Team-building activities are a powerful tool to improve performance. They help team members trust each other more, communicate better, and share enjoyable experiences, all of which lead to enhanced teamwork. A study by Gallup found that companies with engaged employees outperform those without by 202% in terms of financial performance. However, finding the right team-building activity can be challenging. We analyzed over 100 activities to identify the top 5 most engaging ones with the highest return on investment.
Walking challenge is the ultimate team-building activity as it allows team members to participate at their convenience without requiring them to engage in unfamiliar tasks – simply keep walking to join in. Today, several step challenge apps make this team-building activity even easier and more inclusive by enabling team members to participate, even if they’re not walking. This activity is excellent because it sparks conversations between employees and positively positions the organization as one that promotes wellbeing.
How to Get Started: To save time and make it easy for everyone to participate, use one of the leading step challenge apps like Reaction Club, MoveSpring, or Virgin Pulse. Most of these platforms allow you to create a step challenge in just a few minutes and at a reasonable cost. If you don’t have a budget, you can create a spreadsheet on Google Drive, share it with your team, and ask them to fill in their data daily.
Tips for Success:
- Provide Rewards: Drive friendly competition by offering rewards. Make sure to recognize winners with announcements.
- Make it inclusive: Don’t just reward top performers; also recognize those who support others or show significant personal improvement, giving everyone a fair chance.
- Diverse activities: Allow other activities to be included, and reward participants with points for them. Avoid converting other activities into steps to maintain reliability, but manage a point system to recognize effort.
- Create a Feed: Encourage team members to share their daily walking experiences, which will spark conversations and foster a sense of community.
- Set a Goal: To enhance collaboration, set a collective goal for the team. Use a step challenge goal calculator to determine the appropriate team goal for your challenge.
The Score Prediction Game is one of the best ways to engage your team around major events like the Olympics, the Oscars, Eurovision, or the FIFA World Cup. This game not only adds excitement but also fosters conversation and camaraderie among team members before, during, and after the tournament.
These events naturally generate buzz and excitement, and the Score Prediction Game amplifies this by involving everyone in friendly competition.
How to Get Started:
Choose an Event: The team leader selects a major event that is relevant and exciting for the team. This could be anything from a sports tournament to an awards show.
Make Predictions: Team members predict the scores or outcomes of specific matches, games, or categories within the event. For example, they might predict the score of a football match or the winner of an Oscar category.
Track Points: Based on the accuracy of their predictions, team members receive points. For example, correctly guessing a match score might earn more points than predicting the winner without the exact score.
Leaderboard: Points are tallied, and team members are ranked on a leaderboard. This adds a layer of competition and keeps everyone engaged throughout the event.
Celebrate the Winner: At the end of the event, the team member with the most points is crowned the winner and could be rewarded with a prize.
Tools to Use: There are several apps designed to make score prediction games easy and engaging, such as Kiss My Score, Reaction Club, and others. These apps include features like automatic point calculation, leaderboards, and social sharing to improve the experience.
Team volunteering is the perfect way to create a sense of purpose, connection, and collaboration among team members. By working together on a meaningful cause, members can strengthen their bonds, develop new skills, and make a positive impact on the community. An organization with a strong commitment to social responsibility can improve its reputation and attract top talent.
How to get started: Find a volunteering opportunity in your area or online, and set a time frame and goal. For example, employees could volunteer 4 hours a month by giving food to homeless people in your area. If all your team members are in the same location, you can arrange for everyone to meet and volunteer together. However, if scheduling is an issue, create a shared feed where employees can track their activities and share experiences to inspire each other. There are excellent platforms that can help you find volunteering opportunities near you, such as Reaction Club, Reach Volunteering, and VolunteerMatch.
A photo challenge is a fantastic culture-building activity that gives participants a fun way to learn about each other’s lives and connect through shared interests. Additionally, it allows you to create a team collage that helps everyone remember the fun moments shared.
How to get started: Create a list of 30 prompts that participants need to respond to with a picture. For example, ask them to take a photo of their workstation, a favorite drink, or a beloved animal. Set up a communication channel where you can share one prompt each day and ask employees to respond with a picture. At the end of the challenge, gather all the photos and create a team collage.
5. Fitness club
A group fitness activity is an amazing team-building tool that promotes physical health and strengthens bonds between colleagues. The endorphins released during exercise create a natural high, boosting mood and fostering a sense of camaraderie and shared accomplishment. Start small with daily micro-challenges like a plank challenge or squats challenge, encouraging everyone to participate and support each other’s progress.
Gradually increase the intensity and variety, incorporating fun options like a yoga challenge, a company run crew, or even a cycling club. These shared experiences not only promote physical health but also create lasting memories and deepen connections among team members
These five team-building activities for work are guaranteed to boost morale, promote wellness, and strengthen the bonds among your colleagues. For more exciting ideas to boost team cohesion, check out our comprehensive list of team-building activities for work.
