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Having an employee development plan is not only necessary for the futureproofing of a business, but also for the all-important retention of key members of staff. Without a vision for where the company sees employees moving forward or a clear career path within the business, members of staff can be tempted to look elsewhere at companies that are willing to offer what they are looking for when it comes to career progression.
It is human nature to be constantly looking at what your next step is, and it certainly isn’t any different in the workplace. Progression is an important aspect of forging a career, otherwise, employees may feel as though they are stuck in a dead-end job with no opportunity to better either themselves outside of work or within their position at your company.
Every company needs to have a staff development plan in place - not just one that looks good on a page inside the employee handbook, but one that works in the real world, too. An effective plan will always cater to both the needs of the employer and the employee, which is why conducting a skill gap analysis is essential.
Not only will this help you to understand the skills of your employees against both their current roles and those they aspire to have, but you will get a better idea of the skills that are present in your team, and any that are missing, too. If, after your analysis, you discover that your team is severely lacking in key areas, you can incorporate this into your overall staff development plan. Training current employees to fulfil roles internally makes more commercial sense than hiring a whole new person that will also require training, as well as time to bed in with the team and their new surroundings.
To conduct a skills gap analysis, you should create a list of all of the roles within your team or company, department by department, and list the skills and responsibilities that come with them to give you a full overview of what is required for the team to succeed. Once you have them, move on to conduct an employee review to gauge the skill set of your members of staff – this will highlight areas of development, as well as opportunities to move into other areas of the businesses where they may already have the relevant skillset to take on the extra responsibility.
When you have identified an employee who has shown the potential for growth in the business, you want to hold on to them and give them a reason to stay for the long-term rather than allow them to seamlessly fall out of your grasp and into those of your competitors. In these instances, a personalised employee development plan that is tailored to the needs of the member of staff in question is not just required but also incredibly helpful for personnel tracking.
By sitting down and holding discussions with the employee, you can find out exactly what their goal is within your company and ask for their own feedback on any training they feel would be beneficial to their development. Here, you can set out a clear process and outline where you see the employee positioned in the short to long-term in the business. When staff recognise the investment an employer has made in them, and feel appreciated, they are much more likely to stay loyal.
Making up part of any effective staff development should be team-building exercises and events that all of the team can take part in. Events, such as those hosted by Team Challenge Company, make for a fantastic means of encouraging members of staff to operate outside of their comfort zones and push themselves, ultimately developing and discovering new skills.
As well as developing the individuals themselves, team building days also work to increase the cohesivity and productive nature in the team. By taking the team outside of the usual workplace setting, you are taking away any pre-existing barriers that might exist between colleagues. You will also find that members of staff may veer away from the structure of their job roles with juniors feeling more comfortable in taking the initiative than they may do in the normal work environment. This can only be positive to the business, highlighting the natural leaders that they already have.
While keeping in mind that the best team building events are not just fun, but they are also an opportunity to learn about what makes your staff tick. Seeing how they operate outside of the workplace brings to light the positives that you want to bring inside of the workplace, ultimately developing staff both on an individual and collective basis.
Development and Team Building Specialists
As specialists in the team building industry, Team Challenge Company takes great pride in the over 400 events that we offer, all of which have been designed with a scientific approach that gets the best out of you and your team. For more information on our vast range of events, or to discuss a bespoke offering tailored to your business, get in touch with on 03300 04 09 03 or send us a message via the contact page today.
Icebreakers are perfect for stimulating growth and cooperation in a team or group. Whether you’re hosting a conference or forming a new department in your business, icebreakers present a great way to create a comfortable atmosphere that brings participants together.
Almost everyone has been in that awkward situation where you don’t know anyone in the room particularly well. Many people are tempted to resort to being quiet and conservative when presented with a scenario or situation where they aren’t entirely comfortable and, as an employer or manager, this is what you want to avoid. If attendees are shy or anxious, the chances are that their attention will be drawn away from the core objectives! Use icebreakers to remove this tension and you’ll have a much more cohesive unit that can address the problems they face as a group. It’s a win-win situation!
To help you find a great icebreaker for your team, here is a list of great corporate ice breaking ideas that can be adapted to almost any situation.
Simple, easy and effective, characteristics bingo is all about encouraging participants to loosen up and discover something new about one other. Before the start of the event, create a bingo sheet filled with interesting traits or characteristics of the people attending. Upon arrival, hand out the sheets to those taking part and encourage them to mingle and ask each other questions to discover which characteristics apply to which people. The first to complete a line on the bingo sheet wins!
This is a classic corporate icebreaker. Participants must go around in a circle explaining what book, music album and luxury item they would bring if they were forced to stay on a desert island for a period of time. The key to this activity’s success is ensuring that people explain their choices, highlighting something about their hobbies or personality in the process.
Everyone attending writes a secret onto a piece of paper and places it in the ballot box. Then the participants take it in turns to pick a secret out of the box and guess who it might belong to. This is perfect for helping a team bond and get to know each other better.
Everyone attending selects a word to describe themselves and explains to the group why they chose that specific word. From that point, each individual should be referred to by their personal descriptor instead of their actual name. If you’re looking for a more corporate feel, then you could just use the descriptor names for the duration of the activity before reverting to real names.
This work icebreaker is perfect for both managers and employees alike because it highlights areas of improvements as well as team talents. Each participant explains one skill to the group that they already excel at as well as one skill that they want to develop further – it’s as simple as that. These talents can be work or non-work related depending on your chosen focus for the icebreaker.
For a more risky but fun option, sharing embarrassing stories is a brilliant way to help people feel more comfortable in their skin and on equal terms with their colleagues. Make sure to give people a few minutes to think about their stories, otherwise, you might find that some are significantly more embarrassing than others!
As children, many of us collected trading cards or something similar; in this icebreaker, hand out card-sized sheets of paper and ask participants to create a trading card of themselves. The cards must include the individual’s name, as well as a fun fact and anything else you would like the participants to share with each other. Afterwards, encourage everyone involved to begin trading cards, specifying that they must read every card that they receive before trading it again. At the end of the activity, sit down and have everyone introduce whoever’s card they have ended up with. This is a fun, creative way of handling introductions which can sometimes be awkward.
Have each attendee explain their biggest pet peeve to the group. This is particularly useful in new teams and can avoid tension or conflict at a later date. For an extension to the task, you can also encourage people to talk about the personality trait they find most challenging to work with. Whilst you might be concerned about the initial conflict caused by a question like this, it’s much better to address the concerns in a formal situation than allow for bickering or pettiness to creep in later.
On to a more positive note! Having attendees share their greatest achievements is brilliant for highlighting skills and making people feel more comfortable and confident, which is essential for effective collaboration and cooperation.
A fun and silly option; don’t smile is a quick game where the participants are told not to smile at all during the meeting or conference. Proceed to make as many jokes as possible and (even if you’re not funny), the participants will be cracking up in no time. Laughter is an excellent tool for loosening people up and when you’re told you can’t laugh, it becomes even harder not to!
Another classic work icebreaker; two truths, one lie is a simple game where participants take it in turns to tell two truths and one lie, after which the other attendees must guess which one is the lie. It’s quick, it’s simple and it’s great for revealing some interesting facts about each individual.
An attendee picks out an object, food, place or celebrity and the rest of the group can ask 20 yes or no questions to try and work out what they are thinking about. For extra depth, you can refine what the participants must choose for their objects and request that they select something that carries significance for them.
Everyone attending writes their name and a question they would like to ask someone else onto a sheet of paper. Then, they fold the piece of paper into a paper plane and throw it across the room. Afterwards, each attendee picks up the paper plane closest to them and must find the person who created it, as well as answer the questions written on it. This is perfect as an unconventional introduction.
