Here are 3 ways to build strong teams:

1. Get to know your team

There are numerous ways to get to know your team. You can conduct surveys, stay interviews, and even hold town halls. Those are great and are highly recommended, but the best way to get to know your team is to spend time with them. This could include scheduled check-ins, lunches, or fun activities together. Whatever you choose, make sure you are asking good questions to learn more about your team both personally and professionally.

2. Care about your team

Your team needs to know you care about them. Show your appreciation for the work they do. Find creative ways to celebrate wins and goals hit. When you go out of your way to show your appreciation and take time out of the workday to reward your team, they will feel valued. People can usually find a job that pays more, but a job with a caring boss is hard to find.  

3. Make sure your team knows each other

It’s also important that your team members have avenues to get to know each other. While you may think that since they work together all the time they must know each other. That isn’t always the case. Create ways for your team to get to know one another on a deeper level. Team building exercises or “unproductive” time together isn’t just fluffy culture ideas. When you allow teams to work and “play” together communication, collaboration, and cooperation will all strengthen.

If you don’t know where to start, plan a fun day out of the office (or in) doing something together that will force your team to have non-work-related conversations. You will hit all three of the points above! Escape rooms are a great way to do this and more. How else could you create a low-stress way to practice working towards a common goal and working to communicate effectively, all while having a blast?! Book an experience for your team today and tie it to your appreciation for the work your team does. Creating a culture of retention can’t happen overnight but grows as you build stronger teams.

Find more team building tips and retention strategies at https://www.magnetculture.com

The post 3 Tips on How to Build A Strong Team appeared first on Team Building Hub.

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• Tools to create a virtual water cooler
• Virtual water cooler activities
• Additional tips

What is a virtual water cooler?

A virtual water cooler is an online version of “water cooler chat.” “Water cooler chat” is what happens when coworkers take a short break from work and socialize. Whether they discuss professional projects or their personal lives, chatting together “around the water cooler” is a great time for employees to refresh and reconnect.

You don’t need a literal water cooler to make “water cooler chat” happen. People talk during lunch breaks while making coffee, or printing copies. All this to say, being physically present in the office provides plenty of time for casual bonding and conversations.

COVID has disrupted that dynamic. While many companies have adapted to remote work, creating organic conversational situations has continued to be a challenge. How can organizations ensure employees have ample opportunities to connect, despite the distance?

The answer is to create a remote version — the virtual water cooler. This is a digital situation that allows people to bond in a way similar to the in-person opportunities that exist in the physical office. While the scenarios may have to be more structured rather than spontaneous, working from home is no excuse to stop the conversation!

Why is a virtual water cooler important?

Creates a sense of belonging

With employees scattered across a city, country, or even the world, distance regularly makes employees feel isolated. Virtual water coolers create open communication for team members, providing opportunities to develop camaraderie and feel like a valuable part of the group. They break through the discouraging barriers of time zones and solely work-related interactions.

Helps people feel involved

Virtual water coolers, much like their physical counterparts, can also increase professional employee engagement as people feel more naturally involved in their work environment.

Inspires better work

Chatting with co-workers, whether about personal topics or work-related subjects, can give birth to new ideas beneficial to the company culture. Often talking through thoughts and ideas helps people naturally reach new conclusions and plans of attack. Therefore, virtual water cooler conversations encourage collaboration and fresh thinking.

Tools To Create A Virtual Water Cooler

Here are three easily applied solutions to create a virtual water cooler to ensure team members feel connected.

1. Have a question of the day

An easy way to keep the conversation happening is to have an ice breaker question of the day asked by a designated person in the company’s digital chatroom of choice (i.e. Slack, Google Hangouts, etc.).

Co-workers can chat about each other’s answers at their convenience and learn new things about team members!

Chatting apps are also perceived as less formal than emails or video meetings, which can allow co-workers to feel more comfortable opening up.

