Choosing corporate team building activities for small groups is both a blessing and a curse. On one hand, smaller teams allow for more interactivity and closer interactions. On the other hand, not having enough players may make it difficult to organize larger events such as karaoke evenings and artistic performances. This article shares a few tips to help you understand how to pick the right corporate team building programs and activities for smaller teams.
The first and foremost thing you need to take into consideration is the development stage of your team. If the team is very new, you’ll want to enable your employees to get to know each other better, to become aware of the strengths and weaknesses of their colleagues, and to find effective ways of communicating and working together as a team. Board games and role-playing games could be exactly what these people need to become a solid team, with shared goals and with a strong motivation to succeed. A team that has been around for years doesn’t need this type of activity, as its members already know each other very well. However, such groups still need team building activities to help them sort out different misunderstandings and conflicts that may arise between the different members of the team.
When choosing the best activities for your small team, make sure that you address the immediate needs of your employees, in terms of communication and improvement of their soft skills. Furthermore, ensure that whatever you choose meets their expectations and their preferences. Since you already know all these employees very well, you should be able to identify the best opportunities for them to have fun and to feel motivated to promote teamwork. If you know that they don’t like to sit and play board games, you’ll need to avoid such ideas. On the contrary, if you know your team members love adventure and the excitement of the great outdoors, you can take advantage of your team building event to suggest canoeing, rock climbing or other such activities that promote adventure and adrenaline spikes. According to psychologists, dangerous situations bring people closer together. This doesn’t mean you should endanger the integrity or the life of your people, but rather put them in challenging yet safe life situations. Survival activities are as safe as can be, as they unfold in controlled environments. However, they offer participants the adrenaline rush they need to start acting together as a team.
Your available budget will also influence your choices. If you can’t afford expensive outdoor activities, consider finding some inexpensive yet effective ways to promote teamwork and to help your employees keep their motivation to work for you. Roleplay games are among the most appreciated. Also, most people enjoy activities that involve some artistic skills such as drawing, cooking, and painting. A cooking class can be one of the best opportunities to bring your small team together to do something creative and fun, while also improving their communication skills and their teamwork abilities.
The main thing to keep in mind is that you shouldn’t make people compete against each other. A team-building session should be an opportunity for them to cooperate rather than compete, Avoid games and activities that involve choosing a winner. This is why cooking and painting are among the best things to do as a small group. Once you’re done cooking, you can share a nice dinner, eating the result of your joint efforts. The real winner will be your team. All members will also feel rewarded for their efforts and will feel happier about working together.
