The main objective of the CICAT 2025 network is to accelerate Finland's transition from a linear to a circular economy by promoting collaboration, knowledge sharing and innovation. As they reach the end of their 5 year project, they asked for our help to design a way of showing appreciation and rewarding achievements for their final event.
The question that we started off with:
How can we reward the work and EMPATHISE THE AIMS OF THE PROJECT through PRIZES in their final event?
In the CICAT 2025 challenge, multiple participants work together in a network environment to achieve a common goal. There is no clear winner or loser, as success is measured by the overall performance of the network rather than individual contributions. This is why the core of our concept, explained below, is focused on achieving and celebrating together.
We want to change the way that we approach awards: we built appreciation from an individual level to a group level by bringing everyone together within the network. In this way, we strengthen the feeling of community. Instead of giving materialistic prizes, we wanted to create a memorable experience that celebrates the collaborative achievements of the project on all levels.
Our concept tries to activate not only the memory lane but also future prospects. To achieve this we thought of the event but also of what happens before and after.
1. Before the event - Individual invitation:
It starts with an invitation that reaches the person on an individual and emotional level. This is designed to get people excited and motivated to join the final celebration event. We also suggested details such as writting the name by hand to make the invitation more personal.
2. During the event - Group paper people:
During the event, we provide everyone with a string of paper people. This is to show appreciation to one another symbolizing the community and the individual impact. The paper people symbolise that all individuals matter and together they form acommunity. Every member writes and receives messages from about five collegues in the paper, which they can take home to remember the project and their team. It is also meant to be a conversation starter and motivate people to connect on a deepeer level.
3. After the event - Network experience:
Finally, each department is rewarded with a group activity, where professional achievements will get honored. Since people feel most appreciated when they have the feeling of making an impact, the activities will be planned by the departments. Each department plans and recieves an activity from another department. Based on Finland's culture, we thought this would be a great activity that lets them connect on a personal level, and strengthen the sense of community for the future.
Working with client feedback was a valuable learning experience for me. I discovered the importance of reframing ideas by incorporating concepts that resonated with them and sparked their excitement. Using their words and understanding their perspective helped me effectively communicate and engage with them.
During our project, we had the opportunity to travel, which brought about an interesting and eye-opening experience in finding a balance between work and personal life. It was surprising to see how much we could accomplish in a single day and still have time to enjoy the city.
Our group had vibrant and outgoing personalities, which brought a dynamic and energetic atmosphere. We generated numerous ideas and explored various ways to implement them. However, it also resulted in a loud and chaotic process, as we lacked individuals who were more organized and structured to bring balance to the group dynamics.
On a personal level, I once again realized the rejuvenating power of spending time outdoors. Even on days when I didn't feel my best, simply stepping outside and connecting with nature provided me with the energy to get moving and engage in the project with renewed vigor.
