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Bruny Surin is a passionate animator and motivator. His team building activities are built according to the needs of his audience.
The objective of this workshop is to strengthen the bonds within your team and to develop tools to advance collectively: key assets for success.
Proposed signature activities:
- Dynamic warm-up
- Relay race with passing of the witness
- Synchronized team race on “skis” (only available in Montreal and its surrounding areas);
- Animation and training with bodyweight exercises;
- Other customized activities can be offered depending on the clients’ goals and ideas.
- Rugby without running.
The team building activity is available in Montreal, throughout Quebec, and around the world et dans les environs et ailleurs au Québec . Different packages of varying duration are offered to suit everyone.
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The main advantages of team building activities
A strong and united team translates into better productivity as well as a pleasant work environment where the talent of each person is put to contribution and valued. Team building, as its name indicates, ultimately allows you to reinforce the cohesion of your group. But let’s take a closer look at how this activity between colleagues achieves this goal.
Break the isolation within the team
A team building activity allows people who are more reserved in a work environment to finally express themselves in a relaxed context and to break the distance that their shyness sometimes imposes between them and their colleagues. They create links with other participants more easily, promoting team cohesion.
Ending conflicts within the team
This activity is also a great opportunity to break down walls that may have been erected between employees and/or superiors after disagreements or conflicts. During the activity, everyone is on an equal footing. By taking part in the games and challenges, employees and supervisors have an essential role and are invited to express their opinions and to be open to the needs and concerns of others. Communication between group members becomes more natural, fluid and meaningful.
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Integrating new team members
There is nothing like a team building activity to welcome a new employee to a group! Games and challenges give the newcomer a chance to socialize with new colleagues and superiors without feeling like a nuisance. Valuable minutes that will change the group dynamic forever!
Develop your self-confidence
Through the course of the activities and challenges, participants often discover a talent or social ease that they did not know they had until now. The result? In the space of a day, they gain self-confidence, which then follows them home and to the office! Another great advantage of team building!
Workshops, games and team-building activities
Team building is a real opportunity for companies to consolidate the bonds that exist between employees making up the same work team. Depending on the type of activity chosen, team members are required to get to know each other, build trust and communicate effectively to achieve a common goal. This is what we can offer you in Surin, through our own team-building activities and through team-building games tailored to your specific needs.
Example of a team building activity we organize for your company
At Surin, we offer an interesting catalog of team building activities and games from which you can choose according to your company's objectives. All these corporate team building activities can be grouped into 2 main categories: Bruny Surin's specialties and popular activities.
Bruny Surin's own activities
Bruny Surin, founder of the Surin company, is an Olympic champion relay runner. He provides the business world with ideas for corporate seminars that combine team-building activities with team sports. The team-building activities specific to his company are therefore mainly the following sports activities.
Dynamic group warm-ups
Dynamic group warm-ups are sports sessions in which employees are required to participate. The activity is simple. For 20 to 30 minutes, all team members reproduce the exercises demonstrated by the instructor. It can take place in a large meeting room or outdoors.
This team-building activity doesn't necessarily require teams. It can consist of a cardio, fitness or muscle-strengthening session. Its main aim is to enable employees to enjoy a sporting activity together. Not only do they share the same physical challenges, but they can also encourage each other to give their best.
The relay race
As you'd expect, the relay race is one of our flagship team building activities. It's also a sports team building activity that promotes teamwork. To play, you need to form teams of 3 to 6 members. The members of each team are positioned at equal distances on a racetrack. From the starting line, each team member must hand over the baton to the next teammate to enable him or her to continue the race. Members of the same team take it in turns to pass the baton to the finish line.
The aim of this original team-building activity is to help team members develop a sense of teamwork and of a job well done. Not only do they have to rely on each other to receive and pass on the baton, but the team's result depends on the effort each member puts in.
Synchronized team racing on skis
Synchronized team racing on skis is an activity we only offer in and around Montreal. This team-building activity involves a ski race. It often accompanies ideas for leadership and coaching training seminars.
The special feature that makes this an original team-building activity is that all the members of the same team are on a long-board snowboard. To move forward, all team members have to move together as one. One mistake by a participant and the whole team is on the ground.
For this team-building activity, you can form teams of 4 to 6 people. The aim of this synchronized team race is to develop teamwork and improve communication between employees.
