How a Battle Bots Competition Taught Me Everything About Teamwork
At cityHUNT, we’re known for scavenger hunts. It’s what we do, and we’re experts at it. But every so often, a project comes along that is so far outside our wheelhouse, yet so aligned with our values, that we have to jump in.
That’s exactly what happened with a recent fundraiser, and watching my team tackle it taught me more about passion and purpose than any typical workday ever could.
Unique Request
It started with a client we’d been talking to for years. They wanted to organize a big team-building event that also served as a fundraiser for a nonprofit close to their hearts: the Boys & Girls Club. For years, they’d considered a scavenger hunt, but logistical challenges always got in the way.
Then they came to us with a completely new idea: a Battle Bots competition.
Employees would form teams, build robots, and compete, all while raising money to donate the robots to kids afterward. This was something we had never done before. It was a huge undertaking with countless moving pieces, and the timeline was tight.
Embracing the Challenge
Normally, we might decline something so complex with such little runway. But my team was inspired. They saw the client’s genuine passion for helping the Boys & Girls Club and decided we would do whatever it took to make it happen.
Suddenly, the mission became bigger than any business strategy. It wasn’t about whether this was a profitable or scalable new product for us. It was about believing in what the client wanted to achieve. My team went into overdrive, sourcing Battle Bots parts from all over the country to meet our deadline, designing a completely new event format from scratch, and coordinating logistics that were unfamiliar territory for all of us.
Watching them work filled me with an incredible sense of joy and pride. They weren’t doing it because I, as the CEO, was pushing them. They were doing it because they were mission-driven. People who weren’t even planning to attend the event changed their schedules at the last minute because they wanted to be there, to support the client and see it through.
Outcome
The event exceeded every expectation. The adults had a blast building and competing with their robots, fully embracing the competitive spirit. Then came the most moving moment of all: the presentation of a huge check to the Boys & Girls Club, followed by the donation of all the battle bots to the kids.
It was one of those rare times when you feel genuinely proud of everyone involved. Your team, the corporation you’re partnering with, the nonprofit doing meaningful work in the community. It all came together in a way that was bigger than any one of us.
Conclusion
This project became a powerful reminder that the best work happens when a team is united by a shared purpose. It wasn’t about the money or creating a new strategic offering. It was about stepping up for a cause we believed in, and it showed me what happens when you empower your team to follow a mission they care about.
The experience solidified my belief in trusting my team to rise to the occasion. When the “why” is strong enough, people will move mountains to make things happen. It’s not me who makes cityHUNT great. It’s the team and their unwavering passion for creating amazing experiences.
How can you empower your team to connect with a larger mission?
