If you want your staff to give you their very best, you need to instill a sense of camaraderie among them. In order to create that coveted team spirit, staff engagement games and other activity ideas could be used to encourage your employees to bond with each other and, thus, work well together.
Here are some employee engagement ideas and activities that will help you get the ball rolling:
1. 2 Truths and a Lie
Two Truths and a Lie is a very easy, quick, and fun way for teammates to get to know each other better. To play, first invite everyone to sit down in a rough circle facing each other. Next, have them come up with two truths and one lie about themselves and write them down, then shuffle all the answers in a box. Finally, the group will try and figure out which are the truths and which is the lie about each person.
2. Observe People Around You
Divide your team into two lines, Line A and Line B, and have them face each other. Give those in Line A 2 minutes to observe those in Line B. Now, remove Line B from the group for 10 minutes, and have them change their clothes, swap watches and ties, roll up their sleeves, and change all of their appearances.
Now, have Line B stand in front of Line A, and ask the Line A members to determine what has changed about the Line B members. Then, swap the roles, and have Line B do the same with Line A. The team that wins gets a cookie each.
3. Name Staff Members
Divide your staff into multiple teams, and put everyone’s name into a small box. Each team will take turns drawing a name, and each individual will use particular terms to describe the person whose name he or she drew. The one whose description gets the most votes wins the game.
4. Pair Them Up Through Yin and Yang
This activity is an ideal way for your team members to get to know one another. Make Yin and Yang pairs such as butter and jelly or salt and pepper. Write one part of each pair on a piece of paper, and tape the other piece on the back of each person. Everyone will take turns figuring out which one is his or her “pair” while using only yes-or-no questions. Once your team members find their pair, have them sit in a corner and tell each other five interesting things about themselves.
5. Race Through the Town
Pair up your employees, and give them clues to get to a specific destination. Once there, they will join other pairs to get to another destination until they get to the final destination, which could be a chic restaurant, where they can have a great meal at company expense. This is a very good way of boosting employee morale when things get very hectic. Plus, a good lunch always earns a few extra brownie points in the eyes of employees.
6. Fun and Games During Training
Fun and games can help increase the efficacy of online training, such as a project management professional (PMP) certification, for instance. In fact, if done right, this can be a great way to ensure a high level of employee retention, which could effectively eliminate the need for multiple training sessions and demonstrate how training could be turned into a fun activity. For example, if employees are enrolling in courses that will grant them an online PMP certification, then they could learn together and have fun at the same time.
Some Digital Alternatives
Mister Rogers Calls
A very popular remote employee engagement activity is Mister Rogers Calls, which involves one-on-one videoconferencing with your remote “neighbors.” Each week, an app can randomly match two people from your remote team. The goal is for them to schedule a call during the week, the only guidelines being the call can be about anything except work and must be about 30 minutes in length.
Online Office Games
Another fun way to boost engagement among your remote team is through online office games. These are hosted activities during which you’re invited, along with your employees, to play a series of challenges and games via video call. These can be considered a kind of virtual Olympics, with communication and trivia games included. These games are 90 minutes in length and can be conducted over the secure Zoom line that’s provided. One of the advantages of working with providers while running your event is that everything is handed off, and you can participate, as well, which is great for teambuilding.
International Monster Hunter
International Monster Hunter is one of the better virtual employee engagement activities; it’s a facilitated game during which your teams become amateur detectives and can form squads to track creatures around the world. They may uncover the legendary Big Foot, Ebu Gogo, or Chupacabra. This activity is effective because it requires teamwork and is developed around a fun framework.
Seedling Community Garden
Almost everyone has an addiction, whether it be Chipotle, small backpacks, or house plants. If yours is the love of house plants, you and your team can develop a seedling community garden. This activity can be thought of as the work-from-home version of a public school science experiment; everyone just needs a cup of dirt and leftover seeds from watermelons, apples, and other such fruits. And, if you can wait 5 years, you can grow an avocado tree that can save you many dollars each month!
Conclusion
Games such as Race Through the Town or Yin and Yang either during the workday or even during training exercises can go a long way toward increasing your employees’ morale and getting them to work more effectively as a team.
Beck Rana is a game developer who designs and creates video games for computers and video game consoles. She also writes out ideas and concepts for characters—levels she absolutely loves.