Our All Hands Meeting is a three-day retreat where we get the whole Golden Software team together to align, share ideas, recharge, and be inspired by one another. Since we’re fully remote, this chance to connect in person keeps our team bonds strong and our goals in sync.

Executive Assistant to the CEO Laura Escalante, who organizes our annual retreat, explains, “There’s nothing like human connection. It’s great to engage with each other, our customers, our values, and our goals. Seeing the way some express their passion for our work in person brings a deeper understanding and creates a kind of magic in the room. The All Hands Meeting is a great reminder of the incredible work we do, the amazing people on our team, and the energy and dedication each person brings. It re-energizes us to align and push forward together, ensuring we’re all on the same page as we move toward our shared objectives.”

Because our All Hands Meeting only lasts a few days, we use our time wisely. Our agenda is purposefully packed with activities and learning sessions, creating space for our team to learn and connect so we’re at our best for you and all our customers. For a sneak peek into how we spent our time, here are five highlights from our All Hands Meeting.

From daily team meals to hangouts at Woody’s to intense games of Dutch Blitz, team bonding was a top priority—and this was especially true on the first day when each department participated in exciting activities.

Our sales and marketing team stayed true to their competitive nature with a round of go-karting, racing toward success the same way they race to meet quarterly goals. Meanwhile, our product and operations team took on an escape room, using their analytical skills to crack clues much like how they assess your needs to improve our software. Not to be outdone, our customer success team also took on an escape room, working together to solve tricky problems—just like they do every day to help our customers create great visualizations.

As the newest person on our team, our Content Marketing Specialist Gabbie Rhodes made it clear why the team bonding activities were so successful: “The opportunity to not only meet but have fun with everyone was such a privilege. I loved go-kart riding, even though I came in last every time. I also enjoyed the many moments laughing and getting to know the team. The All Hands Meeting definitely helped me connect with everyone and solidify my confidence in joining Golden Software and its mission to increase scientists and engineers’ success.”

Transparency is important—and our company doesn’t shy away from it. As an open, honest, and trusting team, we used our annual retreat to provide company updates. Spearheaded by our leaders, each department delivered brief reports on the quarterly goals they accomplished and future objectives. Team members who managed specific goals also weighed in with status updates. The result? A team that was fully aware of where we stood and where we’re headed.

As our CEO Zach Mills put it, “We subscribe to the philosophy that three months is about the right amount of time to put your head down and work hard at a project. So it is nice to step back once each quarter and reflect. We celebrate our wins. We take a hard look at our failures, and we ensure our next three months are going to move us closer to our goals. It is in this way we will achieve our mission: to create success for scientists and engineers by helping them communicate complex ideas with clear & accurate visualizations.”

One of the top highlights of this year’s retreat was our first-ever customer panel, featuring three of our long-term users: John Fontana, CEO of Vista GeoScience; Rick Koehler, CEO of Visual Data Analytics; and Calvin Miller, Owner of Miller Groundwater. 

These customers delivered valuable insights to our team, revealing details about their projects, challenges, needs, and goals. They answered questions on various topics, ensuring each of our departments walked away with information to drive decision-making. On top of that, our panelists stayed for lunch to create additional space for our team to connect with them. 

“When I first saw that we were getting to interview a panel of long-term experienced customers, I was immediately intrigued because I hoped to get some insights about how they use Surfer features,” said Dave Kouts, software developer at Golden Software. “To say the least, the panel exceeded my expectations. Getting to hear about their varied experiences and approaches, and even talk with them afterward, was a highlight of the All Hands Meeting.”

Our customers weren’t the only special guests at this year’s All Hands Meeting! We also brought in a guest speaker to help us sharpen one of our key operational tools: the game-changing EOS scorecard. This data-packed spreadsheet gives us a weekly snapshot of company performance, serving up clarity and accountability on a silver platter.

At Golden Software, our main scorecard tracks essential company metrics, but many of our departments (and even individual team members) have their own personal scorecards to keep tabs on their progress toward their goals. To make sure our scorecards are hitting the mark with the right data, our guest speaker shared some practical tips to help us fine-tune them for better alignment and insight.

“The scorecard workshop was very insightful, especially when we were given guidance on identifying areas for improvement,” said Jessica Johnson, business development manager at Golden Software. “I especially appreciated the team discussion afterward, which brought fresh ideas and collaboration that will drive changes we’re excited to implement for our team!”

Another standout moment from our All Hands Meeting was the skill share session, led by our very own Customer Success Engineer, Anthony Onorato. Anthony dove into insights from Storytelling with Data, a book that’s become a team favorite for learning how to turn data visualizations from “meh” to “masterpiece.”

Anthony walked through design principles and examples of both good and not-so-good visualizations. He also highlighted key takeaways to help our team better support scientists and engineers in making complex data easy to understand for all audiences.

As Anthony explained, “Storytelling with Data is an invaluable resource, as it teaches how to present complex data clearly and effectively. This will help us ensure our customers’ insights are easily understood by both expert and non-expert audiences. The book offers practical tips on simplifying visuals, choosing the right graph types, and weaving data into compelling narratives, making it easier to communicate research findings and influence decision-making.”