Avoid the Lame, Enjoy the Game: Virtual Team Activities Part Two

Examples of things that work and things that don’t.

This is “virtually” useless for team building. Vitaly Gariev on Unsplash

Team-building activities are a common tool used by well-meaning managers to try and improve their team’s performance and member satisfaction. However, not all activities are created equal. As I stated in Part 1, a lot of team-building activities are lame. Seriously lame. In Part 1, I outlined three things that should be considered prior to selecting a team-building activity:

• Start with your “why” before you pick your “what.”
• Know your people.
• Pick an activity that lends itself to the virtual world.

In Part 2, we’ll talk about the good and the bad when it comes to team activities. I’ll provide a few examples of “lame” activities and talk about why they are lame. Then, for my paid subscribers, I’ll provide “good” activities and describe in detail why they are ones you should consider using.

Why Bother with Activities?

With so many lame activities out there, you might wonder if they are worth the effort at all. But good activities have been shown to improve communication, collaborative skills, and productivity, while reducing stress and turnover in teams. So, it’s worth the time to find the “good” ones. Before we look at the good ones, though, let’s look at some lame ones and identify why they are lame so you know what to look out for.

Do you really think this builds team cohesion? Vitaly Gariev on Unsplash

The Lame Ones

Virtual Karaoke

One thing you want to avoid with team activities is shaming or embarrassment. This is not The Voice. Not everyone can sing or wants to sing. And we don’t all want to listen to Bob in Accounting’s rendition of Sweet Child O’ Mine. Individuals singing does not really create team collaboration, collective decision-making, or even trust. And the community building that might come from this activity is negated by the frustration and embarrassment it causes. Give this one a pass.

Online Office Olympics / Scavenger Hunts

Yes, I’ve seen The Office episode, and I enjoyed it. I even saw the Big Bang Theory episode where they did a scavenger hunt, and I liked that one too. Neither were conducted virtually, and neither was really about team building. When you expect adult workers to get up and run around their house to find something in the shape of a triangle or do 15 push-ups, the only result you get are annoyed employees. Enough said.

Murder Mysteries

This one is a bit better, in that it does require team members to communicate with each other and make decisions. But it requires purchasing a specialized program and learning it. Do you (and your employees) have time for that? And are your employees really interested in spending time going around being referred to as “Ms. Scarlett” or “Colonel Mustard?” I didn’t think so.

Set the right tone right at the beginning. Kimberly Nguyen on Unsplash

Good Activities

In Part 1, I listed reasons to do team-building activities:

• When you introduce people to each other in a new team
• When you introduce a new leader to a team
• When team members need to work on process and/or role issues
• When team members need to work on collaborative skills
• General community-building (trust/personality issues, new member, etc.)

When you introduce people to each other in a new team

New teams need to build trust and rapport among the members. You are community building at this stage. One issue is that people tend to be on their best behavior in this stage and you need people to be honest and learn to question, push, and really work with each other. Start with low stress, low impact activities that allow people to simply spend time with each other and enjoy each other’s company.

Focus less on games, more on relationship building. Gibran Phito Syaputra on Unsplash

An example of such an activity is Trivia. Using a free program like Kahoot, you can create a trivia game fairly easily. Depending on the size of your virtual team, you can put people in sub teams of 2 or 3 and let them play against each other, or have everyone play for themselves. Be sure and have a variety of topics (like in Trivial Pursuit) so that everyone has the chance to shine.

Another quick, fun game is “Put a Finger Down If . . .“ Everyone starts with all five fingers up on one hand. The leader makes a series of statements and if it is true for you, you put one finger down. The last person with a finger up, wins. Statements may be found online, but include things like:

• You have a tattoo.
• You’ve eaten a box of Pop Tarts in one sitting.
• You’ve ever pretended to be on the phone to avoid a conversation.

When you introduce a new leader to a team

When a new leader is introduced to a team, it is important to create rapport and build trust between the new leader and the team members. Obviously, that will develop over time. But one way to do that in the short-term is for the leader to demonstrate vulnerability and humor.

Questions that allow you “to be known.”

A great activity for this is the Colbert Questionert. This comes from the Late Show with Stephen Colbert and consists of a set of questions that the leader answers. The questions are quirky and fun, but they also provide refreshing insights into the leader’s perspective and personality without being too intrusive. Questions range from “What is your favorite sandwich?” to “What do you think happens when we die?”

The Colbert Questionert can be found for free at https://thecolbertquestionert.com/.

When your team needs to work on process and decision-making issues

I would caution team leaders not to attempt to work on process issues with new teams — the team needs time to coalesce and become comfortable with each other prior to focusing on such issues. Processes like decision-making require members to know their roles and responsibilities, what is being done and when. Members need to understand and appreciate the benefits of personal thinking, but also collective thought.

Creativity and decisions made collaboratively is good for team building. Museums Victoria on Unsplash

One great activity for this that may be conducted virtually, is entertaining, and doesn’t take very long is the Winter Survival Activity. I will include a version of that activity in my Substack for paid subscribers. This activity calls for creativity and demonstrates the value of team decision making.

When your team needs to work on collaborative skills

Teamwork patterns can vary, depending on the complexity and needs of the tasks at hand. At times, the work pattern may be fairly simplistic, like the assembly line approach, where one person works on a task, completes their part of the task, and passes it along to the next member. But other situations demand a much more collaborative approach among all members. Teams should practice this collaborative approach and team-building activities help develop these skills.

Use team activities that require people to communicate. Ivana Medic on Unsplash

An example of such an activity I call Google Map Scavenger. I developed this activity to teach collaborative and communicative skills and help teams build cohesion. First, place people in sub teams of 2 or 3. Then instruct the sub teams to find the following and see which sub team is fastest (3 rounds):

Round 1: 5 blue cars in 5 different countries (1 from each country)

Round 2: 5 Rocking chairs

Round 3: 5 Water Towers

(1 location per item only.) At the end of each round, each sub team should submit screen grabs of the items they found.

The most important part of this activity, however, is in the debrief. The leader should have each team explain the thought process they used to find these things: how did they communicate ideas to one another? Who did what? What was the sub team’s general thought process? Then, have everyone discuss how such collaborative efforts may be aggregated up to larger groups and the possible issues that come with that.

Final thoughts

These are just a few examples of team-building activities that can help your team develop important skills and attitudes. Keep in mind what it is you are trying to achieve when you select an activity and the context in which the activity will take place, and good luck!