As a more considered corporate icebreaker, ask participants to take it in turns to say one thing that they would change from their past and one thing that they would keep the same. Encourage those taking part to explain their choices.
This is a great one for new teams or departments. Have everyone in the group pick out a celebrity hero and explain their choice to the group. Then, for the rest of the meeting or for a set time period, have everyone refer to each other using their chosen celebrity names instead of their normal names. It’s fun and it will stick in people’s minds.
If you have preparation time, creating a small treasure hunt inside your meeting room or work area is a great collaborative team building activity, as well as an icebreaker. Set clues or puzzles for the team to solve together and they will quickly become more comfortable with one another. Add a prize for an extra incentive!
Songs have a habit of sticking in our minds when they’re associated with a specific memory. Ask the participants to take it in turns and talk about a song as well as the memory attached to it. This will highlight an aspect of their past and help everyone get to know each other better.
A simple game that relies on effective communication and is great fun, humbug involves a single participant humming a song and the rest of the group trying to guess what the song is. Add a time limit and split the group into teams for a more competitive touch that will help to loosen everyone up.
Morality is a very difficult concept because everyone is different, and this icebreaker plays into that. Each person is unique and lives life by different rules – ask participants to share their main philosophies that they try to live by; it can explain a lot about an individual’s personality and motivations.
This works particularly well if the majority of the team are of a similar age. Ask the participants to introduce themselves and pick a cartoon character that they feel resembles their personality, as well as explaining their choice. This is fun and silly but simultaneously encourages the individual to explain their personality, helping everyone to become more comfortable.
Hopefully, these icebreakers will help you bring your team closer together, turning meetings and corporate events into the most productive environments possible. Of course, icebreakers are only a small part of a team building event, so whether you’re looking for small icebreakers or in-depth team building activities, Team Challenge Company can help you create the perfect event that develops your team’s skills and brings them together. Explore our vast range of team building activities and supercharge your team’s potential.
Team Challenge Company has been working with businesses and organisations across the UK for over 18 years, offering bespoke, tailored corporate team building solutions. With so much experience under our belts, it's fair to say that we know a good amount about team building, having crafted, designed and ran countless successful events over the years, from outdoor challenges to evening dinners.
One of the most important lessons that we have learnt during our time providing team building experiences is that every organisation has unique requirements. The corporate team building ideas that work for your business or team will always differ when compared to another company or department. It’s essential to keep this in mind when you’re organising any form of team building activity, and our brief guide is designed to not only supply you with some great corporate team building ideas but also to help you make a selection that will give you the results you are looking for.
Before getting into exactly how to find the right corporate team building idea for you, it’s important to understand why you should invest in corporate team building in the first place. Team building has been proven to provide employees with a variety of different advantages that – in the long term – will benefit the business.Here are three of the major advantages of team building - boosting morale, improving communication and teamwork, and harnessing creativity.
Whilst we are creatures of habit and routine, people become bogged down or bored if they are stuck in the same way of life. This is why one of the keys to employee satisfaction is variety in the workplace, whether that is within their type of work or in the activities they engage in whilst at work.
Corporate team building is incredible at breaking apart the monotony of the usual working day without wasting time. Regardless of the intentions behind your team building activity, it must be fun and engaging to be effective because this engagement promotes learning and boosts morale. It should be your goal to find an educational corporate team building idea that your team will talk about for weeks to come, compounding the lessons learnt during the exercise.
With a more positive atmosphere and working environment, staff members become much more productive and efficient, which benefits the business as a whole.
Communication and teamwork are at the heart of almost all business enterprises. Without the ability to effectively convey thoughts and ideas, employees don’t just become ineffective - they become unhappy too.
Team building activities are perfect for encouraging team members and departments to engage with others outside of their usual social circles. This interaction is key for creating a group mentality, as well as for making conversations in the workplace much easier and more honest – increasing company-wide effectiveness.
