10 Innovative Ideas for
Successful Team Building Events
by Ron Kaufman
Team building can give a powerful boost to the
spirit and effectiveness of any group. Well designed and delivered team
building programs can lead to better understanding, clearer alignment
and much stronger motivation.
Organizing a "team building event" is a
big responsibility. Use these ideas to make your event a well-planned
and memorable success.
- Set the Tone With an Inspiring Theme:
Telegraph the tone and purpose of your event with a theme that hits
the mark. "The Third Annual Team Building Program" is not
going to excite many participants. Here are examples of themes my
recent clients have to motivate and communicate their teams:
"Rocket to the Top, Together!" (for a software company
seeking to achieve dominant market share), "The Winning
Team" (for a financial services company seeking to overcome
competitors and economic adversity), "Forging a New
Alliance" (for a medical services group managing a reorganization
of roles and departments).
- Prime the Pump for Full Participation:
Use internal communications to get everyone interested and ready for
the event. Use memos, bulletin boards, posters and internal meetings
to arouse people's curiosity.
You might circulate a list of objectives and issues for the meeting.
You might conduct a survey prior to the meeting, announcing actual
results during the program. You might task certain individuals with
preparing a business presentation, or selected teams with creating and
rehearsing an entertainment item.
- Conduct the Program Off-Site:
Major team building programs are frequently conducted
"off-site". This allows participants to get away from the
workplace physically (minimizing disruptions) and mentally (opening
their thinking to new points of view).
- Use a Mix of Energy, Enterprise and
Entertainment:
Stimulate interest and get involvement by using a full range of team
building activities. You may have "hard work" sections with
speeches about the future and workshops on current business problems.
You may have "play hard" sections with team games and
outdoor challenges. You may include social ingredients through
mealtime activities, awards and entertainment.
Be sure your range of activities are well-sequenced throughout the day
and evening. Be especially careful to follow lunches with activity,
and to end your program on a note of confidence and commitment.
- Allow Enough Time to Process, Discuss and Apply
Allow enough time between each activity for discussion, learning and
application back to the job. It's better to have a full day with two
team building games and enough time for discussion, than a
"stuffed" day with three or four games with little time for
reflection.
- Focus on New Actions with "More",
"Less", "Start" and "Stop":
During the program, have participants develop clear answers to the
following questions:
- "What do you want (the other person,
department, etc.) to do more of?"
- "What do you want (the other person,
department, etc.) to do less of?"
- "What do you want (the other person,
department, etc.) to start doing?"
- "What do you want (the other person,
department, etc.) to stop doing?"
Towards the end of the program, participants can make another list of
personal commitments:
- "What am I committed to do more
of?"
- "What am I committed to do less
of?"
- "What am I committed to start
doing?"
- "What am I committed to stop
doing?"
- Use Photographs and Video to Extend the
Program's Impact:
Engage a photographer and/or videographer to document your team
building program. Give copies of photographs to participants after the
event. Post the best photographs on your bulletin boards, in the
cafeteria, or publish them in the company newsletter. If you put them
up on your company's World Wide Web site, then staff's family members
can log-in and view them from home.
Have the videotape edited with music and some snappy graphics. Show
this short but entertaining vignette at another company meeting,
social gathering, dinner and dance, etc.
- Harness the Power of Peripheral Players:
When selecting participants for your program, be willing to include
those tangentially related to the core group. Internal customers,
suppliers, neighboring departments, etc. can all yield a few
participants who are "closely related" to your core group.
These "peripheral players" will often add significant value,
perspective and insight to your program. They can also help with
communication back into the organization after the event is over.
- Get Personal:
Make sure everyone sees the link between "group team
building" and "individual actions" on the job. Have
each person complete a commitment card, action planning list, personal
promise statement or some other vehicle to ensure application of
appropriate new behaviors. Closing a team building program by having
everyone share their list is a good way to gain buy-in from
individuals, and the entire group.
- Reward the Organizers:
Planning and preparing a team building program is a major undertaking.
Be sure to give recognition to those who did the work "behind the
scenes". A small but thoughtful gift, given in front of everyone
at the end of the program, will be appreciated and remembered.
© Copyright 1999, Ron Kaufman
Ron Kaufman works with multi-national companies,
government organizations, industry associations and other committed
clients throughout the world. More than a million people have been
inspired and informed by his high-energy keynote speeches, interactive
workshops and special conference events. Ron's infectious enthusiasm
makes learning more effective, more rewarding, and a lot more fun! For
more information, or FREE newsletter, visit Rons website at www.RonKaufman.com.
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