7 Team Building Activities for the Office
In the modern professional environment, it is becoming increasingly more difficult to build a cohesive team. More people are conducting business over the internet and are working from home. Companies with better professional relationships among team members tend to have better morale and improved productivity. Achieving great chemistry in an office is not easy and below you will find some simple team building activities to help improve your team!
Pot Luck
A simple, yet effective, way to improve office chemistry is one of the oldest, having a pot luck lunch event with the entire office team. What makes a pot luck style event so great is everyone can be involved. Whether an employee makes a dish or purchases one, they are playing a small role in a great lunchtime event. Potlucks force involvement from everyone at the event and create an easy icebreaker for conversations. People who cook or bake can talk about their dish and others will learn who in the office has culinary skills. Something this simple brings employees together in a casual environment, where they can have some fun, and create common ground through food.
Monthly Birthday Celebrations
Another easy way to bring an office together is birthdays. Smaller offices usually will celebrate someone’s birthday on the actual day; however, this usually is not an option for larger companies with many employees. A simple solution to the large office problems is to celebrate everyone’s birthday monthly. Set up a day of the month, it can be the first or last Friday or even a random day every month, to celebrate everyone’s birthday at once. You can get a cake for everyone and bring the office together for a short celebration. This will lighten the mood of the office, and even prevent the distraction of celebrating birthdays too often. A monthly routine is good because everyone knows what day it is and can be prepared to have some fun and celebrate the birthdays of their peers.
An Office Outing
There are tons of different ways to have an office field trip. You can reserve a room at a restaurant, go to a sporting event, or even have a cookout at a park. The important thing in an office outing is that the employees are together, outside the office, in a fun and enjoyable setting. People can even bring their families to make it an even larger affair. Spending time together without the stresses of work helps people get more comfortable with each other and helps them relate better while working as well. In addition, these office events involving families help create long term friendships. People’s spouses or children might meet and get along and can potentially form long lasting bonds. Finally, if a new employee is from out of town it might be a terrific way for them to meet and make new friends and learn what activities there are to do in their new city from co-workers and their families.
Motivational Speakers
A less common form of team building might be the best and a professional speaker sometimes fits the bill. It can be hard to spread a message in a positive manner and sometimes it might not be possible. That’s why professional speakers are successful. These professionals can use words to motivate people toward a common goal. These speakers do cost money, but they usually get results. Hearing stories of success and failures can sometime motivate people to achieve more. So, if your company is having a morale or cohesiveness issue, a professional speaker might be just what the doctor ordered. This type of team building event does involve a little more research. You must find a speaker that fits within your company’s budget and one that can inspire people to achieve what you need them to do. Finding a speaker that can deliver your message in a positive and engaging way is not easy and fit is everything; however, if you find the right speaker with the right message it can reap great rewards in employee morale and motivation.
Pool Party
As summer and warm weather approaches the ability to have a swim party at someone’s house or a community pool is always a great idea. People can enjoy the nice weather and cool off in a casual setting together. In these types of parties, it is, not uncommon for few or no people to swim but that is not the point. The point of the pool party is to enjoy the summer weather together. You can even improve the pool party by making it a barbeque as well. Warm weather and quality food are always key ingredients to fun. Bringing your office together in this casual setting will help calm tension and help people relax. You can even make it a family affair as well.
Trade Show
Based on the type of business you are in determines your options, but going to a trade show is always a great team building opportunity. Trade shows provide a reason to travel and have a purpose to them. People can go see all the products they are going to sell or going to use for the upcoming year. In addition, they provide employees with a way to meet the vendors and ask specific questions about a product or service. The option might even exist to go to a vendor sponsored party or dinner. The act of traveling together can be stressful but also forces employees to spend time together in less than ideal circumstances. Overcoming the challenges and stress of travel will help people learn to get along with each other and the trade show event is a great way to improve employee’s knowledge of the field they are in.
Sales Competitions
Most businesses are based on sales and a great way to get results is a friendly competition. Having any type of casual competition is a great way to have fun and get results. You can pick some simple prizes for the winner and employees can be encouraged to outsell their peers. However, you must be careful while having these competitions. You must ensure they remain fun and casual and do not get overly competitive. Sales contests can sometimes have a negative effect if they are not judged fairly or get too competitive. The overall goal is to succeed as a company and not to put too much focus on individual accomplishments but to recognize individual successes. Think of a format that is fun and exciting but will not create conflict in the office. Contests can be a lot of fun and a positive force in any business setting as long as they are casual and fun. So create a contest that is based on individual accomplishment and team success.
Building team chemistry is not easy but is crucial to having success. Happy employees are more productive employees and when people work well together only good things happen. So ensure you spend a little extra time and effort each year to build team chemistry. If you found these tips helpful, please share on Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn.