After the success of DMC's first FedEx Day earlier this year, we were excited to hold our second edition a few weeks ago. A FedEx Day is reserved for everyone to devote an entire day working on a company improvement project that personally inspires them. It's called a FedEx Day because the person or team must deliver something the next day, although there is some upfront prep time.
DMC was inspired to try a FedEx Day after reading about it in Daniel Pink's Drive, a DMC Book Club selection. For all intents and purposes, the event originated at Atlassian, a software development company. Atlassian recently contacted DMC to congratulate us on the success of our first event and to notify us about their FedEx Day Campaign, a contest where one company will receive a FedEx Day hosted by three of their experts.
The list of accomplishments from our second FedEx Day is quite impressive. Additionally, the ROI is much more than just the projects' product, meaning that the teambuilding, learning, and other intangible aspects of the day will pay dividends.
Enjoy the results of our second FedEx Day below, and stay tuned for postings on individual projects!
- Implemented a 3D printer for rapid prototyping applications
- Built and programmed an autonomous robot platform using an iRobot Create for experimenting and having fun around the office
- Improved our SharePoint-based timer applications with Telerik controls, updated database structures, and implemented several increased usability features
- Updated our SharePoint Quote Database, integrating directly with Microsoft(MS) CRM and our quote generation workflow
- Enhanced our recruiting interview questions
- Improved our LabVIEW development tools and set up a SharePoint site for internal LabVIEW development projects
- Created a SharePoint web part for clients to track project progress
- Upgraded from MS CRM 4.0 to MS CRM 2011
- Implemented appliance-based streaming content for our video monitors
- Upgraded the Kinect demo to the new, full-featured Microsoft driver, enabling new features like gestures and voice recognition, in addition to implementing simulated 3-D head-tracking with high detail 3-D case study models
- Created a SharePoint workflow for tasks associated with hiring new employees
- Began initial design specs for our new company gym
- Built a new prototype demo to bring to career fairs - if you thought our ping-pong demo was cool just wait until this one is finished!
Enjoy our FedEx Day Recap Video.