Alea Doesn’t Call their Team a Family. Their Approach to Culture Explains Why

For Alea, one of those decisions is surprisingly simple: the company does not describe its people as a family.

They call them a tribe instead.

That distinction came up in our recent conversation with Märit von Stedingk, Head of PR and Communications at Alea, after the company brought their team together for the annual summer retreat near Barcelona.

The retreat included ice baths, breathwork, cycling, beach activities, food, music, wine tasting and plenty of time simply spent together.

But the more interesting part was the thinking behind it.

For Alea, looking after people does not mean lowering expectations. Belonging and performance are meant to exist together.

Here’s what stood out.

A company retreat does not need to become another work meeting

Many company retreats still include presentations, strategy sessions, workshops and another version of the normal working day in a different location.

Alea took a different approach.

Märit explained that its HR team works throughout the year to create three days where people can genuinely spend time together.

That did not mean three days of discussing targets.

The programme included ice baths, breathwork in the forest, cycling and beach games. People could choose the activities they wanted to join.

Nothing was obligatory.

The idea was to give employees space to look after themselves and connect with colleagues outside their usual roles.

As Märit explained, the retreat was designed around more than simply spending time together.

It was about creating a healthier relationship between the individual, the team and the company.

Wellbeing is not separate from the business

Employee wellbeing can sometimes sit on the edge of company culture.

There are wellness initiatives, benefits or activities, while the actual way people work remains unchanged.

Alea connects the two more directly.

Märit said the thinking starts with looking after yourself and then looking after the people around you.

From there, she believes that attitude carries into relationships with clients, partners and the wider gaming industry.

Her point was straightforward: people who feel good are more likely to pass that energy on.

That does not mean an ice bath or a retreat automatically creates better work.

It means companies need to think about the conditions they are creating for the people doing that work.

Alea deliberately uses the word “tribe”

One of the more interesting parts of the conversation was the language Alea uses internally.

A lot of companies describe themselves as a family.

Märit sees a problem with that idea.

Families are built around unconditional relationships. You do not choose every member, and someone's place in a family is not dependent on their professional contribution.

A company works differently.

“You will hire the dumb cousin or you will keep the nice uncle because he's lovely to everyone, but he's not very capable,” Märit said when explaining the difference.

Alea still wants the connection that companies are often trying to communicate when they use the word family.

But it also wants standards.

That is where the idea of a tribe comes in.

Belonging does not have to mean lowering standards

For Märit, a tribe is closer to a small society.

People are united around something, but everyone also brings something to it.

Skill matters.

Merit matters.

Contribution matters.

And in return, the group looks after its members.

That creates a different definition of people-first culture.

Looking after employees does not mean avoiding difficult expectations. Equally, expecting strong performance does not mean treating people as interchangeable resources.

A company can ask what someone brings to the team while also asking what the team gives back to that person.

Those two ideas do not need to compete.

Having fun together matters too

Not every part of culture has to carry a deeper business purpose.

Sometimes teams also need to enjoy being together.

That was part of Alea's retreat as well.

After the wellness activities came what Märit described as an “afternoon of carnage,” with wine tasting, a casino-style activity, music and dancing late into the night.

The contrast was intentional.

There was time to slow down.

There was time to challenge yourself.

And there was time simply to have fun with the people you work with.

As Märit put it, having fun together can be just as important as looking after each other.

That point is easy to underestimate.

Teams spend a large part of their lives working together. Relationships do not develop only through meetings, Slack messages and project deadlines.

Sometimes the conversations outside work are what make the conversations inside work easier.

Culture is built through repeated decisions

One retreat does not create a company culture.

Neither does a slogan on an office wall.

What matters is whether the same values continue to appear in smaller decisions throughout the year.

Who gets listened to?

What behaviour gets rewarded?

How are expectations communicated?

How much room do people have to be themselves?

And what happens when someone is no longer contributing in the way the team needs?

That is why Alea's choice of the word “tribe” is more interesting than the terminology itself.

They attempt to describe both sides of the relationship.

The company has responsibilities towards their people.

Its people also have responsibilities towards the company and each other.

What stood out to us

• Alea deliberately describes their team as a “tribe” rather than a family.
• Belonging and high professional standards are not treated as opposites.
• The company's summer retreat was designed around connection rather than another round of work sessions.
• Wellbeing activities were optional, giving employees room to participate in their own way.
• Alea connects looking after yourself with looking after colleagues, clients and partners.
• Fun and informal time together are treated as part of team building, not an extra.
• Company culture becomes more credible when values show up in everyday decisions, not only in corporate messaging.

The ice baths, forest breathwork and late-night dancing make for good retreat photos.

But they are not really the biggest takeaway.

The more interesting question is what a company believes its relationship with employees should look like once everyone returns to work.

Alea's answer is neither purely transactional nor built around the idea that everyone is automatically “family.”

It is closer to a mutual agreement.

Bring something valuable to the tribe. Help the people around you. Expect the tribe to look after you in return.

For an industry where companies compete heavily for people, that distinction is worth discussing.