Our stay comes to an end…
Back to the beginning…I remember how surprised I was to have been nominated for the application process for the SAP Social Sabbatical. Only approx. 10% of all SAP employees were eligible to apply. After going through a rigorous process of essay writing and interviews I received the confirmation letter and was feeling so proud to be one of 120 selected candidates who were to participate in the SAP Social Sabbatical 2016/2017. This is such a unique opportunity in my life!
Our last week with Organization Earth
Organization Earth has it’s office in a former car repair shop, as well as a renowned night club, Earth@K44 (Γη @ Κ44) downtown Athens. It is not only a co-working space, Organization Earth provides their office also as a public space for community interaction, a meeting point for social enterprises, NGOs and grassroots groups. A unique and inspiring place to work.
What did we do this week?
This week we organized a Design Thinking workshop for Organization Earth. We planned this 4-hour workshop to bring the team together. It was for all of them the first time being jointly in the office at the same time. Nobody knew what to expect, but the initial skepticism quickly withdrew and I think everyone enjoyed the workshop at the end. All together they worked on the future vision of Organization Earth. We ended the day with a fabulous dinner prepared in K44.
The results out of the team exercise will be our last official deliverable for Organization Earth and it is the next step on the way to becoming an international NGO.
I am grateful that I could be part of a fantastic team for 4 weeks and saying that, I do not mean only the 12 colleagues from SAP. Organization Earth has integrated us into their team, we have spent so many hours together, even outside of work. All of them are so committed and try to help often un-bureaucratically. Many go beyond their limits and this inspired us to give our best as well. On the last two weeks we have worked hard on our final deliverables — I cannot even count how many daily working hours we spent together as a team to work on them but also how many nights each of us spent to bring our findings and recommendations to paper. Our commitment to spend so much time on our work might not be understandable by all — but we have done it, to make a small contribution to Organization Earth!
For me it was a great opportunity to step out of my normal life and daily business to work in a new environment for and with others. I take a lot with me back home and for sure I will benefit from this unique experience. Therefore I would like to say ‘thank you’ to my fantastic team. It was a pleasure to work with you. I will miss you, that’s for sure!
Good by SAP Social Sabbatical@Organization Earth.
