Last week, we brought together brilliant minds from across our three MMT hubs — Uppingham, London, and Leeds — for a day of collaboration, creativity, and well-earned celebration.
With teammates scattered across the UK, we didn't just want to catch up, we wanted to create something together. So, we organised a Summer Get-Together, a high-energy day blending company updates, cross-office collaboration, and a fast-paced AI product challenge.
The Build-Up
First up was a company update. We celebrated the wins, new products launched, teams expanded, and exciting partnerships on the horizon. But the day also brought some exciting news that speaks directly to the heart of our culture and how we want to shape the future of work at MMT — a future that prioritises balance, wellbeing, and the freedom to do our best work in ways that work best for us.
Introducing: Wellness Wednesday and Freedom Friday
Most companies talk about work-life balance, but few actually change their policies to make it happen. It’s not just about ticking boxes or offering surface-level perks. It's about building a culture where great ideas thrive because people have the space to think, reflect, and return inspired. The impact goes beyond the individual. When people have proper time to recharge, they bring better energy, fresher perspectives, and more creative thinking to everything they do.
So, we announced something that reflects a meaningful step forward in how we support our people’s wellbeing: two extra days off each year, thoughtfully timed for when they’re needed most.
The concept behind Wellness Wednesday recognises that midweek slump we all know too well, that moment when you need a proper break to reset and come back refreshed. And Freedom Friday? It acknowledges the power of long weekends for genuine rest and recovery.
These aren't just random days off though, they're designed around the reality of how we experience work and life, with the flexibility to be taken whenever they're needed most.
Rebecca Crook – our CEO – summed it up perfectly:
"I truly believe that well-rested, recharged people are our greatest asset. These extra days aren't just about time off - they're about preventing burnout, boosting creativity, and helping our team maintain that work-life balance that drives innovation."
The Challenge: Build, Pitch, Win
What happened next captured exactly what MMT is all about. We launched a fast-paced innovation challenge where cross-functional teams had just three hours to build something real using AI. This built naturally on our recent "AI Powered @ MMT" initiative, helping MMT become a leader in applying AI both in how we work and how we support our clients. The hackathon provided the perfect opportunity for our teams to use the AI tools we've all been enabled with to enhance how we approach our day-to-day work, while discovering new possibilities for what these technologies can achieve.
But here's what made it special: watching people from different offices and disciplines collaborate in completely new ways. Engineers bouncing concepts off designers while diving into user experience thinking. Strategists getting hands-on with technical possibilities alongside developers. Commercial minds shaping product vision in real time and bringing market insight directly into the development process.
The energy shifted from friendly catch-ups to intense creative problem-solving mode in minutes. Teams were tackling everything from developing coded prototypes to using AI for visuals, building product roadmaps, and conducting competitor analysis, all within the pressure cooker of a three-hour deadline.
When Ideas Come Alive
What emerged wasn't just impressive innovation (though the ideas were genuinely brilliant), but something that perfectly demonstrated our culture. This was MMT in its purest form: bold thinking backed by real capability, seamless collaboration across teams, and a shared drive to build things that matter.
The competitive element brought out the best in everyone. Teams weren't just building products, they were proving to themselves what they could accomplish when given the freedom to think big and move fast, all while exploring the potential of our AI tools.
The presentations that followed were as diverse as the teams themselves — some polished product demos, others passionate pitches held together with determination and adrenaline. What they all shared was that "we could actually build this" energy, not just politeness, but real excitement about taking these concepts further.
The Pint Part
After the intensity of building and presenting, each office did what any sensible group does after a day like that: went to the pub. Talks moved from prototype features to weekend plans, the kind of relaxed chat you get after everyone's just put in some serious creative effort together.
A good way to end a pretty hectic day. But more than that, it was a reminder of something important about how we work at MMT. We're spread across three locations, we work on different projects, we have different specialities, but when we come together around a shared challenge, we remember why we chose to work here.
Here's to more days like this.
Coming next week: the wild ideas our teams built and how they pulled it all off.
