Ideas needed: Team Building events

[drathzel]

i'm taking my taxis and demos (ssh its meant to be a surprise) to a roller rink for a team day!

[Connie]

Uh thats a good one. I cant take them on a roller rink, but we do have a good ice rink in the area

[David Bailey]

So, have you actually been given a requirement, specification, or objectives?

Or were you given just a "Run a team-building event and here's £25 per head, don't bother me with details" kind of task?

If you have actual defined goals / constraints, then what are they?

If not, then why not treat is as a fun way to spend time and company money, and do what you want, then provide a really good writeup afterwards with loads of management-speak included.

Frankly, you're not going to get a "proper" teambuilding event for the numbers and the cash you've got, at least not without spending a lot of time on it yourself (e.g. organising a treasure hunt / quiz / whatever). So I reckon you should treat it as a pre-Xmas party or something

[Twirly]

Uh thats a good one. I cant take them on a roller rink, but we do have a good ice rink in the area

Float that one around the office first. Friend of mine, her office Christmas do was a visit to an ice-rink two years in a row. She skipped it both times as she absolutely loathes ice-skating - as do I.

I can't stay upright on skates (weak ankles), and to be honest, if I was asked to do this, I'd say no on health grounds - I'd sprain a wrist or ankle probably (I can sprain an ankle just walking along the pavement, without tripping up ) This is my idea of torture!

Of course, you're not going to be able to please everyone...

[JiveLad]

Danish style:

I went on a team building event in Copenhagen 3 weeks ago.

We went on a ferry to an island with an old castle/fort on it. Then we were paired up with someone to walk and talk with for an hour. After that, some food/drink and back on the ferry.

It was interesting for me to discover that the English (led by Nelson) had battled the Danish fleet (and won). Later, Copenhagen was bombed and set ablaze. Kind as we are - apparently we planted lots of English oak trees at that time - which are just about ready now for the Danish to start rebuilding their navy with.

I hadn't heard about that before.

[Connie]

So, have you actually been given a requirement, specification, or objectives?

With my manager, I wish! I am still waiting to be supplied with a jub description and I've been in my current role for nearly 2 years!

Or were you given just a "Run a team-building event and here's £25 per head, don't bother me with details" kind of task?

[David Bailey]

With my manager, I wish! I am still waiting to be supplied with a jub description and I've been in my current role for nearly 2 years!

Go for the "fun" option then - hell, clearly they don't take it seriously, so why should you?

[Twirly]

Go for the "fun" option then - hell, clearly they don't take it seriously, so why should you?

And if the ask about the team building aspect (though is sounds as if they won't) then say you went for the motivational aspect of a treat

[bigdjiver]

I've been lumbered with arranging a team building event for our company of 15 employee's with the grand budget of 25 pounds per person

Please help me out guys and girls, I need some good idea's...

err ... get the team together and ask them ?

[dave the scaffolder]

Take them out for a night of dancing...
XXX XXX DTS Dave

[Rachel]

Hi Connie,
I'm in the midst of organising my team's activity day, too - this is sooo not my thing, but anyway ...

Since we're a charity, absolute minimum spend is a requirement. And because my team are all hippy types, I looked up volunteering opportunities with environmental organisations.

As it turns out, I'm taking them to a conservation fenland. Once the organisation found out what we did, they were really keen to use us to help with accessibility, so we'll probably have some audio guides/tactile map- making activities.

There seem to be plenty of opportunites for things like clearing scrubland, ponds, etc, if you really need something cheap. But, be warned, some of these organisations wanted to charge us £35 per person - not quite sure what for, although they did say they'd provide the gloves!

I know this is not everyone's cup of tea, but you could always off-set the 'rough' with a slap-up picnic meal meal & drinks during the day.

Rachel

[Lynn]

There seem to be plenty of opportunites for things like clearing scrubland, ponds, etc, if you really need something cheap.

We get to do this in my job too - 'work days' at one of our reserves - but mainly as a way of helping the warden with a labour intensive task!

We have team 'away days' where were have stayed overnight on an island in a hostel type place, cooked a meal together etc. Only cost about £30 pp including ferry! (We're a charity too.)

The problem with some of the 'outdoor activity' stuff is that if its a wet winter day people don't feel very 'team like' as they just feel cold and miserable, though you can get great team bonding in the pub afterwards!

[fletch]

[QUOTE=Beowulf1970;413198]Paintball. not so much team building but a good excuse to really vent your spleen on any employees that P**s you off !!

