5 Features of a Perfect Corporate Team Building Activity

Whether held in Peoria, Toledo or New York City, corporate team building and employee entertainment events should have a lot in common. Sure, there is a lot of variety out there, and plenty of activities to choose from (although “trust falls” may be a bit past their prime). However, when it comes right down to it, employee team building events should deliver a high-value take-away to all attendees involved, which will prove beneficial for company morale, boost productivity and foster better teamwork.

Below are 5 mandatory features for a successful event. While it is impossible to please everyone, and not every activity is for every group, the ideal event will neatly & creatively demonstrate the following characteristics:

1) Fun – If it isn’t fun, it isn’t  team building. In order to successfully transport people out of their regular headspace, employees at an event must abandon the negative emotions they often come into work with – namely anxiety, frustration, depression and fear. In it’s place, the activity must generate the exact opposite, countering strongly with positive emotion- in a word, fun.

2) Unique – By their nature, team building activities are intended to be both a physical and mental escape from the day to day office drudgery. The ideal event will take place in novel surroundings, led by new people with new faces, and bring an entirely different experience which the group is accustomed to.

3) Memorable – The event can’t just be a good time for one evening. In order for the messages of the activity to truly hit home, it has to be something which produces lasting positive memories, which the group can reminisce about in the weeks and months after the event is over.

4) Impactful – Did the event have a positive, measurable impact on the group? Whether through improved workplace relations, boosted productivity, enhanced efficiency, better communication or noticeable increase in overall office morale, a successful event has made a strong impression, allowing your employees to work better together.

5) Replicable – While team building activities can effectively enable positive change on a group’s dynamics, the changing nature of teams – and of work itself –  requires repeated activities over time, in order to successfully impart messaging long-term. A high-value activity thus is one which can be easily replicated, yet which provides a different user experience every time.

Are there other core aspects of team building activities not included here, which you feel are important for your employees to experience?