During a F1 race, the driver has to make several short trips to the pit stop in during the course of the race. His team members and engineers have to be quick enough to change the tyres and repair any damage on the car if he is to stand any chance of re-joining the race quickly.
But, if they are not quick with their tasks, then the driver loses precious time. This is disappointing for the driver as he has to then make up for the lost time if he is to ultimately win the race. If this happens, frequently it can be a discouraging trigger for the driver.
Similarly, if your employees do not have a driving force which keeps them motivated, they will lose interest in their work.
Team building is one brilliant technique to keep up employee productivity and individual growth at the same time. Apart from this, team building has several other perks which are discussed below:
Build Good Work Relationships
It’s easier to get work done when you know your co-workers well. Having a basic understanding about your co-worker’s working pattern makes it convenient for you to execute daily tasks.
In that respect it resembles a F1 race where the engineers in the pit stop have an understanding about what engine repair the car would need after a considerable number of laps. The same applies for your office when employees know each then there are fewer flaws in their work.
Team building activities help them to build a good connection and work in-sync with one another.
Enhances Engagement
8 to 9 hour shifts can be exhausting for your employees, but by including team building activities, you can keep them engaged and interested in their work. This can be a good way to develop your employee’s skill level. Modern workplaces have flexible work hours and several modes of communication like Skype, whatsapp, mails, etc. which makes it easier to get work done.
Employees who are excited about their work stay longer with the company as compared to the ones working just for a pay check. An engaged employee is self-motivated which means they are more productive than other employees.
An organisation requires a higher number of such employees as they are more proactive and productive which eventually boosts the firm’s growth.
Connects Departments
As mentioned previously, team building helps employees get to know each other and it also helps various departments to function smoothly. An organisation has multiple departments intertwined with one another. This makes it necessary for employees to communicate and know each other well so that they can work in harmony.
Team building activities give you an opportunity to know each other beyond formal pleasantries. This helps employees to share their knowledge with each other and create a better place to work in.
Flexible work culture
Team building activities are considered while recruiting employees for companies. These, activities help to mellow down the intense atmosphere of the firm and make it a happening place to work in.
This way, your employees won’t dislike your workplace and instead take initiatives to make their work interesting. The best part being they do not wait for the clock to hit 5 to flee for home.
Effective Communication
Coming back to the Formula 1 race example, what if the driver knows only French and the engineer can speak only English? Well, this can be a really complicated situation as both won’t be able to understand what the other person is trying to say.
This clearly tells us that communication is the key to getting work done or running a business for that matter. Team building exercises trick participants to communicate with one another and work as a team.
These activities help employees to determine the strengths of their co-workers and carry out their tasks accordingly. For instance, you can divide your 16 employees in a group of 4 to participate in a car racing event. The main challenge here is to take turns to drive, manage and ultimately win the race.
The main trick here is to use the strengths of each team member optimally and adapt to challenges that come along the way. You might have to face other challenges as a part of the race like pit stop challenge or beating the weather.
Or you could instead focus on a fun filled theme event to build team morale. For example, you could consider taking your employees out on a F1 themed corporate day out to have some fun on a F1 simulator.
Builds trust
Trust is an essential factor when you work as a team. Without trust there could be constant friction which leads to work imbalance.
Therefore, it is important to build trust within your employees so that everybody in the organisation is on the same page and reading out of the same manual.
Team building activities can be one of the several ways to build trust. You can get away from formal and strict norms to build trust. There are fun activities such as singing karaoke, playing softball, etc. which help define personalities beyond grey suits and stressed often sombre office situations.
Trust also ensures that the person above or below you is likely to understand what you do and appreciate your efforts.
