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Over the last century, workplace environments have seen drastic changes due to advancing technologies, ethical debates and political commentary. However, one of the most important changes, the concept of the team and group identity, is regularly forgotten.

Team building catapulted itself to the forefront of employer consciousness in the 1920s because of the now iconic Hawthorne Studies. The Hawthorne Studies involved the analysis of worker behaviours under different workplace circumstances and are widely considered essential reading if you’re looking to grow your business’ productivity.

The studies discovered that there are many different variables impacting employee efficiency, though the most important is job satisfaction and the feeling of belonging gained from working as part of a group. Simply put, one of the biggest influencers on productivity is whether the workforce feels like they belong to a team. This was the trigger for what we now know as team building with countless corporate event management companies specialising in offering packages and team building services.

As society has embraced team building, we have begun learning more about its benefits beyond the overarching term “increasing productivity”. This list will run through some of the most notable advantages and reasons to consider investing in a great team building event, whether you organise it yourself, or utilise a corporate event management service.

Employee Satisfaction and Morale

Employees satisfaction is an abstract term that is difficult to quantify but remains important. When it comes down to it, happy employees are harder workers and an enjoyable indoor team building event breaks up the monotony of working life, building morale and love for your organisation.

The biggest advantage of improving employee satisfaction is that it’s infectious and company-wide. High morale is rarely limited to an individual team; happiness is passed from individual-to-individual and team-to-team, therefore improving everyone’s mood and increasing everyone’s productivity.

Leadership Skills

Leadership is a soft skill that not only improves employee confidence but is easily applicable to the workplace environment. There are all sorts of team building activities and challenges that require members to step up, formulate a plan and take control. There is no better educator of leadership than putting individuals in a situation which requires detailed planning and direction.

If you’re interested in developing leadership skills throughout your team, consider some of these activities you can do in the office or invest in a full-fledged corporate event.

Problem Solving

Problem-solving is another soft skill with the power to revolutionize your workforce and supercharge productivity. Applicable in all areas of life, problem-solving is key for employees when dealing with unfamiliar situations, enhancing their ability to think and analyse in the moment. Particularly for management, this is an exceptionally important talent.

Focus on brain teasers and hypothetical problems if you want to grow this skill.

Teamwork

Essential for any successful business, individuals must work well together to bring the best out of each team member. This is where team building truly comes into its own. Not only do the events bring teams closer together personally, but they also regularly require teamwork to succeed. This is especially true for brain teasers and building challenges, where people must work well together or formulate plans as a group.

Identifying Team Strengths and Weaknesses

One of the less talked about but most important benefits of team building are that employers can analyse their teams, observing what they are good at and what can be improved upon. This facilitates future training and team development. It’s very difficult for a team to be great at everything but it’s even harder to ascertain where they need to improve – team building gives you the opportunity to test a people’s skills in a fun and morale-boosting way.

On a Final Note

In conclusion, whether you’re organising your own event, or hiring a corporate event management company to do it for you, there are countless advantages to regular team-building exercises. If you’re still not sure, consider researching some quick and easy team building activities for the office; try them out and if they’re effective you can grow your strategy further.