The average American adult employed full time works 47 hours per week, according to a Gallup poll, and four in 10 workers put in over 50 hours each week. So, it’s important to like what you do and who you work with. According to the Gallup Organization, workers who identify coworkers as friends (or even best friends) are seven times more likely to be engaged in their jobs. They are more likely to be satisfied and productive.
“The business world is in the midst of a sea change,” says David W. Ballard, PsyD, MBA, head of the American Psychological Association’s (APA) Psychologically Healthy Workplace Program. “Successful organizations have learned that high performance and sustainable results require attention to the relationships among employee, organization, customer and community.
For many companies across the country, the summer months offer a rare opportunity to take a step back a re-evaluate business practices – including things like morale, communication, and collaboration.
Team Building with Terrapin Adventures
Conveniently located between Baltimore and Washington, DC, Terrapin Adventures designs custom team building programs to improve communication and cohesiveness. Presented in fun and creative ways, each team building exercise breaks down communication barriers and challenges your group to work together.
“Spending time together, sharing an experience or working towards a common goal allows bonding to happen more organically and far more effectively,” says Brian Scudamore, O2E Brands founder and CEO. “Team building is the most important investment you can make for your people.”
Following each exercise, your group sits down with their facilitator to discuss the lessons behind the activity and how they translate to the business world. This discussion is designed to reinforce these lessons and help ensure that the progress made during your team building outing sticks.
Outdoor Team Building
Team building “can also be adventurous and enjoyable if you do it with a little pizzazz,” says Scudamore. “The most successful, memorable team-building events are ones that don’t feel like a day at the office.”
At Terrapin Adventures, we make team building fun. Our outdoor team building programs can include our Aerial Adventure Park with a Zip Line, Giant Swing, Climbing Tower, Jump, Low Ropes Course and High Ropes Courses. So get ready to develop a greater connection between the people in your group, class, or business and be energized!
“Data support[s] the notion that participation in a four-hour challenge course significantly increases the participants’ levels of leadership and work efficacy,” write researchers Theresa Odello, Eddie Hill, and Edwin Gómez. The team measured leadership and work efficacy levels pre-challenge course, immediately post challenge course, and six weeks after.
“Results were significant” and long lasting, say the researchers.
Indoor Team Building & Team Building at Your Location
When the weather heats up, team building doesn’t have to cool down. At Terrapin Adventures, our custom team building programs are just that – fully custom. We can design an indoor experience that is just as beneficial as our outdoor programs. Best of all, we can even take our show on the road and come to you!
Sometimes a familiar location can work wonders, and even enhance a team building program. Our experienced facilitators can travel offsite to your office, or any number of other indoor facilities, including hotels, conference centers, gymnasiums, etc. Our offsite team building programs typically run between 2-8 hours, though multi-day events are also possible.
What Are You Waiting For?
Team building “builds trust, mitigates conflict, encourages communication, and increases collaboration,” says Scudamore. “Effective team building means more engaged employees, which is good for company culture and boosting the bottom line.”
Click Here to Inquire About a Custom Team Building Program!
If you have any questions, please call Terrapin Adventure at 301.725.1313, or email us at info@terrapinadventures.com to learn more.
Sources
- Bennett, J. C., and R. J. Olney. “Executive Priorities for Effective Communication in an Information Society.” Journal of Business Communication 23.2 (1986): 13-22. Web.
- Glaze, Sean. “Two Main Ingredients That Create Team Unity.” Two Main Ingredients That Create Team Unity. Association for Talent Development, 30 July 2013. Web. 10 Oct. 2016.
- Lavoie, Andre. “How to Build Meaningful Relationships in the Workplace.” Entrepreneur. N.p., 01 Sept. 2015. Web. 23 Mar. 2017.
- Odello, Theresa, Eddie Hill, Suny Cortland, and Edwin Gomez. “Challenge Course Effectiveness: The Impact on Leadership Efficacy and Work Efficacy among College Students.” Journal of Unconventional Parks, Tourism & Recreation Research 1.1 (2008): 18-22. Web.
- Pentland, Alex “Sandy”, and Anita Woolley and Thomas W. Malone. “The New Science of Building Great Teams.” Harvard Business Review. N.p., 15 July 2015. Web. 20 Apr. 2017.
- Scudamore, Brian. “Why Team Building Is The Most Important Investment You’ll Make.” Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 09 Mar. 2016. Web. 07 July 2017.
- “THE IMPORTANCE OF UNITY IN TEAM SUCCESS.” Addocura. N.p., 4 Nov. 2015. Web.