Each individual has some level of creativity, whether they are a talented writer, artist, or concept designer. For many employees, their creative talents are untapped due to their job role or position, both of which can make staff feel like it’s not their place to suggest ideas. Team building exercises not only make staff more comfortable with presenting new concepts, but they also highlight their hidden talents to management.
Very few businesses truly bring out the most in their staff members, when the truth is that some of the most innovative and profitable ideas could be locked away in a staff member who doesn’t feel comfortable sharing their thoughts. Corporate team building is the key to unlocking this hidden potential.
These are just a few of the advantages that team building can have on your business. Other benefits like targeted skill development and leadership development can have just as much of a positive effect on your business!
Now that we’ve looked at the big advantages of corporate team building, it’s time to find the idea that will benefit your business most. The key to locating the right activity is to break down your needs and create some guidelines for your search – most importantly, you must think about the purpose of your team building exercise, who will be attending, and how much space will you need.
Why are you organising a team building exercise for your business? Is it because you want to give them something fun to do, or are you trying to help develop a specific skill? Maybe you have new team members and you want to help them break the ice, or maybe your sales team need practice selling and answering questions under pressure? A great activity will target a few of these goals and focus upon them, helping your team grow whilst they have fun.
Each corporate team building idea has its own individual focuses and challenges, so before you make a selection, ensure that the goals of the activity match the purpose that you had in mind.
Not all team building activities are suitable for all audiences. For example, if you manage a team of construction operatives, then they are more likely to enjoy an active outdoor team building activity rather than an indoor exercise. It’s essential that you understand and know your team so that you can pick out a corporate team building idea they are going to love.
As mentioned earlier – participants must enjoy a team building activity for it to be successful!
Size is another important factor because some activities simply aren’t suited to large teams. Similarly, other exercises will only work with large groups, so make sure that you are keeping the number of attendees in mind during your search. Fortunately, each of our corporate team building experiences comes with a guide to the minimum and maximum number of participants.
If you note down these three details before you start your search, you should be all but guaranteed to find both a suitable and effective corporate team building idea that works for your business.
Now for the juicy bit! Below are some of our favourite corporate team building ideas.
Whilst we have tried to be broad with our selection, there is a chance that you won’t find an idea to suit your business or team. If that’s the case, please don’t hesitate to take a look at our range of team building activities.
Our Orchestrate! team building event involves turning your team into a symphony orchestra in two hours. It sounds farfetched but it’s more than possible by using musical professionals and teachers to split your team into groups and teach them an instrument.
This activity creates a huge sense of accomplishment, boosting morale and serving as a talking point for many weeks to come. To find out more, click here.
Our GPS Interactive Treasure Hunt activity uses cutting-edge tracking technology to send teams out to explore their environment and solve puzzles in a bid for the winners’ trophy. Focusing on promoting healthy competition, problem-solving and teamwork, this exercise can be personalised based on where your business is based, with extra levels of depth depending on how difficult you would like the challenge to be. To find out more, click here.
Pressure Zone pits teams against each other to complete high-energy, high-tension challenges that demand engagement and focus. Each of the activities requires a different skill, forcing teams to learn about each other’s talents and in turn, promoting unity and effective communication. To find out more, click here.
By combining their skills and solving problems, Beat the Box asks participants to use their intuition to solve an electric combination code. It’s impossible to win without collaborating and working with your team quickly and efficiently, testing both time management and communication skills. To find out more, click here.
Team Torque is a creative activity that requires multiple different skills and excellent teamwork. Participants will plan and build their own car before designing, decorating and promoting their team. The activity is concluded with a bowls-style target challenge that demands accurate calculations and preparation. Team Torque is a complete team challenge that pushes participants to the limit. To find out more, click here.
Armed with these ideas and tips, you shouldn’t have a problem choosing the best possible team building activity for your business. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to get in touch and we will gladly answer any questions you may have.
