Company success often depends on how well employees work together as a team. Executive managers can regularly organize corporate team-building activities and events to foster team spirit within a company. Team-building events like an office scavenger hunt allow employees to increase social interaction, develop critical skills, and have fun on the job.
5 Things To Know About an Office Scavenger Hunt
Corporate scavenger hunts include a set of challenges, often including clues set around the office or city. Employees are divided into competing teams to find the listed items or perform specific tasks. With each complete challenge, scavenger hunt moderators award points to respective groups. The team with the most points at the end of the scavenger hunt wins.
Scavenger hunts are a fun form of team activity whose popularity is rising in the post-covid era. Company reunions are perfect for scavenger hunts and other team-building activities. Before organizing a scavenger hunt, here are five things you should know about them.
1. Make It a Fair Contest
Employees have unique abilities and competencies that may benefit them or cause them to be disadvantaged in corporate events. Since scavenger hunts include challenges, you want each team to have an equal opportunity to win. Unbalanced teams can make the contest unfair, making other employees feel demotivated.
Picking teams with diverse abilities helps every employee learn something from their counterparts. Their skills and competencies can be useful at different stages in the competition, promoting teamwork. You can also spread out clues at various stages of the contest to help everyone complete the challenge.
2. Make the Event Fun
Employees spend most of their waking hours at the office, so routine work can be monotonous. Team building activities should focus on breaking this monotony and introducing some fun at the workplace. Making corporate scavenger hunts enjoyable can improve the overall success of your event.
Start by customizing the scavenger hunt to fit their needs and wants. While capturing employees’ wants can be tricky, go with a scavenger hunt idea that works with the majority. Prepare an email poll for each employee to choose the challenges they prefer. These results can help you plan better.
Proper planning allows your event to flow seamlessly, avoiding any surprises. Scout locations and have a pre-determined route in advance to set up the scavenger hunt easily. Prepare a reward for winners at the end of the contest to keep teams engaged and interested.
3. Clarify the Event’s Goals
Corporate events help bring everyone together and reflect on areas of the company that need improvement. When planning scavenger hunts, you should work around a specific goal. If you need to improve skills like critical thinking, find scavenger hunt challenges involving problem-solving. Clarifying the event’s goals early in the planning phase lets you tackle issues within your company in a fun way.
Scavenger hunts can also help companies perform their corporate social responsibilities. City-wide hunts offer employees a chance to interact physically with the local community while completing challenges. The ultimate challenge can be for each team to develop an idea to help the community. This will help employees think outside the box while promoting your company’s CSR responsibilities.
4. Communicate Early
Tight schedules bind employees, so random events can be inconvenient. Communicating with prospective participants early can inform them of the event so they can make time in their schedules. Proper communication can increase participation at the event and make planning easier. Indicate the need for each invitee to confirm attendance beforehand to avoid surprises on the day of your scavenger hunt.
5. Collaborate With Other Vendors
Scavenger hunt planning can be complex since you have to find locations, plan routes, set up, and account for contingencies. Having a team working on the planning process can make things easier and more exciting since team members can brainstorm ideas.
To reduce the cost of your scavenger hunt, you can partner with vendors where necessary. Some local businesses can provide manpower when setting up or allow you to use their locations within the challenges. This fosters good relationships with partner businesses and makes the event more fun.
Make Your Office Scavenger Hunt Interesting
Scavenger hunts are popular team-building exercises for companies. Organizing a scavenger hunt helps employees get to know their peers and develop skills that apply to their professional lives. Adequately planning an office scavenger hunt helps make the event memorable and enjoyable.