While there are a million ways to work on team building, we know that some activities are more efficient than others.

Our article today lays out activities focused on 4 key areas of teambuilding, to transform your teams into unstoppable units. 

So what are we waiting for? Let’s get into the meat and bones of a strong team.

What exactly are teambuilding techniques?

Teambuilding techniques and activities are like challenges that need different solutions to solve a range of problems or tasks. Understanding teambuilding process areas is beneficial for getting the most out of each activity, and we’re focused on tasks that will have your teams communicating with each other in weird and wonderful ways.

Teams come in many shapes and sizes each with their own strengths and pitfalls they should be conscious of. Different types of teambuilding activities work different muscles in the metaphorical body of the team, so we’ve got 4 of the key areas covered. 

Categories of techniques, with examples

No two teams are identical, so for today’s article, we’ve got four categories of techniques laid out, for strengthening multiple areas of the communication skills in your teams. We’ve chosen teambuilding methods focused on “communication-based” techniques for their interpersonal relationships, physical “activity-based” techniques, “problem-solving” activities with tangible goals, and “trust” activities for the team’s confidence. Let’s explore. 

Communication-Based Techniques

These kinds of techniques are set up to focus on the skills your teams have at communicating. There’s a lot more to communication than the language we use, and a lot of the time, too much emphasis is placed on speaking. Listening is just as valuable, and extra things like body language and non-verbal signaling are great skills to practice too. Let’s break some communication-based activities down.

Role Reversal Exercises:‍

Acting out and reversing roles in work scenarios is a great way to develop the communication skills of your team and to think through new points of view. Get teams set up and use standard groups like customer as person A, and service provider as person B. The strength of these activities is their versatility, so you can perform them as uniquely or generically as you wish.

Critical thinking scenarios are constructive for communication too, placing a limit on the amount of information a key decision maker has. Place new spins on communication, like limiting the amount of questions the performer can ask. Make sure teams A and B reverse roles and share thoughts and feelings in a debriefing afterward.

Conflict Resolution Role-Playing:‍

Take the role-playing scenarios up a notch with training in conflict resolution. These types of role-plays take a little while longer to set up as planning constructive conflicts is more intricate.

Gather your statistics from the data handlers at work, and set up some realistic roles and objectives. Customer-provider setups are usually the most popular, with the objective of the customer stating they are satisfied with the outcome of the resolution. Give these a shot for boosting communication in your teams and keep an eye out for members with a diplomatic resolution style, as they’re usually great at this.

Verbalized visions: 

Make the most of the communication skills in your teams with a game of “verbalized visions.” It’s a game that’s often used in ESL classrooms, but it’s so fun and communication-focused that using it to open a meeting or teambuilding session gets the whole team communicating and laughing.

Start with 2 teams, designating 1 artist from each team. Nickname them Picasso, Da Vinci, or any of the masters. The artist leaves the room, and they cannot see a picture on the screen, while everyone else can. It helps if you slowly reveal the picture. After, the artists come back in, and need to replicate the picture on a big A3 sheet. Their team members, who have seen the picture, communicate the specifics of the picture to the artist, as they have 2 minutes to reproduce it as best as they can. The artist with the picture closest to the original wins, ready, set, sketch!

Activity-Based Techniques

Keeping your techniques focused on the activity itself is a good way to strengthen teams. These provide a mix of communication and problem-solving activities, with an extra focus on doing something new. That way, participants stay engaged and curious about the activity itself.

Adventure Outings:‍

When presented with the word “adventure”, most minds immediately think of the great outdoors. Outdoor group games and activities provide a breath of fresh air and work best in a unique setting.

Try water-based activities like sailing and kayaking (if you know everyone feels safe and doesn’t get seasick, of course!). Kayaking event organizers come with safety qualifications and equipment to make the most of the day. The added element of the event being physical means it’s likely to get your teams bonding in new ways. Get your teams sailing to new realms of communication skills with an adventure outing now!

Geocaching Adventures:‍

Get even more adventurous with a “geocaching adventure” for your teams, implementing extra tech into your adventure outing. New companies have set up great new apps that utilize GPS for teams to get into treasure-hunting. The potential is amazing for team building, especially for those with an adventurous spirit!

Try setting up an account with a Geocaching Adventure provider, and make the most of the before and after stages of the hunt. Provide some mysterious clues beforehand to spark curiosity and make your debriefing session reflective on the day’s ups and downs. Happy adventuring! Just remember, it’s dangerous to go alone!

Zombie Survival Scenarios:‍

In the name of teambuilding fun, why not make the most of gaming systems and simulations for a touch of (pretend) fear? A lot of younger staff entering the workforce are familiar with VR setups, so if you have the capacity, jump on board.

Use a VR rental company for some real cutting-edge gameplay. There are new multi-player VR experiences coming out, like the famous TV show Walking Dead: Saints and Sinners, as well as classics like Left 4 Dead. Multiplayer games are a great way to boost teamwork in an informal setting, so treat it as a reward for your teams. Happy hunting, fellow human!