Everyone loves a quiz! Whether it’s a Monday night pub quiz or a sizeable quiz to round up the year, we enjoy getting a chance to flex our general (and sometimes completely useless!) knowledge skills, especially when the chance to boast about being part of the winning team is on offer. If you’re considering putting together a quiz or want some inspiration for fun quiz round ideas, we’ve put together a fantastic collection of some of the best quiz rounds we’ve come across to help you get started.
Typically, a picture round will consist of a 'Name that X' game. Whether 'X' is a person, place, logo, brand or anything else, these types of rounds always go down a treat and make a good opener for your quiz to get teams warmed up. To deviate from the norm, think outside the box with your picture round and instead, ask teams to:
These are just a few examples that differ from the normal 'name that celebrity' round and can keep your teams entertained and engaged.
Before we get into the different kinds of fun question rounds you can do, consider these 'doing' rounds to keep your teams busy and entertained during your big quiz. You’ll have to consider time if you have quite a large number of teams in attendance, too, so consider setting a time limit for some games.
Question rounds are the staple of the classic quiz, whether it's decade based, film and TV, movies, general knowledge or any subject you want to pick! They are bound to go down a treat and are easy to put together and low hassle to host, with no need to worry about people getting out of their seats. However, question rounds tend to be a lot easier to cheat on so consider a mobile phone ban during these parts of the quiz!
Music rounds always go down a treat and are well received by most quiz-goers, however, they have been made easier with listening apps and readily available charts. To make the music round a little more challenging, you could mash up two songs together or create a one-minute track where ten songs are playing simultaneously (be prepared for a LOT of noise!) Alternatively, consider these ideas for your audio quiz round:
Use these fun quiz round ideas as inspiration or incorporate them into your next quiz for a fantastic, fun-filled event. Alternatively, if you would prefer to leave the organisation to the experts, our professional team would be more than happy to help you organise your next corporate event or team building quiz. Simply get in touch with our experienced team on 03300 04 09 03 today or fill in our contact form online.
Think of one team that is a model for all others; one team that, against the odds, manages to stick together, overcome all obstacles, and succeed.
What team comes to mind?
The Avengers!
You might not have realised that Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D are the epitome of teamwork, but if you look at just a handful of the team members, and how they interact with one another, you'll understand.
So read on to see which Avengers play what role in the team, and why your team should aspire to be the same.
Captain America is the all-round do-gooder, making sure the job gets done properly and that the team is ready and raring to go. By name and by nature, he is the team leader, steering the Avengers in the right direction and ensuring they embrace their skills or put their differences aside for the greater good. Of course, he is also Mr. Motivator, but we don't mean the 1990s' spandex-laden variety; we are referring to the pep talks and inspirational speeches Captain America makes to enthuse his team. This is the kind of can-do, all-for-one attitude every team needs, whether it comes from their team leader or another influential personality in the group.
The Black Widow has a slightly ominous name and what can only be described as a unique skill set, but in the Avengers movies she is the voice of reason. Tough, smart, and resourceful, she isn't afraid to get the job done - something any worker, in any sector, should be inspired by - but she is also the calming influence on the Hulk, and the articulate, emotionally-adept counterpart to more action-orientated team members, such as Captain America and Thor. Negotiators like the Black Widow are essential because they can resolve conflict, communicate and clarify messages clearly, and generally have a positive impact on their team members and the relationships within that team.
In his permanent Jekyll and Hyde state, the Hulk (or Dr. Banner as he is better known in his non-green form) is the embodiment of conflict. His inner turmoil and his two very different personalities are always at odds with one another, despite both being on the same side. And how does Dr. Banner/the Hulk manage to curb and embrace his green side? With the help, support and encouragement of his team! Yes, without teamwork in all its glory, the Hulk would be left loose to roam about wreaking havoc.
