Every big or small organization wants to make a strong work culture within their organization. This is only possible when all the people in the organization are perfectly aligned according to their tasks and functions. When we look at the successful organizations, it is very apparent that the teamwork of these organizations is strong. Teamwork does not only mean a team of four or five people from a certain department but, it means that the employees across different organizations are all in a collaborative effort towards the same goal.

It is said that teams working together can become more efficient in their operations, and the productivity of the company can be increased. Other than productivity and success, it is very important for the employees to have fun on their job and the interaction between the members of the team should be formal and informal. A strong, comfortable bond among the members of the team, really helps the employees work smoothly.

For all these purposes organizations are always looking for some interactive and fun team building activities. Researchers suggest that it is not just a matter of time or energy but, also a very long term investment regarding emotions and behaviors. It is very common that the companies people often gossip and talk about each other behind each other’s back. It is a natural phenomenon that people always try to know about each other even if they don’t realize or consciously do it.

To transform this negative emotion or behavior for the organizations; managers try to create a collaborative environment in the organizations which helps people get along with each other.

China is one of the largest countries in the world when it comes to the population. There are unlimited opportunities and companies in the country and hundreds and thousands of employees. This fact can be turned into a major strength for the company or the biggest weakness as well. The HR department of the company is responsible for creating such opportunities for the workforce which will help them interact with each other. China is known for its unique method of running and managing businesses and companies. It is said that the teams or the army of the organization are run in a different way in this country.

There are very simple yet creative events arranged by Chinese companies to create a bond between the employees. These events may be cooking competitions or drama performances. Some companies believe that if the element of fun is added in the work; the enthusiasm and productivity of the people increases.

Cooking competition:
Everyone likes to eat so; companies try and include cooking in many of the team building activities. It starts with a bundle of cash and a list of ingredients for a particular recipe which is chosen for the team to cook. The bargaining and buying are left to the team members. They are supposed to manage the money and buy as much as possible. Teams are allowed to freely choose the venue of their activity. They can either choose to perform in their house or any other place where all the members can perform conveniently. If the members are more comfortable at someone’s home; then the money can be saved. However this activity is about making a synchronized team but, it generates a fun competition among the members as well. For example, people may compete on the perfectly cut vegetables or the speed of the cooking, or this may be on how clean someone’s’ apron is after the completion of the task.

Performance:
This is another activity which helps the manager bridge a communication or behavior gap between the supervisor and the subordinates. This is a short drama in which teams are supposed to make up a scene play and a situation. For example, if a complaint client situation has every happened, the manager will act as the receptionist and the customer service role will be performed by the accountant. They will come up with a united solution for the problem they are entertaining.

This exercise is not just a fun pass time but is very helpful for the supervisor and the employees of other departments to understand the problems a subordinate or receptionist goes through during the day. Also, it lets the organization find some very helpful and effective newer SOPs for a certain problem.

Bucket game:
This is another game which helps participants build a lot of skills like communication, strategic thinking, and teamwork.

It is a very challenging game when you look at it in a technical way but, with creativity, consistency, and a right team this problem can be solved.

What is the game? The game is a bit tricky. The participants are provided with two buckets either filled with sand or water and are placed in a 60’ diameter circle. The tools which can be used are a circular bungee and a lot of ropes.

To accomplish the challenge, the participants are supposed to pour the sand or water from one bucket into another without entering the circle.

The way to solve the problem is to attach the ropes to the bungee and stretch it. This will help it to fit around the bucket.

It sounds easy, right? Now the catch is that the participant handling the ropes is blindfolded. So, this is important to create a proper co-ordination among the team members.

The time limit provided is more than an hour and the room for this activity needs to be quite big. Technically it is a very difficult game but, with determination and a good team, it can be done and even won.

Benefits of these collaboration activities:

Communication:
Communication is critical for every organization to help its employees understand the policies and procedures of operations. There are some problems which are being faced by any organization are due to improper or inadequate information dissemination.