2. Play a game

During a company virtual meeting on a video call, try playing an online game for Zoom! This allows team members to loosen up and feel more comfortable and connected to the people on the other side of the screen.

3. Shout out team members

The whole point of facilitating a virtual water cooler is to help bridge the conversational gaps that happen from remote work. One way to get people talking is to shout out team members and acknowledge their accomplishments! Noticed a co-worker putting their all into a big project! Shoot them a chat message to say so or mention it during the next team huddle. Read an interesting article? Email it to the team and ask for their thoughts in the email thread. Finding casual ways to keep conversation going is the best way to make your virtual water cooler stick.

Virtual Water Cooler Activities

If you want to schedule a more formal online water cooler hang-out time, make sure to include some virtual team building activities! While they may require a slightly higher level of planning, they often bring a greater reward. From professional development options to activities solely meant for fun, engaging online team building activities are an effective addition to any virtual water cooler strategy. Here are four easy activities to try during your next scheduled virtual water cooler:

1. Watch a quick TedTalk

Watching a team building TedTalk and then discussing afterward and be both inspiring and conversationally stimulating! You can choose a video that’s pretty relevant to work or something more random that the group may find interesting. Sometimes the random topic is more fun because it offers a break from all the corporate talk.

2. Discuss your goals

Sometimes we get so caught up in the whirlwind of daily corporate life that we forget what we’re even doing it for! During your next virtual water cooler, make it a point to talk about what you like about your job and how you want to grow in your skills. What are the future career goals everyone has? This can re-align and re-inspire the whole group!

3. Do a round of trivia

Trivia is a great way to learn something new together! A little competition is also fun and obscure facts are great conversation starters. You can also play full-on virtual trivia games depending on how much time you have to dedicate.

4. Talk about hobbies

You may be surprised by the niche interests of some of your coworkers! Giving people a chance to discuss some of their passions outside of work is a fantastic conversational opportunity. It’s also a surefire way to learn more about the people you work with and feel more connected to who they are as a person, not just an employee.

Virtual Water Cooler Tips

1. Don’t make it awkward

Avoid asking uncomfortable, or yes or no questions that may kill the conversation. Instead, ask engaging questions that the majority of people would be able to answer to get the conversation flowing!

2. Make it easy

Not all team members are chatty, especially on a video call. Try not to force people to be in a call one-on-one and have them make conversation, especially if they wouldn’t normally talk to that person alone face-to-face.

3. Have a theme

When scheduling these virtual water cooler conversations or virtual coffee breaks, having a theme can sometimes give people an easy conversation starter. Whether the theme is to drink their favorite kind of tea, talk about their hometowns, or share a funny memory, having a common ground theme makes things both easy and fun!

The post The Virtual Water Cooler | Why you need it + how to do it appeared first on Team Building Hub.

One option for team building, personality tests build profiles of team members. You can use those to bridge understanding and improve how teams work together. They can also highlight the strengths and weaknesses of your group. Having a stronger idea of communication styles and skills allows your team to build deeper connections. Outside of the surface-level “what did you do this weekend,” team personality tests spark discussions that allow teammates to feel seen, supported, and united!

Types Of Team Personality Tests

Here we will explore twelve online options for personality test team building that can benefit your remote team! There are no wrong answers, both in your test selection and on the tests themselves.

1. Character Strengths Survey

The Character Strengths Survey is a 100-question quiz that has quiz takers select an answer ranging from “very much like me” to “very much unlike me.” With the results of the survey, users obtain a score for their “signature strengths, middle strengths, and areas of improvement.”

The tiered results allow you and your team to see not only each teammate’s strengths but also where they may need to lean on others for help as they continue developing a particular muscle – fantastic to build comfort being vulnerable in your team.

2. The Enneagram

The Enneagram is a commonly discussed test so the name may sound familiar. The test can be taken in about 15 minutes or so, with only 7 pages of questions (each page with a handful).

