Cognition is now at the size where there are several large hubs around the world. It's that point in a company's growth trajectory that makes it more challenging to maintain culture and a deep connection to everyone at HQ That's why we flew our entire team to a ranch to align on priorities and strategy, but also get everyone to meet in-person Logistically this seemed impossible, whatever headcount was planned kept getting blown out of the water as we grew faster and faster, but this team has never let logistics get in the way of solving a problem. We eventually had hundreds of people camp out in tents to make this happen after all the rooms were taken (yes, I was in a tent with our head of Sales). Though this seemed adventurous at first, all doubts flew out the window when getting to meet all the new folks that have recently joined the team. The highlight for me was a poker tournament where people who dropped out would then join the karaoke crowd, and it felt like a full blown concert with members of the team. Our new VP of Eng (@jaredpalmer) won the tourney (great way to start his new gig) It's important to stress that at any given point we get everyone together, it will be the easiest time it will ever be to meet people you don't know...at some point it could be impossible The most important factor to Cognition's success will always be its people, while offsites can be expensive and time consuming, it's invaluable to make sure the company feels as one. I have no doubt that everyone else is as fired up as I am right now