11 Remote Team Building Activities for 2023

By Reid - August 24, 2022

Remote Team Activities

In today's remote work world, applying the right team-building activities to help build an engaged group of employees is more critical than ever. Try any of these remote and unusual team-building activities to help better integrate your team.

Questions Answered

Best remote team-building activities
Do team-building activities work?
How effective is virtual team building?

11 BEST TEAM BUILDING PRACTICES WHILE WORKING REMOTELY

1. Cultivate Small Talk Opportunities

Initiate virtual meetings with enjoyable check-ins, intriguing icebreaker questions, and informal conversation. Encourage team members to share insights into their home life, hobbies, or recent experiences.

This activity initiates dialogue and fosters bonding among remote team members. It's an easy yet effective online team-building strategy.

2. Organize Friendly Competitions

Facilitate camaraderie through friendly contests. This could involve anything from a themed desk-decoration competition for festive seasons, trivia quizzes, or an online talent showcase. Consider offering small prizes, such as gift cards or company merchandise, to incentivize participation.

3. Plan Virtual Social Gatherings

Continue office traditions such as end-of-day happy hours, coffee breaks, or Friday socials in a virtual setting. These could be online multiplayer games, bucket list sharing sessions, or a simple 'Show and Tell.'

Regular social activities foster interaction, enhance employee engagement and extend the company culture into the remote workspace. However, it's essential to strike a balance and avoid overwhelming employees with too many virtual social events.

4. Coordinate Virtual Mealtime

Food is a universal bonding agent. Organize a company-wide video lunch or dinner where everyone's favorite meal is delivered to their doorstep. While eating together over a video call might feel unconventional initially, it offers a unique opportunity to engage in casual, non-work-related discussions that can fortify team relationships.

5. Establish Dedicated Channels for Work and Leisure

Utilize communication tools like Slack to maintain professional and personal interaction among team members. Apart from work-related channels, create dedicated spaces for light-hearted discussions about personal interests, hobbies, home cooking experiences, or sharing milestones and celebrations. This approach helps emulate the social dynamics of a physical office in a virtual environment.

6. Encourage Mindfulness Sessions

Prioritize the physical and mental well-being of your team by organizing regular mindfulness activities. These could include guided meditation, yoga sessions, or wellness workshops. Volunteer-led or professionally instructed sessions should be made available to all but not obligatory. This practice demonstrates the company's commitment to its employees' health and well-being.

7. Include Icebreaker Activities

Icebreaker activities help initiate conversation and interaction among team members. Games like "Two Truths and a Lie," "Would You Rather," or "Who Am I" can be effective tools to foster understanding and deepen relationships among remote teams. Maybe stick to the PG version of the games, though!

8. Host Virtual Scavenger Hunts

Virtual scavenger hunts are an engaging team-building exercise that encourages collaboration and problem-solving. Plenty of online platforms offer custom scavenger hunt experiences that teams can participate in from their homes, fostering a sense of adventure and teamwork.

9. Provide Online Cooking or Baking Classes

Arrange virtual cooking or baking classes to bring teams together in a fun and educational setting. These sessions can help team members learn new skills, enjoy a shared experience, and even share their culinary creations.

10. Participate in Virtual Charity Events

Engaging in charitable activities, such as virtual food drives, charity runs, or fundraising events, can foster a sense of unity and shared purpose within the team. Select a charity that aligns with your company's values or the interests of your team members for a more meaningful experience.

11. Arrange Puzzle Challenges

Initiate problem-solving challenges like the "Marshmallow Challenge" or virtual escape rooms. Such activities encourage teamwork, strategic thinking, and effective communication, all within a context of fun and friendly competition.

Three things to keep in mind: Be sure to pick activities that are inclusive to everyone’s abilities, try to set up these team-building activities during business hours (or right after work), and don’t overly push any of these team-building activities

Related:

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Do Team Building Activities Work?

While results vary from business to business, team-building activities can provide improved communication skills, which are often linked to a team’s success, better problem-solving ability which opens up room for creativity and higher production, and higher employee motivation which motivates employees to produce better work.

How effective is virtual team building?

Virtual team building can effectively improve teamwork, communication, and overall productivity within a virtual team. When done well, virtual team building activities can help to foster a sense of community, build trust, and increase collaboration among team members who may be physically dispersed.

Wrapping Up

As you can see, there are plenty of fun and engaging remote team-building activities to keep your employees connected while working from home.

The experiences they share, whether in person or virtually, help build cohesiveness in the workplace and get them through each day. Hopefully, these ideas can help your team bond and create an environment you can enjoy!

Good luck with your remote team building!

Title: 6 Remote Team Building Activities to Keep Workers Connected

Category: Employer Resources

Tags: unusual team building activities, virtual team building, team building online, remote team building activities, remote team building activities, remote team building ideas, remote team bonding ideas

Author: Reid is a contributor for theJub. He’s an employment and marketing enthusiast who studied business before taking on various recruiting, management, and marketing roles. More from the author. | Author Profile