Microsoft sent me and some other software architects (that’s a job title) to a resort in the Napa Valley. I’ll discuss the meeting in my professional blog, but I’ll talk abut the trip here. The Napa valley is in the heart of the California wine country, and the wineries compete with each other in poshness and pretension as well as the quality of their wines. The resort where we met was pseudo-Victorian, though most of it was of fairly recent construction. It wasn’t a winery. The site included a croquet court, complete with a dress code (tan pants, white shirt). It was supposed to be a “team building activity” though it was never made clear how a cutthroat game like croquet will build team spirit. It’s more a war of all against all. I declined to participate.
We did have a trip to a real winery, complete with original art and dinner in the cave where they age the wine. See the pictures for more on that.
Overall, it was OK, and I did get to meet a lot of interesting people. I think they were trying too hard to entertain us, and would have done better just to let us talk.
[…] MicroSoft sent the Developer Division software architects to a meeting in the Napa Valley. I’ve described the resort in a personal blog entry. This entry is to talk about the professional aspects. […]
Pingback :: October 29, 2006 @ 8:22 pm
The whole idea of ‘building team spirit’ always makes me automatically suspicious and disinclined to participate. It’s not just me, is it?
Comment :: October 30, 2006 @ 5:12 am
It’s not just you. I’ve always found that building teams is best done in the process of working with the other members. As I mentioned in the professional blog, attempts to get us to “think outside the box” also warrent deep suspicion. They seem normally to be conducted by boxmakers.
Comment :: October 30, 2006 @ 7:32 am