Build it and it will grow

“In business we can become trapped in a single-minded pursuit of the bottom-line; at Build it we strongly feel that we have to remember our responsibility to the community in which we work and live and make a significant difference wherever we can,” said Ray Whitmore, Managing Director, Build it.

Traditionally one full day of the conference is dedicated exclusively to teambuilding and in true Build it fashion this is teamed with social responsibility. This year the delegates were split into six teams - each of which had a huge task at hand. Television personality Derek Watts and a special film crew followed the delegates around the Eastern Cape, capturing the day's activities which focused on community development and nature conservation.

Team One partnered with the Trafalgar Conservation group and got their hands dirty cleaning up the beach and wetlands.

Team Two got stuck in at the Cragg's View Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre where they planted trees and refurbished aviaries.

The path at Bush Buck Trail was cleared of alien plant life when Team Three donned their garden gloves.

The fourth team visited Build it's adopted school in the Eastern Cape - the Ebenezer School, the site of their extreme makeover two years ago. Here delegates performed maintenance work - repainting, repairing and planting a new vegetable garden.

The Thandokuhle Crèche and the local Community Centre were visited by the remaining teams who gave both establishments a child-friendly face-lift.

The conference programme featured an enlightening mix of presentations. Inspiring talks by motivational speakers Braam Malherbe who has walked the length of the Great Wall of China, and ex Springbok psychologist Henning Gericke encouraged delegates to aim higher and push the limits!

“The objective of our convention is to bring the entire Build it community together and the team-build initiative plays a crucial role. The convention was a huge success in terms of motivating and inspiring the delegates for the year ahead. This was achieved by the excellent work and social programmes and a massive teambuilding exercise incorporating social responsibility and 'go green' projects - all under the theme of 'Let's go, Let's grow',” said Whitmore.