At RTi, we’ve always prided ourselves on the incredible tenure of our senior staff. All of our account execs and project group heads have at least 15 years’ experience and most have 25+ years under their belts. The head of our Marketing Sciences division has been working his magic with numbers for the past 25 years. Our internal field, tab and graphics departments are just as seasoned. It’s no wonder that our clients love us and we’ve established ourselves as true partners.

So what’s more exciting than that? The incredible new crop of young talent we’ve hired over the last couple of years! I can’t remember a time when we’ve had so many rising stars managing our projects. When we are awarded a new project, we know that it is in the best hands, that they will do whatever it takes to get the job done successfully and that we’ll be able to deliver an outstanding product to our clients. They bring creativity to our reporting design, fresh perspectives to analytic deep dives and the youthful energy required to keep up with our demanding schedules.

As if that wasn’t enough, they can play softball!

We started our RTi softball team back in 2007 and failed in dramatic fashion. We lost the vast majority of our games, most nights the games ended early in a “mercy” ruling because we were down by so many runs it was impossible to fight back and the playoffs weren’t even on our radar. That all changed this year because our team had a decidedly different composition! No longer did we look like the AARP team (though a few of us still felt that way, especially the next day). Instead, we came armed with a confidence that intimidated our opponents and perhaps even a hint of youthful swagger. For the first time ever, we achieved a winning record (7-4) and made it to the 3rd round of the playoffs, finishing in 5th place, city-wide!

Our softball season provided an invaluable chance to step outside our cubicle walls and bond together as a team in the truest sense of the word. People who are typically buried shoulder deep in data tabs without making a sound for days on end evolved into the most boisterous teammates. Those who are the toughest critics of their own work continued to strive for perfection on the field. The same people who find a silver lining in any incidence snag or slashed deadline were the ones to soothe the pain of a miscue on the field or a tough out at the plate. From our CEO to our newest hire, we gave our all and showed we have what it takes to succeed.

Above all, we had a great time shedding our work and family responsibilities for a short time every Tuesday night and banding together to prove that we are truly a team of superstars.