Animation with bodyweight exercises
Bodyweight exercises such as sheathing, pull-ups and push-ups are difficult physical exercises to perform. These are high-level sports team-building activities. Each exercise is chosen by the instructor to push participants to the limit, to push back their usual limits. The aim of this original team-building activity is clearly to forge a mentality of steel in employees.
It's also about playing sports together. What's more, it's difficult for most people to do sport when they're on their own. Bodyweight exercises as a team-building activity therefore provide mutual support between members of the same work team.
Popular customizable activities
In addition to the agency's own team-building activities, we also offer our customers a wide range of team-building games customized to the objectives they wish to achieve with their work teams. Among these team building activities, you'll find the following categories.
Ice-breaking activities
Ice-breaker activities are ideal for creating bonds between new collaborators. They are also useful for re-establishing communication broken down by distance or conflict between several members of the same department. They are entertaining and convivial.
In this category of team building games, we suggest activities such as :
- Group painting: this activity falls into the creative and artistic team building category. Each team is given a large canvas on which to paint a single image. Each team member is responsible for his or her own part of the drawing.
- Group cooking: this consolidates the bonds between participants by exercising their ability to communicate and collaborate. After all, to prepare a meal as a group, everyone has to pitch in.
- Theater: in the artistic category, theater is a great team-building idea. It's even better if you give each team the freedom to put on their own play for the whole group to see.
With these team-building activities, it would be truly difficult to succeed without creating open collaboration and a good atmosphere between the participants.
Activities for getting to know the company and colleagues
For your employees to be effective in their work, it's imperative that they have a good knowledge of the company. Rather than creating a tense or overly formal atmosphere to check everyone's level of information, you can do it with a fun team building idea. Here are a few activities that can help you do just that:
- The quiz: a quick check of your employees' knowledge of your company. You can ask questions such as "What's the company slogan?", "Who is the company's former director?", "What year was our company founded? You can also ask more specific questions about the positions held by your employees, to ensure that they are fully aware of their responsibilities. The quiz can be oral or written.
- Two truths, one lie: this original team building activity involves each employee writing down two truths and one lie about themselves, so that the others can determine what is true and what is false. The information given must still relate to facts that a fellow employee would know. For example, you can talk about the number of children, make of car, pets, marital status, favorite foods, etc.
- What I know about you: this variation on the previous activity involves directly asking other team members questions about a person's life. You then take it in turns to ask questions about all team members. This team-building game allows you to assess the closeness and familiarity between your employees.
What if I were you? This game can take the form of a mime. The person chosen (or volunteered) is asked to imitate someone in the group in everyday office situations. Halfway between theater and reality, this team-building activity can be highly educational. It allows the person being imitated to see themselves through the eyes of their colleagues.
You use these team-building activities to give real-life information about the company and your colleagues. The sessions therefore also have an educational purpose.
Team-building activity
Team spirit is essential for boosting the productivity of your company's employees. Although it can be found in other categories of team building activities we've already mentioned, it's even more developed in activities such as :
- Escape game: this popular game is a great team-building idea for consolidating team spirit. The game, as its name suggests, involves making an escape by solving a series of riddles and finding clues to the main enigma. In an escape game, one or more members of a team are imprisoned, and it's up to the others to free them. There are many variations on this team-building activity. You can add your own personal touch to achieve your specific objectives.
- Treasure hunt: different competing teams search for the same treasure, and the winners take home a handsome trophy. The principle of the game is simple. As well as building team spirit, the game develops intelligence, stamina and healthy competition between team members. It's up to you to raise the game's difficulty level according to the means at your disposal.
- The rescue mission: this involves putting a person (or dummy) in a dangerous situation so that others can come to his or her aid. This team-building activity is a great way to test your employees' first-aid skills. For example, you can stage a cardiac arrest, drowning or fire situation. When faced with such incidents, it's essential to work together to save the employee in distress.
- Compound story: this consists of creating a sensible story from scratch as each member of staff adds to it. Anyone can play. All it takes is for the first contributor to set the scene for the next to add a logical sequence to the story. And so on. In the end, the team that wins is the one with the most interesting story. In training seminars, the aim of this activity is not so much to win, but rather to get everyone involved.
