Team Building Games – Connecting People

Team building activities do not only increase employee interaction, but also generate awareness of the other departments work responsibilities, help understand the need of cooperation, the significance of sharing knowledge, and the benefits of team work.

Games are an essential part of the team building process. Team Building Games are more than just opportunities for employee recreation and fun. Games teach the importance of teamwork and help induce team spirit. They help bridge the gap between different departments of an organization and promote cordial relations among employees. They also greatly help bring different employees together to form a cohesive unit driven by mutual focus on goal achievement.

They can be classified into two different types: Indoor and Outdoor games.

Board games, jigsaw puzzles, mimes, indoor golf, musical chairs, carom, Passing the Parcel, Truth or Dare, Chinese Whispers, indoor basketball, etc, are some of the Indoor games that will be played within the office premise. Games like 3-legged racing, bobbing for apples, balancing the lemon, treasure hunts, cricket, football, rugby, etc, are Outdoor games, which will be played over company-organized sports events.

Indoor and Outdoor games can also be combined. A typical example of combination game is Treasure Hunting.

Importance

When several departments work together on a project, slighting one department for another is often the practice. Most times, employees themselves are responsible for discrimination of their coworkers. A typical example of this is the never-ending strife between the technical and creative departments.

An efficient management is one that is aware of inter-departmental relationships. When you are choosing Team Building Games, you must keep any inter-departmental ‘wars’ in mind. Your aim should be to unite the departments in a social environment. This can be achieved by bringing them together o participate in indoor or outdoor games.

Also, remember, to mix your employees well. It is not imperative that the creative and technical departments should form two unique teams. Including equal number of employees from both departments into one team will increase the scope of interaction and minimize inter-departmental prejudices.

While you may choose from among many common games played in the corporate sectors, you may also experiment with different other uncommon games. Cricket, soccer, basketball, tennis, and badminton tournaments are the most common games played during company sports days. You can also experiment with chess, hockey, rugby and golf matches.

When you are conducting games, do not shy away from introducing new games to your employees. Your employees must be able to adapt. Besides, new games will also build up excitement and encourage interaction. Remember, people unite most effectively when they are faced with challenges collectively.

Whatever Team Building Games you choose, the purpose should be clear to your employees. The aim is to increase interaction and establish cordiality between colleagues. When you organize games, make sure they are games that everyone can participate in. Take into account the female population in your organization. A mix of games that both sexes can play is important.

Choosing Team Building Games may look as simple as choosing games for a children’s party. However, it is not. Because you are dealing with professionals here and people of different personalities, skill sets, and work attitudes, choosing a game that will induce a spirit of teamwork is slightly more challenging than picking just any game from the hat