13 Quick Virtual Team Building Activities
Team building is a vital part of any team - not only does it help to build relationships and trust between employees, but it also boosts morale and productivity.
But what if your team is not in-office together? How do you encourage team building when everyone is working in a hybrid model or remotely?
There are several ways to make this happen, even if you only have a few minutes! In this post, we’ll talk you through some of our favorite team building exercises virtual teams should explore.
How do you have fun with your team virtually?
Here are 13 quick team building activities:
Virtual water cooler
Karaoke
Lunch and learn sessions
Virtual book club
Virtual coffee breaks
Virtual tour
“Guess that song”
Donut calls
Host pub trivia
Online office Olympics
Zoom is a popular video conferencing software used by millions of remote workers around the world. It provides many features that can be great to use for team building. Here are some of the most popular Zoom team building activities:
1. Get together through a virtual water cooler
Water coolers have been a part of the office environment for a long time. Even in a remote work environment, they can produce excellent team building results.
Virtual water coolers are a way for remote teams to feel more connected and less isolated. This is because they provide a sense of community and a safe place where people can share their thoughts, ideas, and feelings.
2. Sing your heart out in karaoke
Karaoke is a popular activity around the world. With the help of technology, this idea can be brought to life online, and now you can sing your heart out with your remote team. A lot of companies are starting to use karaoke as a form of team-building exercises for their employees. It helps in fostering a positive company culture, communication skills, and creativity.
3. Provide lunch and learn sessions
These meetings are usually informal and can be about anything. A lunch and learn session is a great chance for you to share what you have been working on, ask questions, or just talk about your day. Lunch and learn sessions provide a way for remote teams to stay connected with one another on a personal level. You can even have team members take turns guiding the lunch and learn sessions, so that everyone gets a chance to both teach and learn something new.
4. Host a virtual trivia event
One of the best ways to keep your remote team engaged and entertained is by hosting a virtual trivia event. A trivia event can be an exciting way to get your team members together and build a sense of camaraderie. You can host yourself (here are some tips for coming up with questions!), or turn to a professional. Bar None Games offers 300+ rounds of creative trivia and professional hosts for a seamless event that is sure to bring the fun to your team.
5. Start a virtual book club
A virtual book club made up of a group of people who meet to discuss books they have read (usually planning to read the same book at similar paces). They can do this by exchanging emails, or by using a workplace communication platform like Zoom, Slack, or Microsoft Teams. Virtual book clubs are a great way to get your remote team members engaged in conversations and discussions. They can also help you create a sense of community and camaraderie among your employees.
6. Host a virtual holiday party
If you're a manager, a remote worker, or just someone who really wants to spend time with your teammates during the holiday season, you can still get that office party feeling without having to leave your house - through a virtual holiday party! There are many benefits to hosting a virtual holiday party for your remote team as it serving as a team building exercise. You can still have the same fun without having to worry about travel, expensive airfare, and accommodations.
7. Virtual coffee breaks
Virtual coffee breaks can be a great tool for companies who want their employees to feel like they're part of the team, even if they're not physically in one place. They can be used for team building, brainstorming sessions, or just to catch up with one another as a team.
8. Explore an overseas destination through a virtual tour
With the help of virtual tours, remote teams can explore an overseas destination together and use the opportunity to get to know their coworkers better. Whether you’re exploring the Eiffel Tower, the Great Wall of China, or a coworker’s city, there are a lot of opportunities to have fun and bond.
9. Play “Guess that song”
“Guess that song” is a game that you can play with your remote team to break the ice and have some fun. It’s also a good way to learn about each other’s music preferences, too. The game is simple: the team starts by gathering short clips of songs. Once the game starts (you can host it on Zoom, or another video conferencing platform), the moderator plays each clip and gives the team the chance to correctly guess the title of the song or the artist. Anyone that guesses correctly wins the round, or wins a point - however you’d like to play
Looking for more quick virtual team building activities?
Team building activities are important to keep employees motivated. They also help to build trust and rapport between team members, which in turn will lead to better communication and collaboration. More popular virtual team building activities are:
10. Engage your remote team with Donut calls
Donut is a team building Slack tool that helps remote teams to communicate, engage in virtual activities, and more. A donut call is a short, informal meeting that you can do with your remote team members. When you have a remote team, it’s hard to keep everyone up-to-date on what’s happening in the company. That’s why we recommend having these donut calls on a regular basis. You can use them as an opportunity to share quick company updates and announcements, give instructions on tasks or projects, create an opportunity for remote employees to connect on a personal level, share feedback, and more!
11. Virtual team building bingo
Bingo is designed to work for a team of any size. The idea for this version of team building bingo is for the team members to collaborate and complete tasks together in order to win. Virtual Team Bingo contains rounds with each round containing a set number of tasks. Each task has an assigned point value on the bingo card, and the more difficult the task, the higher the point value. The goal is to check off five boxes in a row (horizontal, vertical, or diagonal) to complete bingo and win. Virtual team building bingo is a fun and interactive way to improve your company’s teamwork. It is used by many organizations for team building, especially for remote teams.
12. Host a pub trivia with the team
Pub trivia is a fun and interactive way to get your remote team to bond. You can host a trivia night with your remote team on Zoom or Google Meet. The best part is that you don't need any special equipment or expertise. All you need is the motivation of your remote team, some trivia questions, and the Bar None Games team to get things rolling.
13. Host online office Olympics
The Olympics is a worldwide event that brings athletes from all over the world to compete. It is a time for celebration, unity, and joy. There are many ways to host an online office Olympics event. You can use traditional games or create new ones that are more relevant to your company culture. The games can be played in teams or individually, with each team member having their own strengths and weaknesses that they need to work with. We recommend offering medals or prizes to boost motivation!
How to make your virtual team building activities effective
Virtual team building activities are a great way to get to know your colleagues and build trust among virtual teams. Here are some strategies that can help you make the most of these activities:
Plan the activity in advance
The team building activity should be a collaborative effort. Everyone should come up with ideas and then choose the best one together. You should all come together to decide what type of activity you want to do, because it’s important to give everyone a voice in the planning. Your activity can be anything from a scavenger hunt to an escape room.
Ensure everyone is on the same page before starting
Before you start your remote team building activity, you should ensure that everyone is on the same page. You should make sure that everyone knows the goal of the activity, what they are going to do, and how they will do it. This includes communicating the time of the activity, if they will need any additional materials, and smoothing out the technological aspects for a seamless event.
Keep communication lines open during and after the activity
It’s always better to keep the communication lines open during and after the activity. This will help you stay on top of things and avoid any misunderstandings. You also want to be able to share what you’ve learned with others and encourage team members to speak up
Follow up with feedback
The follow up is just as important as the activity itself - it’s the time to discuss what worked and what didn't, how you could improve or repeat the activity, and how you felt during it.
Host a virtual team building event with Bar None Games
If you’re looking to host a virtual team building activity that is engaging and memorable, Bar None Games is here to help! With a team of professionals and a live host, we’ll ensure that your event runs seamlessly, so you can focus on enjoying the time with your team.
