Corporate retreats are back — here's why play matters in the age of AI

For the past few years, corporate retreats and offsites have faded into the background. Between shrinking travel budgets and a shift to remote-first work opportunities, gathering the team in person felt like a luxury companies could cut.

But recently, some companies have brought the corporate retreat back — with a focus on playfulness. One organization’s employees roasted marshmallows and built human pyramids, while another competed in rounds of laser tag followed by bumper cars. As a recent article put it, “more companies are planning retreats that could have been designed by a bunch of 10-year-olds.”

Why play builds workplace connection

Such activities aren’t just a nod to nostalgia. At a time when it’s never been easier to ask a quick question of AI instead of pinging a teammate on Slack, corporate retreats are filling a critical gap. BetterUp data shows more than 40% of workers don’t feel connected to their coworkers and 83% of employees report they don’t have “play” opportunities and fun events — the very thing they say would help. It makes sense, then, that play and creativity are becoming more valuable to human work as AI takes over more predictable tasks.

When viewed through this lens, organizing corporate gatherings becomes a priority. Team bonding can build social capital, which allows employees to work together more effectively and creatively. At the same time, it feeds what we call the “belonging tax,” or the cost in trust and connection that employees quietly absorb in exchange for the flexibility of remote and hybrid work. It’s no wonder some companies have decided human connection is more valuable in the age of AI.

How to design a corporate retreat that actually works

Before your HR team starts scouring venues, here’s what separates a retreat people still talk about six months down the line from one that’s forgotten a week later:

• Make the ROI case before setting the itinerary. While HR teams shouldn’t have to defend retreats as a nice-to-have, the reality is that numbers will help. Our research shows employees with low belonging are 1.8 times more likely to start job hunting and quit at a 39% higher rate, making a retreat that builds connection a retention strategy, not just a perk.
• Design for spontaneous connection, not just programmed fun. The activities matter less than most people think. Our research on what actually builds connection points to unscripted moments — shared meals, downtime between sessions — as much as an organized scavenger hunt or trivia night. Make sure to build in unstructured time on purpose.
• Provide time for inner work. It sounds like an oxymoron: carve out quiet, reflective time in the middle of an event built around energy and play. But the two activities can reinforce each other. The games and shared meals build trust, while inner work time gives people space to actually process what they've learned about their team and bring it back to their work. Skip it, and the retreat is just a party that ends when the flight home takes off.