The pandemic and subsequent shift to remote working truly turned the process of team engagement on its head. No longer can you bounce ideas off your teammates in a meeting or catch up with your colleagues during a coffee break.
Safe to say, communication has suffered, and so have team-building activities. It can be difficult to process this change and understand how to boost remote employee engagement. Supposedly, the virtual workspace will continue, whether as is or in a hybrid setting of partial in-office days.
Meaning modes of communication and ways of engagement need to change. And all the traditional ideas of building and managing a team must be reworked to fit this new reality. We need virtual icebreakers. It can be hard to figure out a framework for virtual team-building in a remote workplace And so how do you engage your team virtually?
The process of hiring, onboarding, and virtual team building in a remote setup needs to be carried out with the same effectiveness as in a traditional offline setup. But doing so virtually can be a difficult task.
The virtual onboarding process, in particular, can be very daunting for any team but is needed to make new members feel a part of the team. Effective virtual meeting communication and engagement are key in ensuring new hires find footing within a virtual team and work towards a common goal. This virtual communication can be possible through a great collection of Professional presentation templates.
Using a virtual team-building activities template, a manager can virtually engage their team and build trust and confidence within their remote team via a presentation.
Here are our top virtual team-building activities:
TWO-MINUTE PURPOSE SPEECH
It is a team exercise that focuses on a leader’s ability to articulate the team’s purpose to others in an inspiring, creative, and persuasive way.
This may be a great remote team-building exercise because it articulates to the entire team the importance of their purpose and how to identify ways to work as a team and be goal-oriented. It is also a great exercise in building communication skills and training the team to vocalize their output and aims.
It is an approximately hour-long group activity where participants get to view and analyze famous speeches that were purpose-driven and significantly impacted their field. The team should note what made these speeches great and how well they articulated and executed their purpose within the speech.
Outcomes
- Identifying the purpose and functions of a good team.
- Understanding what makes a good speech inspiring.
- Creating a purpose-driven speech that could be refined over time and used whenever the occasion calls for it.
HUMILITY
It is one of the unique virtual team-building activities that attempt to raise awareness on how a potential lack of humility may completely disrupt a team atmosphere. This exercise will allow the team to self-assess, recognize their limits, keep accomplishments in perspective, and forget the individual to concentrate on the team’s advancement.
Oftentimes, a highly skilled team can fall apart due to a major difference of opinion and a rigid stance on certain aspects of the work. This problem can be further exacerbated in a remote team, as clear communication is key when you cannot meet your team physically. Thus, inculcating humility should be your strategy in building communication and managing a remote team.
It is an approximately hour-long group activity where participants will be asked to talk about what humility means to them to gauge their teammates and encourage positive behavioral patterns within a team.
Outcomes
- Awareness of the concept of humility.
- Encouraging accountability of behaviors within the team.
- Paying attention to attenuating factors such as cultural differences and gender and their influence on the concept of humility.
REMOTE TREASURE HUNT
Remote Treasure Hunt is an activity that allows the teammates to get to know each other on a personal level, as well as grasp the range of skills, strengths, and attributes the team consists of. It may also be beneficial in breaking barriers that do not accommodate for previous biases certain teammates may have, such as stereotypical understanding of someone from a different background.
A traditional onboarding process includes team introductions and a run-down of the skills and experience of the team members. However, in a virtual team setup, this process can be quite overwhelming and not as clear-cut. Also, new hires may not feel as comfortable approaching the team they are unfamiliar with. This virtual employee engagement idea may provide the impetus for your teammates to get to know one another in a semi-informal setting, building a sense of comfort and clarity for the team.
It is an approximately 30-minute long group activity where participants go around asking their teammates for very specific responses, or “treasures,” and is a perfect way to start conversations and for people to introduce themselves to the team, especially in a diverse or multi-national setup.
Outcomes
- Get to know teammates located in different regions/parts of the world.
- By posing experience-based questions to identify surprises and commonalities, break down existing assumptions and prejudices.
TALK IN MOTION
It is one of the virtual team-building activities that aim to combine ideas, discussions, and fitness. This exercise allows one to explore the synergy between the body and the brain; the connection health has to innovation.
In a remote workplace, the opportunity to leave the house becomes quite constrained, especially if your work requires you to be in front of the screen. This activity is great at managing remote employees as it allows you to avoid screen fatigue by planning activities that account for physical activity and the actual work.
