Every quarter, our full team steps away from the usual rhythm of projects and meetings for an all-hands gathering. It’s a chance to reconnect, reflect on the previous quarter and spend real face-to-face time with teammates we often see through a screen. For our summer 2026 all-hands gathering, we gave that tradition a theme: E&S summer camp.
To kick the week off, the team received a camp kit, complete with a shirt, matching hat, drawstring backpack and key ring tag. We also learned we’d have the chance to earn badges in the form of metal pin-back buttons inspired by Ervin & Smith’s six core values: “Stay curious but confident,” “Give a damn,” “Own your sh*t,” “Be real,” “Be really good” and “Make it fun.”
With the gear handed out and badges waiting to be earned, E&S summer camp was officially in session.
Our field guide to change.
Tuesday started with a kickoff breakfast and a team coaching session, led by Mandy Phillips of Happybara Coaching. Mandy walked us through Martha Beck’s Change Cycle, a framework for understanding the phases people experience during times of transition. Using a caterpillar’s metamorphosis as a metaphor, the framework moves through four stages:
- Square One: Death and Rebirth
- Square Two: Dreaming and Scheming
- Square Three: The Hero’s Saga
- Square Four: The Promised Land
We considered where we might be in our own change cycles, talked about our experiences as a group and then played a game using well-known song lyrics to identify which square each song best described. The exercise gave us a useful way to understand what change can feel like before, during and after the moment when everything shifts.
It also helped us learn more about what our teammates were navigating outside the work directly in front of us. Change is easier to understand when we have language for it — and when people are comfortable being honest about where they are.
Bringing our real selves to camp.
On Wednesday, we traded the conference table for picnic tables at Hitchcock Nature Center. We roasted hot dogs, made s’mores and took part in camp activities like cornhole, badminton and giant Jenga. There was even a crafting station, where participants made mandala yarn art. But mostly, we laughed, talked about life outside our current projects and enjoyed a few hours away from the usual pace of work.
A mystery on the camp schedule.
For most of the week, one activity on our camp schedule remained a mystery: a three-hour block sitting on everyone’s Friday calendar. Leadership wasn’t offering any hints, which gave us plenty of time to speculate about what was coming.
Friday rolled around, and the team gathered for our weekly all-agency meeting to share company updates and, as always, make time for kudos, when team members recognize each other’s contributions and celebrate the work happening across E&S. Because we were all together for all-hands, we also took time to share our favorite moments from the week and check in on how everyone was feeling.
Then we finally learned what the calendar hold was for: We were headed next door to the theater to see “Tony,” a film about a formative summer in the life of Anthony Bourdain. It was a nice surprise and a fitting way to finish the week — with a shared experience before our remote teammates headed home and everyone returned to the regular rhythm of work.
What we brought back from camp.
The shirts, hats and badges made the summer camp theme visible. The week gave us time to see our values in action. We made space for honest conversations, examined the everyday practices that shape our culture, recognized one another and got outside to have some fun.
By the time camp wrapped, we had a few new pins and a stronger sense of what those values look like in practice. That’s what our all-hands gatherings are designed to create: time as a team that helps us work better together.