Iron Man: the suit with an answer to everything. Inside this sharp-witted superhero suit is the businessman and mastermind, Tony Stark (of Stark Industries). Stark made his millions by being good at business, developing all sorts of technologically advanced programs and prototypes, and eventually building his own superhero suit. Once he became Iron Man, Stark began seeing things a different way, using his incredible problem-solving skills and extraordinary intelligence to help the Avengers overcome obstacles. As such, he has well and truly earned his title of man with a plan. Every team needs a problem-solver, whether that is somebody as technically minded as Stark, as fearless as Iron Man or simply someone who thinks just far enough out of the box.
Yep, with "all the power of the storm, from all the world" flowing through his veins, it makes sense that Thor represents the energy of a team; after all, he is electric! Any good team needs someone to ignite a spark and get things moving, and for the Avengers, Thor is that somebody. When things really start to kick off, the team can count on this warrior god to go all out and create just the right buzz to get them through. Whether your team is office-based or elsewhere, you will want someone who brings energy to the group. This will prevent the atmosphere from feeling flat and help everyone to feel enthusiastic about being part of a group.
And there you have them; The Avengers.
They save the world on a daily basis, and that is testament to the strength and cohesion of their team. Each member has their skills and the personalities find a way to work together for the benefit of all.
So look at your team; identify their skills, take note of their points for improvement, and figure out what makes each member a superhero. Then invest time and energy into finding out how they work together best, either by paying close attention or even by treating them to a team development day.
Have you ever imagined your workforce as a fully-fledged orchestra or a dramatic and exciting percussion band? Maybe you are pondering the fact that Steve in Accounts might not even know what a violin is or that Jill in HR wouldn’t know a musical drumstick from a chicken drumstick!
If you want an experience that is not only guaranteed to have your employees learning something new and improving their adaption skills but will also bring plenty of fun to the team, consider one of our music and rhythm activities for this year’s corporate Christmas event.
Not many people out there don’t love music. Whether it’s classical, world, rap, rock or R'n'B, people listen to music on their commutes, on holiday or just at home to relax. In fact, almost a quarter of 1,018 UK adults interviewed by the National Institute of Adult Continuing Education named learning to play a musical instrument as their main interest in further learning.
Check out some additional information below on what you can expect from one of our music and rhythm team building activities for your next work event!
In two hours, take your team from musically inept to musical maestros with our Orchestrate session. On arrival, guests will be offered an option of woodwind, string, percussion or brass instruments before getting separated into groups for the learning to begin under the direction of expert musicians and instructors.
Once the basics of each instrument have been mastered, instructors will teach each instrument group their part of a five-minute-long piece of symphony orchestra music, specially written for these events, before coming together for the whole room to perform.
The effect is incredible, inspiring and helps employees to realise their potential for focused learning. You may even notice some staff voluntarily take up instrument lessons after the event, which can be great for building confidence and developing personal skills.
If the thought of picking up a classical instrument makes your young team grimace, there is an alternative option that gives them a chance to improve their rhythm skills while getting involved in an exciting and loud musical experience.
BeatsWork has your team split off into smaller groups where they will learn the ins and outs of samba beats and breaks, under the guidance of a professional percussionist.
From here, they will carry out a variety of rhythmic warm-up exercises before learning to play each of the different drums and instruments. At the end of the session, the room will reunite to perform a spectacular samba band piece that will get even the least rhythmic person tapping their feet!
Whether you are planning your corporate Christmas event or would like to treat your employees to a fun experience for their hard work over the year so far, keep our rhythm and music activities in mind. There are plenty of benefits to encouraging your employees to step out of their comfort zone, whether you are trying to build confidence or improve their ability to adapt to new situations. If you’d like further information, get in touch with our friendly team on 03300 04 09 03 or contact us via our online form.
When people think about team building days they may not consider all of the benefits that these activities can bring. Not only do they help to improve key skills, they can also be fun and enjoyable events.
However, what many people may not know is that team building can dramatically improve communication between both employees and clients or customers. Communication is important in any business, whether its in-house or with customers, which is why it’s something that we think employees should work on. If you need some help improving communication in your workplace, here are some ideas to get you started.
