Some people think going on a weeklong sleepover with their coworkers is a nightmare filled with forced, corny team-building exercises. The truth is, you don’t have to live this way! When you organize your company’s retreat, you can introduce fun team-building and leisure activities that are both productive and memorable.
Suppose You’re Having A Retreat For Your Company.
When it comes to planning a corporate retreat that goes beyond a dull, booze-soaked week of rest and relaxation on a company dime, intentionality along with attention to detail are key.
We’ve discussed how to plan a company retreat before (Zapier has a great guide to helping you plan), but once you’ve taken care of the basics, you’ll need to figure out what to do. As a team leader, this can feel like the most daunting task since you want to outdo everyone’s expectations, but don’t worry! Your team will succeed.
Having held nine retreats as a company, we’ve learned a lot. For example, people don’t really like to be on a bus all day and all night (who knew!?!) and prefer only one deep dive talk at a time so that no one misses any of the brilliant ideas our team members have to share.
As a result of the surveys we conduct after each retreat, we have learned how to apply the feedback to future retreats, and our ratings have risen from 8.87 to 9.5 out of 10.
The formula works. With this information, you will save yourself a lot of time and frustration.
The Following Is A List Of Suggestions For Hosting A Virtual Retreat
Virtual Retreat Bingo
Playing Virtual Retreat Bingo with your team is a fun and simple activity.
Virtual Retreat Bingo, on the other hand, works best when played over the course of the retreat, while most games of remote bingo take place during one video conferencing call.
As part of the symposium, there were ongoing games of bingo to encourage attendees to stay in touch and learn more about their teammates. If you would rather reward every time an employee connects five squares than award only the initial winners, then you should consider awarding small prizes.
You can find all the rules on the website. There is a requirement that five rows, diagonals, or columns of five squares in a row, diagonal, or column must be connected, and one line cannot use the same teammate twice. If your group is very large, there is a likelihood that players will duplicate teammates’ names on the entire card to the extent that they are not allowed to do so.
Online Awards Show
The idea of honoring employees with an award ceremony is a good way to combine bonding time and employee recognition. It is a good idea to require a fancy dress code and invite your online guest to wear cocktail dresses and suits, which are completed with hair and makeup, in order to make your online show even more special. There is something fun about choosing a theme like The Oscars, The Dundies, or even something simple like a superhero movie.
Here are a few award categories you can use:
- Videos with the most interruptions from kids and pets
- Locations with the best remote working conditions
- An all-star team member
- who excels at Rock, Paper, Scissors
Make sure you prepare a slideshow of the winners and showcase your screen so you can shout out the nominees as well.
There is a possibility that we should give the winners 30 seconds to thank the audience during their speeches, and allow attendees to react by using clapping emojis.
You should send awardees trophies and care packages containing company swag, gourmet food, and plenty of self-care goodies to round off the celebration. An incentive may be offered to employees to post pictures of their winners’ haul on social media to encourage them to compete in upcoming competitions and earn future prizes.
Online Office Games
The aim of online office games is to facilitate collaboration between participants and to create a sense of competition among them. A few examples of games include trivia, lightning scavenger hunts, communication games, and slogan-writing exercises.
During the 90-minute experience, an energetic host well-versed in employee engagement facilitates the participant experience fully. The use of online office games can be a great way to entertain your staff, foster team bonding, do skills building, and stoke friendly rivalry during your next virtual retreat.
An event just for fun (hosted)
If you want to start off your virtual retreat in the best way possible, then you should consider an experience such as Just a Darn Fun Event, which is one that you will certainly enjoy as you start off your virtual retreat. As part of this fully hosted event, your team members will have the opportunity to play mini-games and compete in challenges that are sure to get them laughing and working together as a team.
In order to ensure the security of our video conferencing system, we provide a secure video conferencing line that we can use, or you are welcome to provide your own if you wish. Our activities are always greeted by the same kind of feedback, “it was the best time we have ever had in a Zoom room!”
Virtual Murder Mystery
Teams often participate in murder mysteries as part of their team-building activities. In these games, your colleagues solve puzzles and investigate clues to uncover information about a fictional or historical murder.
You can include a virtual murder mystery as part of your retreat if the format adapts well to the online environment.
Online Escape Games
One of the most popular activities for teams is online escape games. The objective of this event is to solve cryptic riddles, follow clues, and determine the number or key that will allow you to escape the room by working together as a team.
An example of this is the recent escape game that we played that was a simulation of a robbery of an art gallery. There are many escape game options to choose from when it comes to escape games. A retreat that matches your company’s, industry’s, or other plans for your retreat may be available if you search for one with a theme that suits your needs.
Study Hall
Employees working remotely rarely have the opportunity to work together consciously. As a result, you can provide a virtual staff study hall during your retreat.
Simply follow these steps for this activity:
- Set a time for attendees to participate in a video call.
- You can either work in silence or bounce ideas off each other using webcams and microphones.
- Consider arranging the study halls according to their positions.
It is possible to schedule an interdisciplinary study hall to maximize interaction, for example, by setting up a video meeting for engineers or marketers. It is recommended that these sessions focus on work and allow attendees to socialize during virtual team-building activities.
Virtual Hackathon
There is a growing trend of hackathons in the startup world. In most cases, software engineers and other related professionals will gather for a day of coworking. An organizer divides participants into teams and provides a theme for them to develop their projects around. It is possible to conduct a hackathon on personal finance software or work productivity automation, for example.
It is important to note that hackathons do not have to be software-focused. Working on any challenge together can be done by gathering your people together. It might be possible to support other ideas for your retreat, such as “a new service we could offer” or “ways to reduce spending in your department.”
Education Station
Using virtual team retreats for continuing training allows you to educate everyone together while also promoting personal and professional development.
The following are some virtual staff education ideas to consider for online retreats:
- Make online certification courses complimentary or discounted
- Classes or lessons can be scheduled online
- Learn from peers by organizing study groups and learning networks
- Hold a book club discussion based on the required reading
- Have an expert give a lecture, a question-and-answer session, or a hands-on virtual lesson
The learning topic does not need to be directly connected to the industry. Meditation practices can be taught by a mindfulness guru, or a desk organization can be taught by an organizational expert.
There is a program called Nerd Talks, where our hosts will lead sessions such as Zombies & Philosophy and Cereal & Serial Killers, among other topics.
Conclusions
Defining retreat as the act of withdrawing from something, the dictionary defines it as moving back.
Despite not physically leaving the workplace, a virtual retreat can encourage your employees to unplug, pause their regular work routines, and think about the company’s mission differently.
The virtual team retreat also provides a way to accommodate much larger audiences, saves time and money, and allows organizers to manage the event schedule more efficiently. Virtual retreats have their perks as well, so you should consider holding these gatherings on a regular basis. Face-to-face meetings have many benefits, but they can also provide other benefits.