In a world that is becoming more and more virtual, it’s so important for leaders to be making an extra effort to improve their workplace culture. When employees feel connected to their co-workers, it contributes to an overall positive attitude towards work. Incorporating team building activities in a virtual setting will help boost employee morale, even in remote teams. As a leader, you should be utilizing these easy team-building activities:
Show and Tell. A show and tell can easily be done in a virtual setting; ask your team members to bring some sort of object to the meeting that they are proud of or want to show off. During the meeting, every team member will take turns showing off their object and explaining why it is important to them. This can also be done by having team members take turns so one person does a show and tell in each meeting. Show and tell is a great way for remote teams to learn more about their co-workers and what they are interested in outside of work. You’ll find that you’ll learn so many things about your team that you didn’t know before! Show and Tell is also a great opportunity for team members who are more reserved to be able to share more about themselves.
Bounce Off. In your next team meeting, business or social, use the “bounce off” method to encourage meaningful conversations. In this method, each person “bounces off” what the prior person said when they start to speak. For example, if someone said they went to Maine for a long weekend, the next person would bounce off with their own Maine-related story. This activity encourages active listening within the team, and helps to find similarities between teammates.
Two Truths, One Lie. In this activity, have each team member come up with three statements about themselves: two of them being true, one being a lie. One at a time, they will share their statements and the rest of the group will discuss and vote which statement they think is the lie. This activity is a fun way to allow your team to be creative and choose facts that they want to share about themselves. It can also drive some friendly competition in figuring out the “lie.”
Slack Channels. Using the Slack tool, create channels within your company based on common interests or hobbies. For example, you can create specific channels like “Book Club,” “Wine Club,” “Hiking Club,” etc. Creating slack channels can be used as a long-term tool to build relationships between team members. The opportunities for channel categories are endless, and it allows for those who are passionate about the same things to get together and share their interests.
As a leader, here’s how to encourage gratitude in your workplace.
Trivia. Split the members into teams and think of a “prize” at the end, even if it’s just bragging rights. Your trivia can start with questions about the company (what year it was founded, who founded it, etc.) and then branch out into general categories like history, science, and pop culture. Trivia is a classic, and is always a fun way to see your team’s competitive side come out. You might find some hidden talents among your co-workers that you wouldn’t have suspected before!
Zoom Happy Hour. Schedule a time that works for all team members, preferably on a Friday, to hop on zoom for a happy hour! You can choose to have topics in mind to discuss, or just have it be a free social period for employees to bond with each other. To add a fun twist, you can add a certain ingredient like “lemon” or “cranberry” that everyone has to have in their drink! Similarly, you could have a drink-off where everyone makes a different cocktail (or mocktail), and the team votes on which drink had the best presentation!
Rotating “Roles.” This is a tool that can be used in every team meeting, no matter the purpose. Create designated roles for team members to have during a meeting, such as note-taker, facilitator, timekeeper, etc. You can assign these roles to rotate throughout every meeting, so that each team member has a different “role” depending on the meeting. This will make meetings a little more exciting, and keep employees more engaged throughout the discussion.
Check out our other ways to improve team collaboration in a virtual setting!
Make sure to incorporate these activities into your next meetings for some added fun and laughs! For more tips on all things remote leading and hiring, check out our Employer Tips or contact us at mglenny@franklinprofessionals.com.
