Bringing a team together can seem a little tricky when employees work remotely and don’t share a workspace. Companies that have embraced the remote work culture and have organized team-building activities have learned that online team building is very different than in-person team building; however, the purpose remains the same.
There are so many ways we can function as a team remotely, from document sharing to virtual team meetings and remote project management, but team-building is essential for a virtual team to be successful. So here are some fun virtual games to extend work relations to a friendlier level and build a shared team identity.
1. Icebreaker Questions
We all have experienced the weird silence and awkwardness at the beginning of a Zoom meeting, so this game can be played at the start of a meeting or played separately as a fun team-building activity. Depending on the culture of the company and the team, you can easily adapt the questions to meet a certain atmosphere.
Each team member should get about 30 seconds to one minute to answer an icebreaker question. Prompts can vary from “What’s your name, role, and where do you work in your home?” to “What is your phone wallpaper?” or “If you could create a new fashion trend, what would it be?”
2. Fun Slack Channels
Create a Slack channel where team members can post pictures of their lives and get more familiar with each other. Slack and other social collaboration tools improve communication and culture in remote, hybrid, and office teams. You can set up Slack channels that are just for fun to break down communication barriers and brighten everyone’s day.
A “photo of your day” channel can be for breakfast pictures, your work station, your outfit for the day, or a cute coffee mug. A “show your pet” channel is popular among Slack-ers and their furry friends. A “good news” channel can be great for positive work-related announcements or more personal news colleagues want to share with the team.
3. Virtual Workout Session
When we switched from office work to remote work, not only did we need to create a workstation at home and learn how to schedule our day and when to turn off work, but we also had to change our entire daily routines. That routine might include a walk or bike to work, gym before or after work hours, or some mid-day yoga class.
Physical activity has many health benefits, and by organizing corporate virtual workout sessions, you can create a team-building experience for your employees while taking care of their physical and mental health
4. Guess the Emoji Board
We are long past the time when emojis were only for group texts among friends and personal messages. We now include emojis in almost every Slack message and in some of our emails.
We encourage each other with the flexed biceps emoji, congratulate each other with flowers or fireworks, and clink virtual glasses with the cocktail emoji. With so many emojis to choose from, we all have our favorite ones and, surprisingly, the most often used emoji boards are very diverse from one team member to the other.
A great remote game to play is to make a list of every member playing and collect emoji boards. After the lists and boards are distributed, each member has a few minutes to guess who the owner of the board is and get points for each correct answer. This game is perfect for smaller teams and colleagues who are somewhat familiar with each other.
5.Never Have I Ever
This bonding game is popular worldwide, and even though it starts rather innocently, it can easily end in an R-rated version which is not suitable for a team-building activity. However, the game reveals a lot about one’s character and, if kept professional and subtle, can be a great way to get to know your colleagues on a more personal level.
This is a classic game and is easily played remotely and online. Each player starts with five fingers and you lose a point if you have done the action that a player states. Use topics like travel, food, school, or sports to get to know your teammates better.
6. Remote Team Dinner
Organize lunch or dinner with your crew over a Zoom call. Everyone can prepare a tasty dish or get some takeout and bond over food in a virtual meeting room. You can break the ice with some fun questions or talk about the food you are having.
This is particularly convenient and fun if a team member is celebrating a birthday or if the company has exciting news to share. To make it more of an event, suggest a dress code and ditch the pajama look for a night.
What about you? Do you want to share any other virtual team building activities to boost the morale of a remote team?
ClickOnHR welcomes your suggestions!