6 Virtual Team Building Activities with Great ROI
So, you’re an existing remote employer or your team has just recently gone remote. You may be wondering, do you still need to host virtual team building activities if your staff is remote? The short answer is yes, you do! One of the challenges remote workers experience when working for remote employers is the feeling of exclusion or isolation. This is even more prevalent when the company is partially on-site and off-site. Virtual team building activities create engaged teams which correlates with higher productivity, job satisfaction and retention.
Sheryl Estrada of HR Dive, notes that “high belonging is linked to 56% increase in job performance, 50% drop in turnover risk and 75% reduction in sick days.” With this in mind, it is clear that providing a sense of belonging within your workplace is crucial. Team building activities are the solution to creating this atmosphere of belonging as well as to getting your remote staff to bond and connect with each other.
How to Incorporate Team Building Activities Remotely
But, how do you incorporate team building activities virtually? There are plenty of resources and tools available online. Being a remote company, you’re most likely already using a platform to host your video calls and meetings. If not, some of the popular options you can choose from are Zoom, Skype, Microsoft Teams and Google Meet. These tools allow you to choose from face-to-face interaction or non-verbal communication with your remote team.
Besides video-chat platforms, you might need other collaborative tools depending on your selected activity. Having a trivia game? Try Kahoot. Some organizations use their HRIS for daily quizzes. Need sharable slides? Use Google Slides. Alternatively, you can choose Slack for your organization’s chat room. The platform offers several extensions such as Jukebot (create a team music playlist), BirthdayBot (celebrate anniversaries and birthdays) and PlayPlay.io (invite other co-workers to compete against games) that your organization may find valuable.
The most important factor you need keep in mind when hosting your team building activities is allotted time. Team building activities are supposed to literally build better teams through games, challenges or strategies. It’s not just about having your employees talk to each other. You should set aside some time specifically for these activities.
Originally published on Canadian Payroll Services
Best Examples of Virtual Team Building Activities
We’ve listed some of the best virtual team building activities, why they work and suggested how you can implement them to fit your organization’s schedule.
Ice Breakers
Ice Breakers are a simple and easy way to introduce new hires or employees who haven’t already met. They’re intended to get people talking and learning more about one another, as well as remove any awkwardness. You can choose to do ice breakers in regular multi-department (i.e. sales, marketing and development team) meetings or when you’re onboarding several new hires. Here are some ideas for your next Ice Breaker:
- Get your team to tell each other Two Truths and a Lie.
- Ask funny Would-You-Rather questions
- Have your team share “a story of when they ____.”
Meditation Mondays
Your employees’ mental health and well-being should always be your organization’s first priority. One of the ways you can promote wellness is through hosting meditation or yoga sessions through video chat platforms. This activity can help improve employee stress and mindfulness. Begin by finding a knowledgeable instructor to host these sessions online. Then pick the time, dates and the frequency of these sessions. We suggest doing the sessions on a Monday to kick-start your team to a productive week.
Tea or Coffee Time Tuesdays
Mentorship and one-on-one conversations are needed (especially in remote teams) to guide employees. Some organizations have their leadership team meet for coffee, tea or dinner with their top employees to talk, recognize their hard work, provide leadership and discuss strategies for advancement. If you’re an employer wanting to discuss and motivate your stellar employee, book a virtual tea or coffee time with them to show your appreciation! We suggested Tuesdays as it is in the earlier part of the week, but you can do this activity whenever it is most convenient for both parties.
Wednesday Brunches
Brunches don’t have to be exclusive for on-site employees, they can also be done virtually from the comfort of everyone’s home. If some are uncomfortable with the idea of hosting video calls, you can get your staff to take photos or short clips of their brunches and send it to a group chat specifically made for these brunches. We suggest hosting these brunches on Wednesdays as it’s the middle of your work week where team members can give exciting updates or progress on projects.
Trivia Time Thursdays
Hosting trivia or quiz sessions are an exciting way to boost up employee engagement when your remote employees are learning new and important company information. A great time to do these would be during the training or onboarding of new hires. When conducting these trivia activities, we suggest giving out small prizes like online gift-cards or credits to recognize and reward your overachieving employees.
Fun Hour Fridays
Happy Hours (with or without alcoholic beverages) are a fantastic way to end the long work week or to celebrate any of your organization’s achievements. This is the perfect time for your employees to engage in water-cooler conversations and talk about everything BUT work. Your employees can build stronger relationships and personal bonds, which can improve your workplace culture in the long run. We suggest hosting these at the end of the work week, like Fridays at 4pm, through video platforms with changeable virtual backgrounds so you can also have fun themes!