Puppies and PR: Paws for a Cultural Cause

Throughout our more than 20 years in business, Identity has counseled countless companies on ways to establish and enhance company culture. After developing these effective programs for others, we wanted to refresh and recharge our own approach to foster internal relationships.

We’ve been fortunate that culture has always organically unfolded in our office. From sharing stories over lunch in the kitchen every day to office pranks, happy hours after work, bowling outings and brunch on weekends, our team just clicks with one another. However, we saw the opportunity to take our culture thoughtfully to the next level.

The first step was going directly to the source: our people. We established a culture committee, known internally as GROW, to create a workplace that is built to sustain growth, retain the best talent and curate a modernized work culture that supports our stellar team. This committee was challenged to think big and act bold. Our culture needed to be reflective of our core values, mission and vision, while meeting the diverse interests of our team.

It’s no easy feat, but our committee managed to find the perfect event to launch our new approach to culture: Puppy Yoga at The Yoga Garden!

If you are skeptical about how this ties into our business, you aren’t alone. We had some skeptics among our team too, but puppies! Who doesn’t love puppies and want to play with them?

In one hour at The Yoga Garden with a nearly a dozen puppies, our team quickly discovered there was a deeper meaning to this team building activity. What we found was that truly remarkable results come when we step outside our comfort zones and try something new and unique.

Beyond being able to interact with the puppies from the Canine Companions Rescue Center in need of socializing prior to adoption, our team learned that it is okay to lean on each other for support. We learned to push through the difficult moments by remaining centered and focused on the end goal. We learned our minds and bodies are capable of doing so much more than we thought was possible. We learned to let go. We learned to have fun by exploring new adventures. And, we were able to do it together—sweat, puppies and laughs all included.

The added bonus? It was all to benefit a great cause! The proceeds from our class went directly to the Canine Companions Rescue Center to aid them in their mission of increasing awareness of adoption and reducing the number of dogs in shelters throughout the region (and yes, these adorable puppies will be available for adoption soon).

Stay tuned for more fun updates from our team in the coming year. In the meantime, we challenge you to think outside the box, take a chance on a new activity and encourage your team to embrace the change. Our team is proof that you won’t be disappointed.

Namaste.