How to use When to use For whom Planning pitfalls Reaching deadlines

FREE Retreat Planning Template

Master retreat planning timelines with our intuitive retreat planning Gantt chart template.

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Gantt chart template

Why use our Retreat Planning Template instead of Excel or Google Sheets?

Get started with our Retreat Planning Template in seconds while skipping the hassle involved with Excel or Google Sheets.

Build Gantt charts in minutes, not hours.

Build Gantt charts in minutes, not hours.

No project management experience? No problem. Tom's Planner offers a user-friendly, drag-and-drop interface that's intuitive and easy to learn. Creating Gantt charts is a breeze, saving you time and effort. Compare that to the time-consuming, frustrating, manual formatting-intensive process of building a Gantt chart in Excel or Google Sheets.

Create a Gantt chart in minutes, not hours

Move at the pace of modern business with no learning curve or Googling formulas.

Good luck figuring out how to make a Gantt chart work in Excel or Google Sheets. Excel’s user manual weighs in at a hefty 500+ pages. It takes just five minutes with Tom’s Planner to start planning your first real project plan.

Create a Gantt chart in minutes, not hours

Headache-free collaboration and sharing.

Tom's Planner offers powerful options for sharing and collaborating on Gantt charts, including public links, PDF exports, and team access with customizable permission levels. It’s never been easier to communicate or ensure everyone’s on the same page. Compare that to Excel, where sharing and collaboration mean jumping through hoop after hoop and dealing with confusion and chaos.

How to use Tom’s Planner’s retreat planning template to build and share your retreat.

Getting your project off the ground is as easy as 1-2-3.

Step #1

Click the 'start with template’ button to open the Retreat Planning Template.

Step #2

Register for a free account and watch a short video on using Tom’s Planner. The account is free forever, with no strings attached.

Step #3

You’re all set to use the Gantt chart template. Need additional help? Our AI assistant can create a custom Gantt chart Retreat Planning Template based on your project description.

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What is a retreat planning template?

Corporate retreats offer tremendous potential. They can help team members forge stronger connections. They can empower teams to work together. They’re also important for helping your people to recharge and recuperate.

Of course, planning a retreat isn’t a simple matter. There’s a lot to consider, from the venue to the duration to the activities offered. That’s where a retreat planning template can help. These documents allow you to plan and strategize so that your people feel closer and more connected while also moving closer toward important business goals.

But what goes into a worthwhile retreat planning template? Is it enough to create a DIY retreat planning template in Excel or Google Sheets?

The value of a retreat planning Gantt chart template

While spreadsheets like Excel and Google Sheets promise ease of use and familiarity, the truth is that they’re poorly suited for use as a retreat planning template. Instead, consider a Gantt chart like Tom’s Planner.

A conventional retreat planning template, you can plan things such as:

  • Venue
  • Team name/makeup
  • Activities
  • Retreat duration
  • Retreat theme

However, a Gantt chart delivers flexibility and customization not found with other options. Some of the things you can plan with Tom’s Planner include:

  • A detailed retreat agenda broken down by team and even by individual
  • Team-building exercise schedules
  • Custom statuses for agenda items (pending, progress, completed, etc.)

Ultimately, a Gantt chart like Tom’s Planner can help you ensure that your event delivers the most value to your people and offers the best return on investment.

When to use a retreat planning template

Not sure when to use a retreat planning Gantt chart template? Here are some of the most important times to use one.

Planning Phase:

A schedule will help you plan out your corporate retreat from beginning to end. Ideation is the bedrock of an effective retreat, allowing you to create an event that helps you achieve your goals.

Activity Planning:

You’ll need to plan and organize activities for your team(s). A Gantt chart like Tom’s Planner can help you assign activity leaders, assign activities to team members, set reminders, designate facilitators, and more.

Team Building:

The point of your retreat is to build up your team, but you’ll need a team of experienced facilitators in place to achieve that goal. Use a Gantt chart to assign responsibilities to different team members and ensure accountability and synchronization.

A retreat planning Gantt chart template can make the difference between a retreat that achieves your goals and one that fails to do so.

Who should use a retreat planning template?

Your retreat planning template will be an important tool for a wide range of people involved in the event. Some of those who will need to use it include the following:

Activity Coordinators:

Chances are good that each activity will have a different coordinator. A schedule helps these coordinators synchronize their efforts to ensure a smooth, enjoyable process for your people.