- Tug-of-war: a very simple team-building activity, but one that really brings out the team spirit in employees. Each team with the same number of participants stands on either side of a rope. A line is drawn through the middle of the 2 teams at equal distance. As soon as the whistle blows, each team pulls the rope on its own side, so that the opponents pass through the line. This child's game shows just how useful teamwork can be. The strong support the weak, and everyone gives their all to achieve the goal.
These activities are carried out in a spirit of harmony and good humor.
Fun and relaxation activities
The last category of team building activities we offer is essentially designed to help you have a good time together. And for good reason: corporate collaboration is not only based on work and the development of skills and knowledge that enhance employee productivity. It can also be based on sharing moments of relaxation and enjoyment. In this category, we suggest activities such as :
- Picnics: a fairly simple activity, they can nevertheless create a festive atmosphere within the company. It can take place on or off company premises. You can take a trip to the beach or a public park for a change of scene. To facilitate the activity, everyone can bring their own snacks.
- Barbecuing: at work, at home or anywhere else, it's the perfect opportunity to enjoy grilled meats to your heart's content.
- Beer tasting: alcohol loosens tongues and loosens up even the most reserved of people. A beer tasting in a brewery is a great way to get everyone together. This activity can also be used as an opportunity to take a tour of the brewery and gain in general knowledge.
- Indoor surfing: an activity that's both fun and sporty is just what you need to have a great time with your work team. You'll have a great time, breaking down any barriers between you and your colleagues.
Team building isn't always easy when you're on your own. You need professionals to support you in achieving your key objectives.
Whatever your company's mission, calling on us to organize regular leadership training sessions, punctuated by corporate team building activities, can only improve your results in a positive way. Just get in touch and we'll find out what your teams need. Put your trust in us!
FAQs on team building activities
To improve your understanding of team building activities, here are a few frequently asked questions on the subject.
What makes a good Icebreaker?
An Icebreaker is an ice-breaking activity. Its aim is to enable participants to communicate with each other for the first time in a team-building context. To make a good Icebreaker, you need to consider the following criteria:
- The game must appeal to everyone: it's important for the icebreaker experience to be positive if it's to have a real impact. You should therefore avoid team-building activities that make some participants feel uncomfortable.
- Participants need to introduce themselves: the aim of icebreakers is to facilitate initial contact between people who don't yet know each other. At the very least, everyone should introduce themselves.
- Instructions must be clear and simple: to avoid the warm atmosphere that is to be promoted becoming tense, it's imperative that the team building game is easy to understand and play. Don't irritate participants by complicating the activity more than necessary.
- The game should encourage a cross-fertilization of ideas: icebreaker participants are new collaborators. It's a good idea for your icebreaker team-building activity to encourage collective intelligence, i.e. the pooling of ideas to come up with the solution.
If you succeed in meeting all these requirements, you'll have a good Icebreaker. Generally speaking, keep it simple.
How to run a team-building activity?
Running a successful team building activity may seem like an easy task. But it's not. Ideally, you should entrust the management of your activities to specially trained professionals. If you don't have the resources, here are the basics to bear in mind.
The first point is to keep in mind the objective of the team-building session, and choose activities that will achieve that objective. Next, you need to plan the activities to be carried out in advance, so as not to make any inappropriate last-minute decisions. Then, you need to have a keen sense of observation and analysis to observe participants' reactions during the team building game. Add to this the fact that you need to be dynamic and cheerful, as you're the one who'll be communicating the general mood of the session. Finally, don't forget to take feedback from participants at the end of each activity to help improve the next one.
What team games can I play at work?
Almost all team games can be played at work. But, in a professional context, you need to favour games that don't cause too much debris so as not to dirty the workplace, and activities that don't distort the workplace. For example, we don't recommend holding a dance party or picnic on company premises if you don't have a suitable space for it.
Instead, focus on discussion games, motivational games, problem-solving games, productivity games, online games and sports challenges. Some companies have recreation rooms, auditoriums or gardens. If this is the case at your company, then all team-building activities are possible.
How do I go about online team building?
Online team building is planned in the same way as face-to-face team building, the only difference being that you need to provide digital tools to carry out the activities. To this end, many applications and platforms offer online team games. All you have to do is get all participants to download the game before you start.
You can also carry out team-building activities via videoconferencing. In fact, the presence barrier prevents you from doing only those activities for which you need to have physical contact. You can do all the others if you can see through a screen.
Make sure all participants have a good internet connection. Choose and test games in advance if possible. Form teams and start the game.
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