The most important reason to improve communication skills in your business is to help it run in a smoother and more efficient way. Rather than working alone, everyone should be clued up and aware of what is going on.
Not only will this help the office to run more smoothly, but it will also help to limit any confusion and effectively deal with issues that may arise.
Activities such as Puppet Masters and Flat Out Formula One are ideal for this as they are both great examples of activities where teams need to work together and communicate in order to win. You can ensure that the teams are full of a range of people from different areas in the workplace, as this will help employees to get to know one another and understand the importance of communicating effectively at work.
Another good reason to improve communication skills is to ensure that customers get the right information. In some businesses, this is more important than having good in-house communication. When customers get in contact with your business, they want to speak to someone with good communication skills and someone who can tell them exactly what it is they need to know without having issues.
However, not only do they want to be able to easily talk to you, they also want you to talk to them
If they have any issues, questions or queries, they will want to be clearly informed. Team building activities will assist with developing these essential skills and may even give you an insight into what it’s like to be the customer. To do this, activities such as Bridging the Divide are ideal as teams are required to produce a product to a customer's exact specifications in order to win, ultimately meaning that they have to communicate with the customer.
Now you know exactly how our team building activities improve communication, but that’s not the only reason why you should look at team building days for your office. No matter what skills need improvement, we can help. So, take a look at all of our activities and see what will best suit you and your business.
Many businesses and organisations choose to take part in team building events knowing that they will benefit their employees and workplace, but they aren’t always sure why. It’s common for management and HR teams to use phrases such as teamwork and team building, but not everyone will understand the specifics of what they are.
So, to help clear things up for everyone, we thought we would outline things in black and white.
In the simplest terms, teamwork is defined as a combination of people taking part in a group activity, but it’s safe to say that there is so much more to it than this.
Teamwork means giving those who otherwise would work alone the opportunity to gain valuable experience and knowledge from others - it's something that can’t be learned from a book and cannot be forced. A group of people must be willing to work together as a team and while they may be required to do so at work unless they truly want to do so, the team may end up being more dysfunctional than harmonious.
Used as a way to improve teamwork, team building is described as an action or process that causes a group of people to work together efficiently. But again, this description isn’t quite correct.
Team building gives those groups that may not be working together so effectively a vital chance to improve their skills, allowing them to build relationships, grow and develop. It gives everyone the chance to learn how to properly work together as a team and build on any skills that may need improving.
Team building activities can be done anywhere, but a team building event that takes place outside the workplace tends to offer a more laid-back approach, allowing everyone to feel more comfortable.
If your office is full of teams struggling to efficiently work together, then taking them outside the office may allow room for colleagues to learn to work as a smoother team. In addition, it will also give them the chance to get to know each other better. The workplace isn’t really the ideal location to get to know one another, not least because there is simply not enough time in the day. So, taking everyone away from the rigidity of tasks and schedules and giving them a chance to really talk is likely to be highly beneficial for everyone.
Taking employees out of the office to work on their team building will also boost morale and give them something to look forward to. You could even treat the exercise as a reward for all of their hard work.
After reading this, we hope that you will now have a clear idea about the ins and outs of teamwork and team building. Not only this, but you should now be fully clued up as to why team building is so important and the benefits it can have on your business. Just remember, while the dictionary definitions may seem to give a comprehensive answer, the reality is that there is far more to team building than first meets the eye.
If you would like more information about our extensive range of events and activities, please don't hesitate to contact us today on 03300 040903.
It can be difficult to get back into the working mindset after the holidays and it might even feel as though you’ve not seen your colleagues for months, even though most of us only had one week off. Corporate fun days could be the solution to all your problems - get back in the swing of things by booking a corporate fun day.
The New Year might be a manic time for your business and staff will need to work hard to reach their goals but it's still important to make time for a corporate fun day. There are various places to go and many different activities to do, so increase productivity, build trust and boost morale by taking part in team activities.
