Why Team Building Is Beneficial For Companies with Remote Workers
In the modern workplace it has become common practice to have one, if not several, members of staff who are remote or virtual workers. These staff usually work from home or a desk in a shared office around the country and can find themselves separated from the daily office life emotionally, as well as physically.
Have you ever had a day off work and missed out on something funny that ‘you had to have been there’ to enjoy? You spend the next few days feeling a little left out and that can have a negative effect on you. This is the daily life of remote workers.
It’s Good to Talk
One of the biggest problems faced by remote workers is communication with the main office team. Even though communication in the digital age is instantaneous, they can often feel left out of the loop when not being surrounded by the vibrancy of the office. For instance, a quick team meeting or 5-minute huddle with a coffee may not be passed on to remote workers and that can have repercussions, especially when decisions are made that affects everyone.
So the question remains – How can you bring remote workers closer together with your main office staff?
The answer: Team Building Activities
Now before you all start shouting that if they work remotely they shouldn’t/won’t participate in days out, you are very much wrong. Remote workers often jump at the chance to spend quality time with their office-based counterparts and the benefits from this inclusion are easily seen.
How will Team Building Activities Help?
Communication
While this seems like an obvious one, you would be surprised to hear the number of times companies book our events looking to increase team cohesion and communication. Firstly this is absolutely a worthwhile goal and something every company should strive to increase.
Many of our events are aimed to ensure that clients are taken out of their social groups and spend time with those colleagues they may not associate with on a daily basis. This is especially true for teams with remote workers who are looking to increase that communication level between the team.
Team Bonding
Like any sports team, having a workforce that works together and ‘trains’ together can only serve to benefit the bond between workers long term. There are several studies and papers that show team building has positive effects across the whole team and helps to grow a more cohesive team environment. After all, everyone wants to work in a happy, positive office that feels more family than factory. Those members of your team who are remote can miss out on bonding with their colleagues so it is imperative to ensure that any opportunity to include them in full team events should be embraced.
Collaboration and Creativity
One area of remote working that is often overlooked is when it comes to instant idea sharing. Asking around the office for an idea or brainstorming session is fine in itself, however, those remote workers could be sitting on exactly the idea or point you are looking for and never have the forum to offer their input.
By having team building activities centred on creativity and idea sharing can often unearth a remote workers talent or creative side that might otherwise have been left hidden.
Fostering Personal Connections
Even though remote workers are often just a voice at the end of a phone or a set of words in an email, they are a person first and foremost. Those who work remotely will always feel more engaged and positive with their colleagues if they feel they valued. It can be so valuable to have your office based team create and nurture positive relationships with remote staff. By taking all your staff out to an activity or event that will serve to facilitate those personal connections is a sure fire way to get the ball rolling.
Although the list above is by no means exhaustive, it is certainly a great starting point for those companies looking to really bring their remote workers and office staff closer together and increase your team’s productivity and cohesion. With all this in mind, we have put together some perfectly suited activities that our clients have raved about (and yes we have the Trustpilot to back this up) to bring greater communication and cohesion to your office.
