Transforming team dinners into a team building highlight with bespoke activities.
The company dinner is an event that anyone can eventually expect to attend, whether they work as part of a small company of only a few people, or a massive organisation with hundreds of employees.
It is the new norm that for Christmas, workplace achievements, awards, or any special occasion whatsoever, workers will invariably find themselves dining out together with their colleagues and bosses to celebrate, with the company picking up the tab.
When all your employees are socialising outside of the office in this way, it seems a shame then not to utilise the time to enable everyone to get involved and enjoy doing something together, to boost their morale and their productivity back in the workplace.
This is where adding fun teambuilding games to your company dinner can make the investment on the food bill an extra investment in your team. Unlike the traditional ‘company away-day’ normally associated with teambuilding events, these short activities are designed to seamlessly integrate with your staff meal, whether they occur before it starts, in between courses, or at the end of the evening as a fun closer.
One such activity that can be held before the dinner even starts is ‘Horses for Causes’, ideal to encourage your people to network and work together strategically. Divided into teams, each is presented with a ‘flat-pack’ rocking horse kit that they must assemble according to instructions within a limited time, and the resulting ‘horses’ are then pitched head to head in a series of races before being auctioned for charity.
Meanwhile, ‘Push It’ can be added to the dinner menu between courses. Inspired by the format of a pub quiz, each team receives a number of tablets, all controlled from a centralised platform where an MC manages customised skill tests, physical challenges and brainteasers. Designed with meticulous attention to detail by your teambuilding supplier, these digital games could reinforce product knowledge or help your people generate new ideas, for example.
For a more brief and light-hearted dinner game which still encourages team spirit, ‘Whiskey Wisdom’ may suit your needs. Teams each receive a box of aroma bottles, and participants must sniff and sip the whiskeys in an attempt to identify each sample in the box. Once they have collectively agreed as to the contents of each, the results are tallied and the winners revealed. And if you’re more of a Gin Person, why not go for the ‘Team Tonic‘ activity?
Or, for something even quicker that perhaps could happen at various intervals throughout the evening, ‘Win It In A Minute’ offers varied challenges that last only 60 seconds each. Teams must battle it out to complete high energy tasks within the allotted time, after having chosen their best team member to take on the challenge. Although just a minute long, these games are not only fun but have the added bonus of improving team communication and strategy skills, while a score board completed after each task can give the overall winners bragging rights – and a morale boost – when back at work.
If your organisation is arranging a dinner soon, make sure to incorporate some personalised team events into the menu to make it much more worthwhile for your company and memorable for your employees. Contact Outdoor Living today to discuss creating your bespoke dinner games!
