So you’re considering a corporate team building event for your employees. Perhaps it’s an activity which was recommended to you, or the boss randomly wants to do one, or you ARE the boss and want to do something nice for your staff. Of the various items you are likely grappling with, including when the event would be held, the type of event and your budget, the biggest looming question is, “what will my people get out of this?”

And a very valid question it is. You’re considering spending a lot of time and resource on this event; shouldn’t it be more than just a fun time for your staff? Whether you decide to take your group scavenger hunting, kayaking, cooking or have a team building trivia event, the fundamental take-home lessons should generally be the same. Those critical skills you want employed back in the office as a result of your event include:

1. Improved Teamwork & Collaboration – Your group should learn how to interact better together, and achieve goals more efficiently and effectively.

1. Effective Communication – Teams should leave the event equipped with tools needed to communicate clearly and effectively among each other, in a healthier and more productive way.

1. Group Decision Making – Your people should discover new and improved ways of arriving at correct decisions as a team.

1. Time Management – The skills practiced at the event should have a clock component somehow, to simulate actual workplace conditions and allow space for the group to learn how to function better under pressure.

1. Insight About Colleagues – A properly run event should provide opportunities for people to learn more about their co-workers, allowing them to gain increased understanding and awareness of who team members “really” are, as well as learn how much they have in common that they never knew before.

Put these skills into action back at the office, and your event will have been worth its weight in gold as far as improving your team’s productivity, effectiveness and overall morale.

Can you think of any other crucial skills that no team building event should leave employees without?

As the owner of a corporate team building company in New York City, I’ve got my work cut out for me to ensure that our events meet and exceed the high expectations of the most important firms and brands in the world. When striving to create the ideal activity, it’s important to imagine not only what the perfect event would look like, but also it’s opposite – the horribly planned & executed event, so that we know what to avoid.

Below is a glimpse of what the very worst imaginable employee team building event ever would look like – hopefully, you’ll never see it beyond this blog post:

• Attendees have had no input as to the event’s activity, nor do they know the goals
• Attendance is mandatory, under threat of disciplinary action
• Event is held at a location with no cell/Internet service 3 hours away on a holiday weekend, during the height of the busy season, amidst a major client crisis
• The environment is sparse, uninviting and uncomfortable; there aren’t enough seats, no bathroom, the place smells like BO and there’s a bowling alley downstairs with 14 kiddie parties going on – and a thumping dance studio upstairs
• The tone is serious and authoritarian from the start, with no fun or social elements at all – just a cold, hard look at what has to change, or else
• Talk centers strictly on what’s wrong with the team, company or industry –  or even worse, focuses on the flaws of teams & individuals who are present
• A poorly planned, 1-size-fits all activity with zero customization – in fact, it’s the exact OPPOSITE of what would be appropriate for the group’s age, demographic, interests and dynamic
• The hired team building “experts” have no clue what they’re doing, the activity is boring, offensive & poorly run, and attendees are tuned out from the get go
• Exercises are held outside in inclement weather, requiring lots of exertion – think a 100-degree day with 100% humidity, a freezing cold snowy day or a torrential rainstorm (I’ve actually hosted team building scavenger hunts during all of the above conditions- not fun)
• Activities are extremely physically demanding, requiring the group’s older, infirm or disabled members to sit the event out
• Individuals are isolated alone to work on individual projects for extended periods of time, actually preventing collaboration, communication and teamwork
• No food, drink or breaks for the duration of the event
• Senior managers aren’t present – in fact, they are off having their own “team building” dinner at a fancy restaurant somewhere (expensed, of course)
• Employees actually leave feeling more disconnected, demoralized and insecure about their abilities to work together as a team than when they arrived

Extreme examples? Of course. But by conjuring up the worst team building event imaginable, it becomes clear what you want to avoid when planning/running employee activities, to make sure that yours produce the exact opposite – the best team building experience possible for your staff.

Can you think of any other nightmare scenarios for a corporate team building activity? How about perfect, best-case scenarios? Please provide your thoughts in the space below!