Team Leaders:

Each team completing the retreat will need its own leader(s). Those individuals will work with coordinators and facilitators to ensure an effective retreat. A schedule helps them understand their role and responsibilities, as well as to synchronize their efforts with others.

Retreat Facilitator:

The retreat facilitator is the individual responsible for managing the event at the highest level. A schedule helps the facilitator assign responsibilities, schedule events, and create an effective agenda.

By using a retreat planning Gantt chart template, you give everyone involved a powerful tool to help encourage success.

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The top three pitfalls to avoid when planning a retreat

You want your corporate retreat to be as effective as possible, so it’s important to avoid these three pitfalls:

  1. Failing to Plan:

    No retreat will be successful without a plan. Failure to plan usually means failure to succeed.

    Solution:

    Each element should be detailed, from the retreat’s duration to the number and type of activities offered. Set goals, compare venues/locations, plan for the impact of travel, and more.

  2. Not Assigning Responsibilities:

    One of the most common mistakes made when planning corporate retreats is the failure to assign responsibilities accurately. This can leave your team feeling directionless and limits the effectiveness of the retreat.

    Solution:

    Assign responsibilities early on and make sure everyone is clear on what pertains to them.

  3. Failing to Build in Time for Bonding:

    One of your goals is likely to improve teamwork. However, that cannot happen without strengthening the bonds between individual team members.

    Solution:

    Build in time for team bonding through structured activities like cooking or playing games.

What does a retreat planning template include?

Corporate retreats can vary a lot depending on the size of the team, the purpose of the retreat, your budget, and other factors. However, you’ll find that most retreat planning templates do share a few common elements. Some of these include:

  1. Retreat Planning

    What are the objectives of your retreat? Are you looking to improve teamwork? Strengthen bonds between individuals? Help two teams begin working together?

  2. Budget

    Your retreat budget is a critical consideration. Some of the factors to plan around include your initial cost estimation, financial resources identification, budget draft creation, budget review session information, your budget breakdown, and the budget finalization.

  3. Venue Selection

    Where will you host your retreat? Not only will this affect your budget, but it will also affect the activities and overall experience. Customizations here include venue needs identification, shortlisted venues, venue cost estimation, venue comparison analysis, and booking confirmation.

  4. Activities

    The foundation for any change achieved during a corporate retreat is the right combination of activities to engage your people.

  5. Post-Retreat Evaluation

    You’ll need to use data to determine the retreat’s effectiveness. Steps in this process might include feedback from creation and distribution, data compilation, cost analysis, objectives met, and evaluation report creation.

Four tips on how to make sure you reach your deadlines

1. Plan Early:

It’s tempting to plan your retreat on the fly, but you cannot afford that. Plan your retreat early so that you have time to handle all the important details, like choosing the right location, creating effective activities, and building a facilitation team. A Gantt chart like Tom’s Planner can help streamline your planning.

2. Pay Attention to Accommodations

Most of your planning will revolve around activities and building a sense of togetherness. However, you’ll want to pay attention to the individual accommodations. Your people will bond better when they sleep well and have their privacy expectations met.

3. Get Help with Planning

Don’t limit your corporate retreat planning to yourself. Get others involved. Ask for feedback from team members who’ll be on the retreat and get input from facilitators and leaders who will take part, as well.

4. Balance the Location

You want your team members to disconnect from the world and reconnect with each other. It’s tempting to choose a remote location for that, but this can backfire if it limits your access to technology or requires complicated travel arrangements. Involve the natural world and some degree of seclusion but skip ultra-remote locations that introduce too many complications.

Gantt charts in Tom's Planner vs in Excel

Excel Tom's Planner
Cost License required Free version available
Learning curve Hours Minutes
Create your first Gantt chart Hours Minutes
Making an update in your chart Several minutes Seconds (drag & drop)
Sharing charts with others At some point you will save and email a file titled: version_4_def_usethisversion_reallyfinal.xlsx Online, one source of truth, always up to date, with no confusion
Look & Feel Messy Clean, polished and professional
Dependencies
Filtering
Zoom in/out
Automatic Legend
AI-assist Let our AI assist do the work for you
Export to image or pdf Requires workarounds to export One mouse click

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