Guide to Office Management from Managed by Q.

Get creative with venues

When you are hosting large, annual events such as your company holiday or summer party, planning in advance is your best advantage. Venues, especially those that have a larger capacity, can book up quickly, so it’s best to book three-to-six months in advance. For events outside of popular times of the year, a months notice is often sufficient. Because venue rental can be a major expense for events, flex your creativity and explore alternative locations. You can transform your office by bringing in fresh decor pieces, use a short-term rental space like a Breather or Splacer, or use a public space like a park, community garden, or museum to hold a memorable event.

Ensure your event and activities fits a range of needs

While building diverse teams is top of mind for many companies when it comes to hiring, creating an inclusive culture is an equally essential day-to-day practice and is an important factor when it comes to team event planning. To ensure you are creating an event that is welcoming to a wide range of team members, consider details like dietary needs, non-alcoholic beverage options for non-drinkers, and timing to accommodate those who have family care obligations.

When planning activities, think about how you can engage different personality types. While you may have a dance or karaoke party for the extroverts, be sure you also have quieter areas for small group or one-on-one conversations, or activities like a photo booth that don’t require performing in front of a large group to ensure more introverted team members feel comfortable.

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