1. How Do Team Activities Help Improve Employee Productivity?
Employee productivity is affected by factors like individual wellbeing, quality of intra-office communication, and how collaborative a work environment is. Team building sessions can have a positive impact on all of these areas, improving morale, developing interpersonal relationships, and fostering a workplace that promotes effective group work.
2. Team Building Activities for 200 Employees
2.1. Escape Quest
Escape rooms are a popular activity for developing teamwork, communication, and problem-solving, all under the guise of an entertaining, puzzle-filled game. Working together, players must examine their surroundings (whether virtual or real) to discover clues about how to get out of a locked room.
One company that offers these conundrum-filled games is virtual team building specialists Hooray Teams, who can plan, customize, and host escape room team building activities for 200 employees and more. Hooray Teams has several different themed escape rooms to offer, including The Alchemist, Patient, and Mafia, all of which have been designed to provide an immersive experience that is atmospheric and engaging. The event uses breakout rooms to cater for larger groups, dividing them into smaller teams that can attempt to solve the puzzles independently.
2.2. Trivia Challenges
Who knows the difference between a reptile and an amphibian? How about the movie that won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 2000? Team trivia contests can cover a broad swathe of knowledge, making them one of the most inclusive activities for large groups. They’re also easy to organize for both in-person and virtual team-building sessions, with very few resources required beyond a host with a set of quirky questions.
If you want to put a professional gloss on the event, hire an external provider to arrange and lead the event. Hooray Teams, for example, have pre-prepared virtual quizzes that encompass general knowledge, pop culture, and festive holidays like Christmas, among other topic areas. The company can customize the categories to focus on whatever subjects you prefer or even feature questions that are bespoke to your business.
Up the stakes of the trivia contest by offering a small prize to the team that scores the highest, such as gift vouchers, food hampers, or scented candles.
2.3. Group Art Projects
Not all team building activities for 200 employees have to involve competitive gameplay. Group art projects put the emphasis on creativity while also providing the perfect metaphor for a successful company: here everyone works towards the same goal while also being given the chance to showcase their individual skills and style.
As one of the best indoor team building activities for large groups, a team art project can take the form of a collaborative mosaic, collage, or painting. Draw inspiration from Japanese crafts and build an origami mobile made from paper cranes, organize a street art class for your team that culminates in the creation of a team mural, or mastermind a giant artwork composed of 200 individually painted canvases.
Some group art projects only really work in person. For example, if you’re making one cohesive mosaic out of old bottle caps, that’s something that needs to be coordinated in a specific location. However, other artsy activities can easily be conducted remotely, such as a digitally constructed mural.
2.4. Giant Jenga
Giant Jenga takes a favorite childhood pursuit and supersizes it for a fun team building activity that requires spatial awareness and logic-based problem-solving. The aim of the game is simple: players take turns removing wooden blocks from a tower while avoiding structural collapse.
Although a maximum of six players is usually recommended per Jenga tower, it’s possible to involve more people by purchasing multiple sets. Alternatively, feature Giant Jenga as part of a circuit of games, arranging for staff to move through several different activities over a whole team bonding day.
2.5. Murder Mysteries
Unleash your team’s powers of deduction, as they work together to eliminate suspects, unravel imaginative clues, and unmask a dastardly killer.
As with escape rooms, murder mysteries for 200 people are challenging to organize as in-person events, as they require a great deal of preparation and management. Going for an online version is much more practical, especially if you outsource the hosting to an online team building company like Hooray Teams.
Hooray Teams has a handful of different murder mystery themes for your remote or hybrid workers to test their intellects against, including Murder at the 18th Hole, Pirates of Cutlass Cove, and Murder in Hollywood. Participants parse through evidence and interrogate a colorful collection of characters played by professional actors, as they attempt to separate the deadly killer from amidst a school of red herrings.
