Team building is often a phrase employees might roll their eyes at or consider unnecessary. Yet establishing a cohesive and friendly team can positively impact your business due to the collaboration it promotes. Choosing the right kind of team-building activities for your small company can help people bond, establish a deeper level of trust, and bring teammates together. Though we’re not just talking about overused icebreakers. Team building activities can include murder mysteries, comedy clubs, and mini golf for example. Take a look at our TechRound team-building recommendations as inspiration for your next activity.
What Are The Benefits Of Team Building?
Apart from being a fun way to get to know your colleagues, team building for small companies can build camaraderie and trust. Just like how a sports team might train together and build up friendships, colleagues who trust each other can work to the best of their abilities. Plus, establishing friendships in the workplace can make the prospect of going into the office all the more enjoyable and help to ensure employee retention.
Small Company Team Building Activities
Team building does not need to be an all-day affair, nor should it be a quick process to simply tick off. In a small business, employees may collaborate more often than in larger organisations, requiring a sense of established team cohesion. Some of the best team building activities for small business and startups are outlined below to ensure such cohesion is maintained:
1. Escape Room
First up, we’ve got escape rooms. As a fun way for people to test their problem-solving skills and work together, escape rooms have boosted in popularity over recent years with a number of themes to choose from, from movies to zombie apocalypses. An escape room is also beneficial as there is a common objective for everyone to focus on. This way, if your team do not know each other particularly well, this is a surefire way to avoid awkward silences.
2. Topgolf
Next, opting for an activity which is not too physically demanding such as a driving range can be a great way for teams to have fun and compete. Topgolf is a golf driving range game with electronically tracked golf balls and automatic scoring, creating an entertaining and modernised golf experience. Even if you are not a frequent golf player, Topgolf provides a pressure-free environment where players are invited to simply have fun and connect. Plus, their sports bars, food menus and range of golf games ensure you’ll be entertained for the full sessions.
3. Online Gaming
If you are hoping to stay in the office or someone’s home for your team-building activity, it could be worth setting up online gaming systems for your team to enjoy. Popular games might include Mario Kart and Gartic Phone as they are easy to play and slightly addictive. With smaller companies in particular, video games can be a cost-effective way for colleagues to bond and work together.
4. Trivia Quiz
Quizzes might not be everyone’s cup of tea but they are a classic team-building activity. As the boss or manager, you can organise teams based on people’s strengths so they are fairly even. What’s more, you can choose categories which are not all general knowledge related. For example, you might include an arts and crafts round where teams have to build something out of a selection of art supplies. The scope for quizzes is vast so feel free to customise it how you see fit.
5. Work For Charitable Causes
Many companies encourage their employees to volunteer for a charitable organisation as part of a team-building activity. Colleagues could donate supplies to a local food bank, collect money from the public, or volunteer their time to help a charity in another way. This is a mutually beneficial incentive with your employees bonding over the work they do and the charity benefitting from some extra help.
6. Comedy Club
Coming together for some laughs is a lovely way for a small team to relax outside of work. Comedy clubs often provide group discounts and some will host private corporate events which could be worth looking in. Though the comedy must be to everyone’s taste without alienating any of your team, so it might be a safe bet to opt for a comedy club with family-friendly material.
7. Murder Mystery
Similarly, a murder mystery can spark the interest of your team and put their problem-solving skills to the test in an engaging activity. You can either organise the murder mystery yourself by deciding on a theme, characters, motives, and details of the murder. Or, it is possible to use professional companies to organise the murder mystery for you with all the tools you might need. Either way, it’s a great way to keep people entertained.
8. Pictionary
As a classic group game, Pictionary is inspired by charades and requires teams to guess a word based on their teammate’s drawing. The fun of Pictionary is the drawing skills, or lack of, by your team which is often the target of playful banter. Plus, Pictionary can be set up simply with a pen and a piece of paper, making it a cost-effective way of encouraging team bonding.
9. Meal or BBQ
An alternative option for team building is taking your employees out for a nice meal, courtesy of the company. If it’s sunny weather, you could organise a BBQ for your team while they relax in the sun and unwind. A meal is a popular company treat and can be perfect for a smaller organisation with fewer employees to cater for. Just make sure to have a note of any dietary requirements or allergies before making a booking.
10. Show & Tell
Finally, you can revert to childhood memories and encourage employees to bring an object into your place of work and describe it as well as their reasoning for bringing it in. To make the activity a bit more interesting, you could organise themes. For instance, your team could bring 3 objects each: one they couldn’t live without, one which others might find surprising, and one they have bought recently. This way, teams can gather a better insight into others on a personal level and connect over similar interests. Team building can be made out of most activities as long as it is engaging for participants.