It is an approximately 30-minute long pair activity where participants will keep the COIN (Context, Observation, Impact, and Next Steps) framework in mind to get to know one another and discuss ideas and plans for the team, which will be aided by being in motion, and thus improving vitality and imagination.
Outcomes
- Promoting fitness as a healthy workplace practice as exercise releases endorphins that can produce a positive outlook on life, boosting productivity in the long run.
- Encouraging virtual employee engagement within the team.
CATCH A BREATH
It is one of the virtual team-building activities for work that combines the benefits of meditation with virtual engagement, creating an atmosphere that is conducive to work and innovation.
Accounting for a period wherein virtual employees are allowed to “catch their breath” will significantly boost morale in the virtual workspace. This allows your employees to feel calm and refreshed, which automatically boosts creativity and zeal, something which is required when working in and managing a remote team.
It is an approximately 5-minute long individual activity where participants will meditate and let go of all the noise in their minds, refreshing them for a new day of work.
Outcomes
- Understand the use of basic meditative breathing to aid concentration.
- Creating a relaxed atmosphere that is more effective and productive.
ASK TO INCLUDE
It is one of the fun virtual team-building activities that seek to create an engaging remote team, one where opinions and ideas come from every team member to produce results that are well thought out and effective.
Inclusion is the game’s name for solving problems and getting results. Promoting innovation and creating curiosity is essential for getting different viewpoints within a virtual team. Growth can only occur when everyone in your team feels heard and valued.
It is an activity that essentially continues in every remote meeting or engagement activity where there is communication and collaboration between the team members.
Outcomes
- Making discussions a vital part of decision-making, problem-solving processes, and collaborative work.
- Establishing an inclusive leadership that accounts for differences of opinions.
Making your remote team a safe space for ideas and creativity.
BUILDING TRUST
It is one of the team-building virtual activities used to build trust amongst team members at any point in the team’s life cycle. It is a way to empower communication between those with different skills and experiences, allowing the team to be a space for growth and learning.
It is an essential part of remote team building to provide clear communication routes and onboard new hires in an environment that allows for a clear understanding of each team member’s role. This means sharing experiences and snippets that create role models in the team and promotes bonding between members.
It is an approximately 40-60 minute long group activity where participants tell stories and snippets of interesting experiences they’ve had that can contribute positively to the team atmosphere. This includes anecdotes and discussions pertinent to the work and the outcomes expected from the team.
Outcomes
- Building trust and bonding within a team using experiential anecdotes and avoiding abstractions to clarify the team’s purpose and goals.
- Encourage team members to understand their work and come up with their expectations from it, as well as how they can achieve them.
PRESENCE AND MINDFULNESS
It is one of the virtual team-building activities used to understand and adopt mindfulness as constant work practice. It is an exercise that aims to introduce mindfulness practice within a remote team, involving the processes of judging intent and practicing meditation.
The classic definition of mindfulness consists of focusing specifically on intent in a way that’s present and non-judgmental. This means in a remote team-building exercise to make the team members understand the intent behind their actions in the workplace. This includes analyzing your work habits, colleagues, and the team.
It is an approximately 30-60 minute group activity where the focus is to reflect on one’s intentions in the workplace and adopt mindfulness while making decisions and creating interpersonal connections within the team.
Outcomes
- Understand what mindfulness is and how to implement it in one’s work and home life.
- Utilizing mindfulness to make better decisions at work, focusing on intent and the outcome.
ADDRESSING ARROGANCE
It is one of the virtual team-building activities that will help team members identify what arrogance is and use that analysis to be self-aware and promote behavioral change in the team.
This activity aims to understand modesty and arrogance in opposition to each other. This is great in inducing open conversation in the team and allows members to self-reflect and self-correct behaviors that may be detrimental to the whole team.
Outcomes
- Visualizing habits that allow for better comprehension of arrogant practices and modest habits.
- Encourage discussions about the same, leading to a reflection of individual actions and team atmosphere.
Conclusion
Remote working is not going anywhere. And it’s time we update our strategies and build new frameworks that can make managing this new virtual workplace an effective, productive, and efficient process. Hopefully, these virtual team-building activities can help you engage your team better and build confidence amongst your teammates!