2.6. Corporate Adventure Retreats
White water rafting down a river, kayaking along a coastal shore, hiking a range of verdant hills, ziplining between treetop platforms – these are just some of the many adventurous options out there for teams that need an energy boost. Corporate retreats can last a day, a weekend, or even longer, taking staff out of the everyday office routine and inspiring them with an exciting escape..
There are companies throughout the world that help businesses organize team building activities for 200 employees out in the wild, whether you’re looking for something in the (relatively) local area or want to reward staff with a bonanza trip to an overseas location.
2.7. Company Picnic
One of the most social team building activities for 200 employees, company picnics combine the pleasure of eating with the satisfaction of developing deeper bonds between colleagues. They can easily accommodate as many staff as required, all you need is a catering plan and a large open space.
Set the mood with a themed picnic idea, such as a classic barbeque in the park or a beach bash. For something more unique, consider hosting a wellness-focused afternoon that features yoga and meditation classes alongside fresh salads, pinwheel sandwiches, and chicken skewers. Alternatively, combine your picnic with an activity like stargazing, using a free app or an experienced guide to peer into the wonders of the night sky.
There are numerous fun large group activities for adults that can be combined with a picnic, including scavenger hunts, outdoor movie viewing, and various sports, from ultimate frisbee to tug-of-war.
2.8. Charity Walk
While some companies opt for fundraising marathons as part of their team building agenda, charity walks are a more inclusive option that allows people of different fitness levels to participate. These treks are hosted in all sorts of locations, from busy city centers to scenic natural settings, and cover a range of distances, including 10km, 25km, and 50km. Money for charities is raised through upfront donations (usually paid by the company) and/or individual employee fundraising.
Not only are charity walks an effective method for uniting your team in a common endeavor, they are also a way to connect a business and its employees with socially conscious initiatives. They can accommodate as many people as they want to participate, making them an excellent team building activity for large businesses.
2.9. Eco-Cleaning Campaign
Give back to the community by organizing a cleanup day as part of your corporate team building activities.
Promoting social responsibility and providing the basis for productive teamwork, eco-conscious campaigns can be arranged with local charities or independently. Some of the most common options include picking up trash at a civic park or cleaning up a nearby beach, though even roadside tidying can be an excellent way to instill respect for the environment.
Make sure you prepare snacks or a lunch that the team can enjoy together as an additional social component of the activity.
2.10. Scavenger Hunt
Whether you’re looking for team building activities for 200 employees or just 20, scavenger hunts are one of the best ways to facilitate staff bonding. Groups must work together to track down a series of objects from a pre-prepared list. This list can contain specific items (e.g., “hat” or “flower”), general descriptions (e.g., “something red” or “something that can be bent”), or cryptic clues (e.g., “I have a head and a tail but no arms and legs”).
There are several purpose-built apps, including Scavify and TurfHunt, that enable companies to build their hunts, as well as incorporate gamification elements to make the activity more engaging and fun.
3. FAQs
3.1. Are team building activities worth it?
Team building activities are worth the investment of time and money in the vast majority of situations because they create a more harmonious working environment, which in turn leads to increased productivity and lower levels of employee turnover. They can also be used to impart useful skills, such as communication and collaboration, in a more engaging way than formal workshops.
3.2. How long are team building activities?
There are quick large group team building activities and short ones. A 5-minute exercise can be a good way to loosen people up before a weekly meeting, while day-long outings provide a better platform for more in-depth conversations and personal exchanges.
3.3. How often should you do team building activities?
Elaborate team retreats that span a weekend can take place as little as once a year, but you may want to institute short, simple activities on a weekly basis to bolster rapport. For example, a 10-question mini quiz or icebreaker roulette doesn’t take up much time and can easily be worked into a team’s regular routine.
3.4. What are the benefits of team building session?
Team building sessions have a diverse set of benefits, including improving morale, motivating performance, developing soft skills, developing office camaraderie, and, above all, creating a unified team spirit. Different activities place a greater emphasis on different benefits, so consider your objectives before settling on an option.