9 Reasons Why Team Building Activities Are Important

A few decades ago, managers and department leaders believed creating a competitive environment at work was the best way to get the most out of employees. It took them a while to learn that success lay in the opposite direction. Team Building Activities help create stronger collaborative teams. 

Collaboration and team-building are better inducers of productivity than competition. This article looks to give you useful insights into the pros of team-building, including how it can improve healthy work habits. Here are nine simple reasons to invest in team-building:

1. They boost social engagement

Contrary to popular belief, team building activities are not insipid and awkward. If anything, they are an excellent way for employees to break the monotony of sitting in front of their computers and get to mingle with colleagues in other departments. Employees are more likely to feel a sense of connection between them when the company encourages fun activities. It makes them feel like they are working towards the same end and that each of them is an essential piece of the puzzle.

Team-building events are particularly vital for employees who barely cross paths, perhaps because they work in unconnected departments or closed offices.

2. They enhance communication

Effective communication is an integral part of any successful team-building exercise. For instance, when playing a company paintball or airsoft game, employees are divided into teams, developing a strategy to attack and beat their opponents. These strategies require communication, meaning even the most reserved employees will have to participate in the conversations. Team-building is a tried-and-tested approach to scrapping communication barriers and helping employees learn from one another by simply talking and listening.

3. They bring out leadership qualities

All teams need a leader to coordinate the members and communicate ideas. Those with natural leadership attributes will certainly stand out during these events, often oblivious that someone is watching them. As a manager, you can take this opportunity to identify employees suited for certain leadership roles and line them up for promotions in due time. Always ensure employees don’t know about this if you want everyone to act naturally and not just perform to impress you. 

4. Team-building boosts employee confidence

Confidence, defined loosely as the stuff that bridges the gap between thoughts and actions, is requisite to workplace performance. This is because employees won’t spend too much time scrutinizing simple and straightforward actions before executing them.

Most team-building activities require quick judgments and actions and can help tentative workers accept that they are not any less skilled or important than their more confident counterparts.

5. They break barriers between junior and senior employees

Even the friendliest and most approachable administrators and department leaders can unknowingly intimidate employees. When employees feel intimidated, they often will do everything to avoid a collision course with their bosses. This deters them from approaching their seniors for new ideas, workflow concerns, and other constructive discussions.

Team-building activities bring employees in different echelons together and even creates a platform for role reversal. This can help junior employees understand that their managers are as approachable as anyone and be more confident in interacting with them.

6. They help uncover hidden talents

Office activities often don’t allow employees to do anything outside their job descriptions. Consequently, supervisors do not get to identify employee strengths that are not applicable in their employment scopes. You may not know this, but even mere team conversations can uncover talents you didn’t know your employees had. Some employees are good at putting ideas into words, while others are good communicators.

Perhaps an employee uploads a fascinating post about a recent team-building outing, or they show excellent photography skills, and you realize the company could use them.

It should go without saying that humans are more productive when using their strengths and talents at work. Team-building activities provide an excellent opportunity to identify these strengths and use them to reassign roles.

7. They boost worker morale

It doesn’t matter how much you love your work; occasionally, you will feel exhausted and bored with the regularity and repetition. When this mood sets in, it can be hard to get the most out of employees, which can take a toll on a department or company’s overall productivity.

Organizing a team building event can be the simplest and most effective way to restore your employees’ motivation for work. It makes them feel like the company cares for their emotional wellbeing and that they are not merely replaceable pieces in a large corporate setup.

8. They promote openness

The office hustle and bustle doesn’t have much room for sharing of personal and family issues. However, just because no one talks about their problems doesn’t mean everyone is alright. People go through a lot in their lives, and may only share with people who take the time to listen. Team-building events provide time for people to get to know each other and open up. If anyone is going through personal struggles, colleagues can find a way to help them out and potentially improve their performance at work.

9. They help companies embrace employee diversity

Most organizations today boast diverse workforces. The gaps that sat between people from some backgrounds and certain jobs have been greatly shortened. Employees nowadays come from different areas and countries across the globe. Some speak foreign first languages and have different cultures and food customs.

These little differences may seem negligible, but they can add up to make it extremely difficult for the workforce to gel. When you organize a team-building outing, you invite your entire workforce into an inclusive event, regardless of cultural differences. You create a platform for individuals to interact with colleagues they have little in common with. These interactions bring them together and open communication channels as they now know how to comport around each other.

Endnote

A well-organized and executed team-building event can be highly beneficial to your organization and employees. For the best outcome, take the time to understand your workforce, so you can organize a great and unique activity that everyone will enjoy.