Fun Day Activities
Getting out of the office is guaranteed to make team building successful, and if new employees are starting it’s also a great way to break the ice. There are various activities that can allow staff to let their hair down and prepare for the working year ahead. Team Challenge Company offers plenty of fun opportunities for everyone in the workplace.
Inflatables
Let the inner child out by playing inflatable laser tag or try to win the gladiator duel. If you’re still feeling a little festive, have a dance in the disco dome or test your physical abilities and work as a team to play human table football. Inflatables aren’t just for children and it’s sure to get rid of those winter blues.
Indoor Games
If you’d rather stay inside you could beat your colleagues on the driving simulator or at the longest putt. Simulators can test your mental skills whilst also allowing you to have a great time.
Motorised Activities
Step out of the office and on to a Segway or quad bike. Motorised activities can improve coordination and allow staff to get competitive in a friendly environment. Blind 4x4 driving could help to heighten senses and allow colleagues to build trust in one another.
Entertainment
Gather everyone to see the magician or the fire performers - they will all be able to enjoy the atmosphere and it’s certainly better than being stuck in the office feeling low. Laugh away the winter blues with a clown or get close and personal with falcons for a unique experience to remember.
There are plenty of chances for everyone in the office to enjoy a corporate fun day; the winter blues won’t be a problem for long. For more information, please get in touch with a member of our team today.
Gone are the days when conflict solutions resulted in extended meetings within the management office. Research such as Belbin team roles has dramatically reduced the time required for conflict resolution. Speaking of Belbin team roles, Belbin gave nine overall team roles that exist in most organisations today. He explains their natures, strengths, weaknesses and everything else that a manager might need to know in order to make the most out of their capabilities.
These team roles can be used to effectively resolve and reduce workplace conflicts, and here’s how:
Emotions are what make humans… well, human, but to be emotional while resolving conflict is not the best way to go. It is important while resolving workplace conflicts, to have the larger picture in mind instead of the minute, emotional details. For example, consider a project in which a “coordinator” and “shaper” are competing to take the lead. When resolving such a conflict, it is important for you to base your judgement on the goals and nature of the project rather than the natures and likenesses of the personnel involved. So, if the project has a shorter deadline and needs excess motivation for completion, it would be better to give the lead to the shaper instead of the coordinator. Basing your judgement on such a sound rationale will make sense to the personnel involved and make it more digestible.
At times, conflicts can arise because of a weakness that is part of an individual’s nature. For example, consider a conflict between a “coordinator” and a “resource investigator” in which the coordinator blames the resource investigator for forgetting to follow up on a lead. Now, in such a situation, it is important to remember that it is in the nature of a resource investigator to be this way because their inquisitive nature forces them to bring back so many ideas to the team that it is humanly impossible for them to follow up on each and every one of them. Bashing the resource investigator, in such circumstances, would be equivalent to bashing their nature and will become detrimental to the quality of their work in the long run.
It is important to identify the various personalities within your team; one of the most primary reasons of conflicts is the overabundance of similar individuals in a team. For example, having too many coordinators in a team can literally make a team uncoordinated. It is important to remember, in team building events, different individuals with different skill sets and natures are to be involved in order to ensure that the team runs efficiently, with minimal conflict. Do not just include someone for the sake of inclusion; a qualified individual will not, necessarily, add value to the team.
In case there is a need to involve individuals of similar natures in a team, ensure that the ground rules and responsibilities for each individual is set. For example, if there are two coordinators in a given team, you must ensure that each of them has a set list of responsibilities so that there is no need for them to meddle in each others’ domains.
With the increasing progress of research in the science of management, conflict resolution and prevention has become a simplified task. An understanding of Belbin team roles can go a long way towards helping a manager resolve conflicts amongst team members or even prevent them from occurring in the first place.
For more information on how to reduce conflict in the workplace or to book your next team building event, give Team Challenge Company a call today on 03300 04 09 03 or visit us online, here.