Problem-Solving Techniques

Bringing some problem-solving activities is a great way to keep your teams on their toes and get creative juices flowing. Teams that are good at problem-solving can bring new ideas into the workplace, which greatly boosts the output of ideation sessions and brainstorming meetings. Try out a few of these activities for new levels of creativity.

Bamboo Raft Building:

Float out the idea of an afternoon of bamboo raft building to your teams. Scout out a safe, scenic spot for the day’s outing and get your equipment and materials sorted beforehand. Life jackets and helmets are needed for your teams, and for your rafts, rope or twine works well to tie the bamboo.

Kick the day off with a briefing for everyone on the challenge, and set some timers for brainstorming, designing, and constructing a floating vessel. Get everyone split into large teams, as it’s a pretty demanding challenge. When the timer’s done, get everyone to test drive their rafts on the water, and here you could even set up some markers and call it a race. Debrief and celebrate after. Ready, set, raft!

Rube Goldberg Machine Building:

Rube Goldberg machines are those fascinating chain-reaction machines we’ve all seen in adverts. Honda and Samsung have both used them. Those machines where you’d see a ball rolling down a ramp, hitting a domino that knocks over more dominoes, which then tips over a spoon that finally pops a balloon. They’re pretty crazy, and make the most of trial-and-error and problem-solving skills.

Choose a spacious area for setup, and there’s really no limit to materials. Marbles are a good place to start, then try using dominos, strings, toy cars, and mini-ramps too. Try to get your teams to think outside the box for some creative results. Cheers to Rube!

Disaster Simulation Exercises:

Disaster sims might seem a little too heavy at first, but actually it’s up to you to choose the severity of the situation. Start off by getting a good, honest evaluation of potential disasters that could (but hopefully won’t) happen at the office. Elicit potential emergencies from your teams too.

They could be incidents specific to your workplace, like a data breach sim, product recalls, or cybersecurity threats. Alternatively, general emergencies like severe weather prep, fire drills, or power outages work too. The key is to go through the sims in teams, with the aim of improving their teamwork and ability to work well under pressure. Keep things light at the end for debriefing, and see what kind of results you get. There’s a lot to learn from simulations, and safe is always better than sorry!

Trust-Building Techniques

All leaders know that communication breaks down when teams don’t have trust. So let’s take the trust element of team building as the focus to spin up some new activities. Healthy and happy teams use trust to communicate any worries or grievances, so let’s talk about trust.

Human Knot:

The human knot is a great little trick game that can be used as a warmup activity for many work scenarios. The challenge works well with two teams competing with a timer to see who’s the fastest or can be done as one big group to put a spin on things.

Everyone needs to form a circle standing shoulder to shoulder with one another. Right hands come out into the center of the circle, and everyone chaotically grabs one hand (but not the person directly opposite them!) Without letting go of hands, the group is challenged to untangle themselves. Small, simple activities such as this help to get everyone laughing and communicating through problem-solving, so try tangling with this one at the start of your next meeting!

Partner Yoga: 

Why not try blending mindfulness and physical well-being in an activity that boosts teamwork too? Setting up a group yoga session with activities that focus on partnership and pairwork will have your teams chatting and troubleshooting in no time. 

Get an area sorted that’s nice and open, with some yoga mats and mirrors. Keep the atmosphere calm and get teams of pairs established. You don’t have to be a yoga guru to find pairwork yoga stances. Try out “the boat” or the “partner plank” for the adventurous among you. Mutual support and following instructions will help your team-building skills reach new heights.

Blindfolded Taste Tests:

Taste tests are simple to set up, and rely on communication skills for blindfolded contestants for a touch of teambuilding strategy. You can keep things light, with the old Coke vs Pepsi or Schweppes vs 7up tests, or start bringing in consumables that raise eyebrows.

Hidden chilies in chocolates can catch teams off-guard in a spicy way. You could try focusing on surprising textures like fruits too. As long as one person is blindfolded and gets some communicative help in deciding what they’re digesting. Bon appétit! 

Reach new teambuilding heights on a work retreat!

So you’re focused on getting the most out of your teams? You’re halfway there! Here at Surf Office, we know that getting your teams to their highest level takes patience and commitment. One of the best ways to do this is by inviting them to a team retreat. A twice-annual retreat gets your teams working together in incredible ways.

We've had the pleasure of organizing over 700+ retreat experiences, including remote teams, for many different companies. Here’s what we offer:

• Stress-free transfers? We got you! ✅
• Quality-assured accommodations? Check! ✅
• Engaging team-building activities? Our speciality ✅
• Restaurant reservations? That's on us! ✅
• Expert retreat planning assistance? Of course, we have this covered! ✅
• Onsite support, tailored to your needs? Absolutely ✅

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Not only this but we also have access to 160+ locations around Europe, APAC, the US, Latin America, and now Africa, meaning the sky is your limit when it comes to choosing the right location for you and your team.

Take everyone on a work retreat that will create memories that last a lifetime. Your teams will thank you for it! Spaces are limited, so get in touch now.