Take it from me.. PAINT BALLS HURT !![/QUOTE]

TO TRUE

I got hit in the chest (before they were done) and on the side of my cheeck

Never never NEVER again

• strip club
• paint ball
  
• theatre and snacks[/B]
• touristy event - like a literary tour of a city
  
• quad biking
• rambling
• munro bagging
  
• a good restaurant meal
• online game such as ConterStrike or WoW in your local net cafe
  
• comedy club heckling
• dwarf throwing
• ok i cant think of anymore....

I work for many year as the only female in a male dominant environment, I have been on most of the above team building.

also did flying lesson's at booker airdrome, doing loop the loop and throwing up, gliding, helicopter flying, and flying a small plane.

We did virtual racing on one day out, we chose our racing jump suits thinking we were racing to be taken into a room where it was all set on large screens, it was quite good, I didn't have to go out into the cold. I think this could be done quite cheep

my advice let the boy's win.

[dave the scaffolder]

my advice let the boy's win.

Fletch my lovely i have never read such good advice from a woman who obviously knows the ways of men.

We are all little boys at heart


XXX XXX DTS Dave

[Jive Brummie]

THere's nothing like a bit of climbing/abseiling to improve team cohesion. If your buddy lets go...you fall!

Maybe a indoor climbing wall-venue could help you out. God healthy, hard work, requires a lot of communication and it's a bit different from just going out on the lash where you'd only speak to your pals and nobody else!

You might also find that a company called British Military Fitness would be able to sort something out for you. Sorry, I don't know your location or even if BMF have anything in your area but you never know.

JB

[Connie]

Thanks for all the great idea's everyone

I've sent an e-mail to all the staff with a list of 5 options, they can then each cast their vote, and the event with most votes. Well we are going to do that

So their choices is:

1. Scavenger hunt in London followed by a meal at a private house.
2. Meal out followed by Ceroc
3. Rollerskiing in Hyde Park, then meal in a pub and "pub olympics"
4. Day paintballing
5. Bingo
6. Meal out then Cajun dancing
7. Poker evening. Meal then a poker lesson, then fun play (playing for chips not cash)

[David Bailey]

Good list

For the Cajun stuff, have a look here for information:
SwampRock

The bonus of Cajun is that there's often (usually?) a live band to listen to, and it's more relaxed than Ceroc in my experience.

[Dreadful Scathe]

I work for many year as the only female in a male dominant environment, I have been on most of the above team building.

You went to a STRIP CLUB for team building ? sheesh, that was actually a joke

my advice let the boy's win.

Men sulk when they lose. More so when they lose to girls. Fact

[stewart38]

So their choices is:

1. Scavenger hunt in London followed by a meal at a private house.
2. Meal out followed by Ceroc
3. Rollerskiing in Hyde Park, then meal in a pub and "pub olympics"
4. Day paintballing
5. Bingo
6. Meal out then Cajun dancing
7. Poker evening. Meal then a poker lesson, then fun play (playing for chips not cash)

I was approached at work following another company golf day re is there something else the non golfers could do

The dancing got interest but never got of the ground

[bigdjiver]

John Harvey-Jones worked his way up the corporate ladder to become chairman of ICL. On his way up ICL decided to build two plants to do the same function, one in Japan, one in the UK. It was the chance the UK team was waiting for to show their prowess. The UK team leapt ahead. They had completed the foundations whilst the Japanese had everybody still arguing about all sorts of things.

The Japanese finished first, and their plant worked perfecty, whilst the UK one was beset with problems.

When I suggested get the team together and let them decide, that was the team building exercise.

John Harvey-Jones went on a team building exercise for foremen and above. As team building exercises should be it involved the team cooperating to solve a construction problem with supplied materials. The managers worked out the strategy whilst the foreman was given the task of sorting the available materials. They went back to him to break the news that his efforts had been in vain, because they had worked out that it was a trick question. It could not be done. It was just an exercise to see how quickly they could together abandon a futile project ( a sadly lacking human skill ).

The foreman had solved it.

In one view of "team" it is ordered. Each member has a function, and any talents outside of that function are ignored and suppressed. This is solid and dependable. In another view the structure of the team is flexible to maximise the use of talents that exist within it. This team may excel and will usually perform above average. However, if the man management skills are not there, it can descend into chaos.

In the ordered view someone decides the options, and the members, as individuals, vote on those few. Some will not know paintballs hurt. Some will not believe they can enjoy dance. A nice ordered team that will, almost certainly, under perform.

When I suggested get the team together and let them decide, that was the team building exercise. Every member of the team will know something that nobody else does, and have the chance to share that information. Everybody will have their own agenda, and have the opportunity to express it.