“Connection is why we’re here: it is what gives purpose and meaning to our lives.” Brené Brown

At the end of February, hundreds of Propellerites packed their suitcases with shorts and sandals, masked up and boarded planes, and descended on the small town of Ojai, CA—all in the name of connection.

The Propeller 2022 Offsite Event was the first large group gathering since the COVID-19 pandemic caused us—along with much of the world—to shift to a work-from-home culture. While the pandemic put a pause on in-person interactions, it did not pause the work we were doing. Over the past two years, Propeller has experienced substantial growth, onboarding over 100 new employees, many of whom had yet to meet their colleagues in person.

The mission of this year’s offsite was to drive connectivity and culture, and most importantly, to have fun—to move interactions off Zoom and Slack and into the real world, deepening our connections with each other and our company culture.

We asked a few team members to share their experiences at the offsite.

Michael Curry, Portland

“I started last July, so it was nice to finally meet in-person the people I've worked with on Zoom for so long. A stated goal of the Propeller culture is to Embrace our Differences and it was great to see that naturally come to life in the activities, conversations, and interactions at the offsite. I was genuinely blown away by the caliber of people I get to work with."

Everyone was so approachable and kind, but once you start talking to them you discover they are also incredibly talented and wildly sharp.—Michael Curry
Ashley Stuparich, San Francisco

“This year, the Senior Leadership Team and the Offsite Planning Committee wanted the event to be about community and creating connection. 

The offsite is always a great opportunity for cross geo bonding, but this year it felt essential to allow the team to come together in an organic way, not forced by structured events and traditional team building activities. - Ashley Stuparich

Propeller has always had a collaborative culture, which is created by the strong sense of community among the teams. It was one for the books!” 

Jack Cohenour, Denver

“I had an absolute blast at the offsite and enjoyed connecting with many Propellerites that I may not have had the opportunity to connect with otherwise. I’m so thrilled to be part of a company that values and drives personal connection. I know the connections we all made will pay big dividends for Propeller in 2022 and beyond!”

Alex Barra, San Francisco

“As someone who has only been at Propeller for 5 months, I saw the offsite as an important opportunity to connect with people from different parts of the organization and see our culture in action. The event exceeded my expectations! On our first day, we picked up our swag that promoted inclusivity with pronoun buttons, Geos, and other pins to express our individuality. Over the course of the offsite, I met so many amazing people via the very thoughtful connection activities and challenged myself to sit with teams of people I didn't know! Propeller is a very special place to work, and it was evident by all the passionate and wonderful people I met along the way.”

Emily Baker, San Francisco

“I was talking to some of the veterans during the offsite, and we all had to agree at what an amazing job the leadership and recruiting teams have done to preserve the Propeller culture through all the changes over the years—new geos, exploding growth, and, you know, the pandemic. Even though nearly half the firm started since COVID hit, it still felt like “coming home”. Everyone I finally got to meet IRL (or finally met for the first time) was just awesome, interesting, fun, and exactly what I’ve come to expect our people to be in my tenure at Propeller."

 It was hands-down the best offsite I’ve been to (so far!) and our people is what made it so spectacular.—Emily Baker

# Commit To People

The Propeller 2022 Offsite Event truly was a time for us to come together, build deeper personal connections, and relax and recharge—enabling us each to move through 2022 with a renewed focus and commitment to putting people first, embracing our differences, and continuing to do good work.

Learn more about life at Propeller and our company ethos on our Careers page.