14 Years of Focus BC

This month we are celebrating 14 years of Focus BC.

We marked the date the way we like to do things: with the team together at the office, cutting the cake, opening the champagne and listening to a speech that made us smile and remember how much has happened since the early days.

There were memories of early projects that felt bigger than us at the time, of partnerships that helped us grow and of people who joined along the way and made Focus BC what it is today. It was a reminder that behind every product release and every client delivery, there is a lot of work from a lot of people over many years.

It is easy for a normal week to be all about the next deadline or the next feature. Celebrating a company anniversary together is always a moment to step back and recognise the journey we have already made as a team.

If you want to learn how it all started, you can read more in The Journey of Focus BC told by the Founders.

Photos, challenges and team lunch

Of course, it would not be a birthday without some fun and a bit of chaos. We started by asking everyone to bring or find a photo from when they were around 14 years old. Soon the office was full of old pictures, different moments and very different styles. It quickly turned into a “guess who” game, with people trying to match each teenage face to the colleague they see every day.

Seeing each other at that age, before any of us knew we would end up working together, made the team feel even more human and connected. It is a small thing, but it says a lot about the kind of environment we try to build.

Then we moved on to a round of challenges. Names were drawn, tasks were picked at random and people had to complete them alone or with a teammate. Some of the challenges included:

• Having lunch with a colleague from a different department

• Posting on LinkedIn about something you learned at Focus BC

• Arranging a coffee with someone you had not exchanged Slack messages with in over two months

• Sharing a tool, hack, template or shortcut you find relevant on Slack

It was loud, funny and full of surprising moments, peak team energy!

We also used the occasion to share the new Focus BC merch. Fresh hoodies and t-shirts went around the room and, very quickly, people started trying them on. It is a simple detail, but it adds to that feeling of belonging and shared identity.

To close the day, we all enjoyed a team lunch together at Jardim da Luz, a restaurant near the office, with good food and even better conversation around the table.

Here is to 14 years of Focus BC.

And to everything we will create next 🙌