If we take the example of the Bucket game, the participant who is managing the ropes is blindfolded. So, the communication and co-ordination of all the members are imperative. This example can be used in a number of organizational situations. There are times when a certain problem arises, and there is not enough time to ask a senior colleague or manager. At that time if the policies and procedures are properly disseminated among the employees. The problem-solving process could be very quick.

Leader:
At some stage in the team building activities, the natural leader comes out in participants through many activities. It is very interesting to see how a member manages their hurdles and times at the same time and lead many steps of accomplishing the task at hand. If the example of the bucket game is considered again; the task is very tricky, and the participant is blindfolded. In this kind of situation, the leadership should be extremely strong, and all the members of the team must listen to the leader and do exactly as they are told.

These games help the employees learn how to take the driving roles at a time because similar situations occur in the working environment. Listening to the leader is also very important, and this type of activities teach the employee how to listen effectively and take the order in difficult situations.

Trust:
When 4-7 people are working in a team, it is important that they trust each other WHY? Because, whenever there is a task that needs to be done or a problem that needs to be solved. Each member of the team takes up a role and if there is no trust among the members then every single person will try to do everything on their own to make the problem go away. This may take a lot of time and a lot of repetition in the process.

This practice is very common among the employees in some organizations. It arises when the leader of the organization or the team is unable to build that interactive and open communication among the people, and they don’t exactly know what they should and shouldn’t do to make the organization more productive.

So, its not just the motivation or the talent of the employees which may or may not make the organization successful but, also the level of trust and bond in the members of the team.

Managers should try and communicate with the trust building activities in the teams and better than that the actions of the managers should always depict the ultimate trustworthy behavior which may be followed or copied by the other employees in the organization.

Inter-group relations:
The inter-group or inter-team relations can only be made if the manager or the supervisor encourages an open discussion session. There are times when employees fight or argue about a situation or a better decision that they may be able to take if they do a certain thing a little differently. These type of sessions are always beneficial for the organization because these arguments always end with some creative and innovative solution to the problem in consideration. This is how companies come up with their SOPs, and new innovative ideas are generated.

Conflict:
There are times when employees have misunderstandings and conflicts which may become a hurdle in the success of the organization. These problems may be solved, and these conflicts may be converted into friendships and amazing teams if the supervisors can have some good team building activities in their organization. So, if these events are properly planned, they may act as a strategic decision for the company.

If there is no conflict among the employees of the organizations, a lot of additional problems may be eliminated, and there may be a more productive environment. As suggested by a lot of researchers, workforce may be the major strength of the organization, and this is only possible when there are no unnecessary disagreements among the employees, and they all work collectively as a team. Their collective vision should always be the success of the organization.

Reduced stress:
Every human needs a little break from the monotonous life of every day. Team building activities can act as a break time for a lot of employees, management and help them see the employee something other than tools to get the profits and the zeros in their company accounts.

Continuous work may become very overwhelming and exhausting for anyone and after some time the productivity and the speed decrease to a tremendous amount. Companies who are unable to realize this fact are bound to face some problems in their employee retention and satisfaction areas.

China is a country where everyone wants to do something for the betterment of the whole country. The global economy and the employees from every part of the world are turning into a major opportunity for the economy. In the past, these team building activities and pleasure with the work was not necessary, and it was only done as a luxury in only a few companies. But, today there are hundreds of companies who consider these activities as a part of their operations at a certain time every year. Employees are always very excited about these events, and this excitement is used to increase their morale and productivity in the rest of the months.

The technology and operation are bridging the gaps between the departments and their jobs. Processes and policies are somewhat merging. In such an environment; it is extremely important for every employee in any department to understand the type of work and the problem people/employees in another department come across. This helps the company in some ways. If there is some major issue in the marketing department and the IT employees know about the possible solutions. Then the tie taken to solve that problem will be reduced drastically.

Latest posts by Yuri Khlystov (see all)