Phrases you will rate are things like “I see the positive in every situation” or “I am not afraid to tell someone when I think they are wrong.” Ultimately, the Enneagram test is assessing how well an individual aligns with the nine common personality types, providing a rating and description for each.

Each personality type in the Enneagram has a set of dominant behaviors, motivations, and fears. Once you discover your enneagram, you (and your team) will be able to better understand your strengths and weaknesses. 

Your dominant behavior, which is the number from 1-9 that you’re assigned at the end of the test, is also called your Basic Behavior. It’s who you are at your core. According to Enneagram theory, your Basic Behavior is strongly influenced by your environment and personal experiences.

The Enneagram recognizes that people don’t always act in line with their basic behavior, however, which is why each Enneagram number has Wings. Your Wing describes your Adjacent Type – things that influence your personality, but do not dominate it.

For example, you could be an Enneagram 3 with a 2 wing, meaning your dominant personality is that of “The Achiever” and you have a strong sense of caring for others too. Each wing is determined by the numbers chronologically adjacent to it. So an Enneagram 3 could have either a 2 or a 3 wing, but not a 4,5,6, etc.

3. Myers-Briggs

Also known as the 16 personality types test, you may have heard of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI). The test assigns users a four-letter acronym that demonstrates their tendency across four categories: introversion or extraversion, sensing or intuition, thinking or feeling, and judging or perceiving – in that order.

Once assigned your acronym, the test gives a thorough description of your personal tendencies as they relate to the acronym. Myers-Briggs types can highlight employees who will collaborate best with each other, employees that might prefer more individualized work, and more – all very valuable insights to strengthening your team and the bonds within it.

Carl Jung, a psychologist, created this team personality test. His theory was that humans experience the world with four psychological functions: sensation, intuition, feeling and thinking. These four functions affect a person’s work style, how they relax and rejuvenate, their strengths and weaknesses, and more. 

It was Isabel Myers and Katharine Briggs who would later format these four psychological functions into sixteen personality types, one of which will be your test result. Your personality type describes if you are extroverted or introverted, how you process information, how you make decisions, and how you go about doing things.

4. DiSC

You might start noticing a trend with the various team personality tests as many of them have similarities. As we have seen with previous examples, the DiSC Assessment test assesses users across different categories (dominance, influence, steadiness, and conscientiousness) by asking questions related to various social situations and how the test-taker perceives those situations.

The test results highlight your team members’ interpersonal style, which can help you build a more impactful relationship with them and it can help other teammates understand each other better. 

5. High 5 Test

The High 5 Test provides test takers with 100 prompts, which they rate on a scale of “strongly agree” to “strongly disagree.” An example of a prompt users will be asked is “I believe the best way to achieve success is by focusing on one thing,” which the user will then either agree or disagree with based on the provided scale.

After completing the 100-prompt test, your team will be given results that spotlight their top five dominant traits. Other tests have given test-takers both highs and lows, like the Character Strengths Survey, but this test just shows the five strongest traits each person has.

This allows your team to find their similarities and differences quite easily when they share their results while highlighting teammates that have strengths that differ from their own – extremely impactful when they work together in the future.

6. 5-Minute Personality Test

Just like it says in the name, you can take this test in only five minutes! Though brief, the test is still very effective. Within the test, there are ten lines of prompts to fill out. Each line has four words/phrases that test takers will rate on a scale of 1-4, four being the phrase that aligns with them best, under four letter categories.

At the end of the test, users will add up the points they have under each letter, and their strongest letter represents their personality. The next page of the test reveals the traits associated with each letter.

7. The 5 Love Languages Quiz

Though the test may seem like one best suited for personal relationships, think of the test instead as the Appreciation Language Quiz. Everyone likes to be appreciated in different ways, and if your team can understand each other’s preferences, they can celebrate each other much more effectively.

