Organising team building events seems to be one task that most assistants are asked to manage, which is not much of a surprise considering we are pretty awesome at organising events! However, team building is actually pretty tricky. There are many elements to consider. Think about it. Firstly, you have to know exactly why your team needs building – getting objectives for any event can be really difficult.
A lot of managers will be given a budget for team building because that is what organisations do, but they have not thought through the areas that are causing concern within the team and how an event can help rectify those issues. Next, you have to know what the budget is. Again – not easy. Once you have an idea of how much you can spend you actually have to organise the event and that includes venue, activities, which members of staff are invited, catering, how to incorporate fun, overnight accommodation, transport and literally everything in between. So, how can you go about organising the best team building event ever? Here is how you get started!
Organising the best team building event ever is not easy!
But, it is possible. It just takes a lot of planning. As I’ve always said organising events is a full time job and PAs are often asked to organise something while also managing all of their other day to day tasks. So, it is important when organising a team building event you get some help from the professionals. In today’s blog post I’ve pulled together a great list of resources that will help you organise the best team building event ever.
Return on investment
- Ask your team what they want to do. In this article from Plan Your Meetings, they suggest that you conduct a survey prior to the event so that you get a clear idea of what the team want to achieve through the team building event. The post also makes a good point about documenting the day – some people will just see this as a day off so if you ask everyone to write a brief summary about the outcomes from the day this will ensure they take things a little more seriously and will help justify the cost. ROI people!
- Bizbash have a great article on how you can extend your team building activities through collaboration and communication. You know that fuzzy feeling you get after a team building event? Well, these tips ensure peeps bring it back to the office.
Team building activities
Okay, here is the fun stuff. This is a list of brilliant fun ideas for team building activities.
- Adding serious fun to your events
- 32 team building game
- A whole load of activities that are free – some are more fun than others, but lots of quick and easy stuff here.
- Take your team outside with these ideas from Hubspot.
- More great ideas, I particularly like the ideas for teams based in different locations.
Some general tips on great team building events
- 20 do’s and don’t’s – This is one from the Practically Perfect PA archive.
- What problem are you trying to solve with your team building event?
- Don’t force the corporate stuff – love this! Let your team have some fun.
Venues
Here are 5 questions to ask when contacting a venue about a team building event
- Has the venue regularly held team building events? Team building events have many elements and the venue needs to know what it is doing to ensure they are a success.
- Is there enough space to hold everything and everyone? A lot of team building venues are situated outside of cities, so there is more space to host all of the different activities including private dining, outdoor pursuits, training and meetings.
- Are there other guests or does your group have the entire venue? Again, this can make a difference when you book the venue. Do you want total privacy or are you happy to use the space with other teams?
- Is overnight accommodation needed and is it provided by the venue? If you expect your team to be together into the evening you might want to think about overnight accommodation and it certainly makes it easier if they are in the same place.
- What are the hidden extras? I’m sure your team building venue can and will say they can pull all of your requirements together, but it is always worth checking if this is included in the price or extra. If you agree to all of their suggestions just make sure you have the budget for it.
Organising the best team building event ever is a lot of work, but it is a great way for you to show off some of your awesome skills. It is a really visible task and, in my experience, one that can lead to a whole new level of appreciation from colleagues and other members of staff.
