It's the middle of winter, 6:00 PM at that cabin you booked for your DIY corporate retreat. John had a little too much to drink at dinner and is in the bathroom composing himself. Lisa threw a few too many logs on the fire, and its warmth is putting you all to sleep. Let's face it; that evening team building exercise you had planned isn't going to happen. Test
If you've modeled your weekend escape after the traditional company outing, you better be ready to waste some time. The creature comforts of a cozy cottage are difficult to resist, even if you're the one most vested in its success. Why is it so challenging to turn these getaways into productive experiences?
1) The Classic Corporate Retreat is "Too Classic": If you tell your co-workers you're headed into the hills for the weekend for "team building", they know exactly what's up - circling up to try some time tested team activities, beer in hand and slippers on feet. With this model, team building=laid back fun. Is that a problem? No, not necessarily... but end-of-the-week games at the ski resort hotel doesn't exactly inspire productivity, which leads into the next issue
2) Coming in With a Growth Mindset: Enough said. When your team hears "Weekend Getaway in the White Mountains," any preparedness to actually learn goes down the drain.
3) Not Enough Structure: Creating a successful corporate team building retreat takes work. It is not easy to create an itinerary, for dozens of co-workers, that will keep them engaged and learning successfully. Trying to structure an entire outing is a weeks-long commitment, and so many dedicated organizers simply don't have enough time in their schedules to polish that list of activities.
4) It's hard to be the "bad person": You've been with your team for a while. They know you're stellar. That can make it all the more challenging to drive productivity during a retreat. It's hard to be both the good cop and the bad cop.
Thankfully, there are dedicated individuals out there who commit themselves to coaching corporate retreats and improving team building. At Grizzly Guard, we run "Extreme" Outdoor Courses that are designed to make your team better. Through targeted assessments, our instructors hone in on your team's biggest areas of improvement.
Click below to read about what we require of our instructors and how they're equipped to succeed at Grizzly Guard.
