Great companies regularly organise company retreat or team building activities as part of staff engagement program. We outline six great team building ideas that don’t cost a fortune to execute.
Team building ideas like the activities below, not only bond employees closer but also motivate them, creating a positive workplace environment. These activities help improve internal communication and productivity, boosting morale at the workplace and in helping employees get to know each other better.
Here are six team building ideas that could be used as part of your staff engagement program.
Team building activities help improve internal communication and productivity, boost morale and encourage teamwork.
Ice-breakers
Say ‘Hello’ to the new people in the company by getting employee participation with ice breakers during monthly meetings. Ice breakers can be an effective way to starting a training session, team building event or a new work week.
Get employees involved in sharing a small achievement – work or personal – to the rest of the team for them to get to know their co-workers better. Do not forget to congratulate them with their new achievement.
Problem Solving
Finding the right problem solving activities can be quite challenging as some activities could either make or break the employee. A lot of the problem solving activities will set apart the weak links and the strong team players.
Organise a simple half- or one-day workshop which involve tasks like ‘Worst-case Scenario’; fabricating a scenario in which your staff need to work together and solve problems to succeed.
![Improve your employee engagement](https://6q.io/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/CTA-target-1.png)
Outdoor activities
Face it; nobody likes to be indoors all the time. There are plenty of team building activities that involve being closer to nature. Activities like paintball, wall climbing and even sport events like soccer and rugby not only encourage staff to work as a team but it is also a good encouragement to a healthy lifestyle.
There are also events like marathons or shorter charity runs or cycling which companies can get their more motivated employees involved in.
![team building ideas](https://6q.io/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/riverraftingteam-1024x692.jpg)
Team building idea: River rafting
Reach out to society
Team bonding does not have to be all about the company itself. There are positive outcomes for both the employee and the company when it comes to volunteering as it is reaching out to the community. Companies can encourage volunteering and take part in charitable events; this can help with the credentials of the company as well as individual employee.
Volunteering for a cause many are passionate about, often brings employees closer on a personal level.
“Alone we can do so little, together we can do so much.”
– Helen Keller
Just for laughs
Staff engagement and work does not have to be serious all the time. There are some board games that involve team work beneath the giggles and laughter.
Try looking into games like Charades or Pictionary or games that majority of your employees have not participated in years, and combine this with other corporate team building ideas. Board games generally encourage everyone to loosen up and work as a team.
Social gatherings
Not all team building ideas involve tedious work of event organisation and planning. Simple fortnightly barbecue sessions or weekly ‘happy hour’ events offer some light at the end of the tunnel after a demanding work week or deadline. It may sound uninspiring but it can do wonders for staff engagement, cohesiveness and camaraderie.
These gatherings not only bond the team on a personal level, it creates a light-hearted atmosphere for a lasting relationship out of the workplace. You can google local areas and types of events, to find something suitable. Phrases like ‘picnics London’, ‘bars Brooklyn’, ‘Jeddah events‘, etc.
In Summary
The idea of team building is to perform various activities that are both fun and challenging, and can also help improve employee performance and productivity at the workplace. Organising team building activities in order to improve communication and problem solving skills as an individual or as a team.
For team building ideas to be effective, management should try to first identify the issues their group is facing. They can then plan activities to address these challenges directly – and make sure that the team will actually gain some benefits from the event.
Try keeping all the team building exercises non-competitive and aim to make it part of a routine corporate culture around staff engagement instead of a once a year event. You can read our 5 pillars on engaging employees to help you get a better understanding on employee engagement.