Every year, we bring the Behind Bars team together somewhere in the world. It’s one of the few moments where everyone is in the same place, stepping out of the day-to-day and creating a bit of distance to look at things more clearly.

This year, we stayed in Oslo.

Coming back here felt right. It’s where Behind Bars started, but also where a big part of the team is based, so it carries a different kind of familiarity. For some, it was a return. For others, a first time. But for a few days, we were all in the same rhythm.

On paper, the week is structured. There are presentations, department updates, discussions around strategy and priorities, and space to look at what’s ahead. It’s where direction is discussed at a higher level, but also where each part of the company shares what’s been built and what’s coming next.

But what makes these summits matter isn’t really the schedule.

It’s everything around it.

The conversations that continue after meetings, the questions that come from different perspectives, and the moments where things become clearer just by being in the same room. As an international team, we’re used to working across distance, but being together removes friction, speeds things up, and builds a different level of understanding. You see how everything connects in practice.

There’s a balance to these days as well, between structured sessions and the more informal moments — time at the office bar, long dinners, conversations that drift away from work but still connect back to it. Those moments matter just as much.

Being in Oslo adds another layer to it. It’s a city that feels calm but intentional, where things work without needing to be overstated. It gives you space to focus, and just as much space to step away for a bit.

Even during the summit, the work doesn’t completely stop. There were moments of content capture, visits, and time spent documenting projects while we were there. Because in the end, the work and the way we share it are closely connected.

By the end of the week, everyone heads back to their own routines. Different cities, different time zones, same direction. What carries forward isn’t just notes or plans, but a clearer understanding of how everything fits together.

And that makes the next steps feel a little more straightforward.