Team building is key to productivity and longevity of service.
Team building is more important than ever with more and more jobs taking place from behind a computer screen, fewer and fewer employees are getting to know their colleagues in a social setting. Without that teamwork or feeling of comradery, everything from productivity to retention will suffer.
It doesn’t matter if your business takes place in an office, a shopfront, on the road or out in the fresh air – team building matters! Here are some ideas to get you started…
Create a mentorship program
It’s always a smart idea to connect people to someone they can turn to when they need help – someone they meet with regularly, and someone they can become close to. When employees feel like they have someone in their corner, they are more likely to feel a part of the entire community of employees, rather than independent. Depending on the size and nature of your business, your mentorship program could be low key and relax, or documented and official.
Make work fun
Find ways to make work a more enjoyable place, so that not everyone is feeling overwhelmed by pressure at work every day. This might sound difficult, however it is easily achieved through workplace games, events, casual work environments, wellness programs, and so on. Don’t fret about things not going perfectly at ever social get together but make the effort to start taking control of a fun workplace culture.
Send empoloyees to training courses/conventions
Nowhere do employees bond quite as well as when they are on trips together, or performing the same non-work task. If your company can afford it, send employees when possible to trainings, conventions, and more to make sure that everyone has an opportunity to get to know everyone else, whilst performing an activity that isn’t related to their job together. Of course, if there’s work which can be completed whilst away such as at an event or on a job site – that’s even better.
Start from day one
The arrival of a new employee marks a fresh opportunity for you to get the team building process right. From their first day, make sure new hires feel as well acclimated as possible to the team. By making sure every single person feels they have a place right away, you’ll see workers become more comfortable and productive than you could otherwise imagine.
Teamwork plays an incredible role not only in productivity, but also employee longevity. So make sure you’re taking the time to improve teamwork in the workplace, through activities, discussions and more.
Saxon Marsden-Huggins, Managing Director, Recruit Shop