Some people may really appreciate a high-five or handshake after a job-well-done, while others may feel special receiving a thoughtful message. Though some explanation of your intentions with the quiz may be needed, it could be just what your team needs to feel more recognized by their colleagues. 

8. The Color Code

You guessed it! This team personality test assigns test takers with a color that best aligns with their personality and a description of what that color means. The Color Code test examines the why and how of your actions.

The first section of this two-part test is “Strengths and Limitations.” Within that section, users are prompted to select the trait that best describes them among a list of four, across 30 prompts. Next, users move on to the “Situations” section. This brings up 15 situations and asks how you would have responded as a child, out of four choices.

Each test taker then scores a color, either red, blue, white, or yellow.They’ll also get an explanation of what that color represents.

9. Career Values Assessment

The Career Values Assessment is another brief test, averaging about 12 minutes start to finish, specifically meant for the work place.

The test has 20 online questions test takers answer, all related to different aspects of work to identify where users stand among six different underlying work values. They’ll be presented with prompts like “in my ideal job, it is important that…” With that prompt especially, some example responses could be “…I make use of my abilities” or “…I would receive recognition for the work I do.”

After completing the 20 prompts, team members receive scores for each of the six work value clusters. In addition, they will also receive a list of different jobs that align with those values, which could be a fun discussion point for everyone.

10. Caliper Profile

The Caliper Profile measures a person’s compatibility with a particular role. This is a great way for organizations to assess potential new hires and employees who are up for a promotion. Test takers answer multiple choice, true or false, and a degree of agreement scale in this team personality test. Most questions ask you to choose the answer that most closely aligns with your views.

This team personality test looks at the positive and negative qualities a candidate might have to gain insight into how they may perform in their new role. You can also customize this test to look for specific traits that are important to a role or responsibility.

11. Eysenck Personality Inventory

The Eysenck Personality Inventory assesses a team members’ personality by measuring neuroticism vs. stability and extroversion vs. introversion. The results include three main scores: “E” (extroversion level), “N” (neuroticism level), and “lie,” which measures how honestly a person is answering. The full test has 100 questions, but there is a simple version with only 57 yes or no questions.

12. Revised NEO Personality Inventory

The Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-PI-R) assesses the Big-5 personality traits: openness to experience, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism.

Furthermore, each of the five traits has six subcategories. For example, neuroticism consists of anxiety, hostility, depression, self-consciousness, impulsiveness, and vulnerability to stress.

The subcategories for extraversion are warmth, gregariousness, assertiveness, activity, excitement seeking, and positive emotion. There are 240 prompts within this team personality test, and the entire thing takes about 30-40 minutes to complete.

Why Personality Tests Are Good for Team Building

Personality tests are good for team building for a few reasons. First, they help you learn more about each other. The more you know about your teammates, the better you can assign responsibilities and have realistic expectations for each other. Secondly, they can smooth the virtual onboarding and transition process for new employees and current team members.

Taking a team personality test also gives you and your teammates a chance to get together over video chat and talk about your results. Depending on how large your team is, this could take a few hours to a day or two. 

If you and your teammates have a difficult time understanding your results, you might want to consider bringing in a professional. There are independent third-party personality test administrators who would be happy to join in on your call and explain everyone’s results in detail. This will give everyone a deep, complete understanding. 

20 Common Team Personality Test Questions

1. Do you like meeting new people?
2. Do you like helping people out?
3. How do you respond when you are blamed for something you didn’t do?
4. How long does it take you to calm down when you’ve been angry?
5. Do you help people only if you think you’d get something in return?
6. Do you set up long term goals?
7. Are you easily fazed?
8. How often do you go out into a social environment or a public place?
9. Do you get disappointed easily?
10. Are you considerate of other people’s feelings?
11. Are you always busy?
12. Do you like solving complex problems?
13. Do you make people feel welcome?
14. Is your go-to reaction in a problem to cheat your way out of it?
15. Do you feel overwhelmed often?
16. How often do you travel?
17. Do you prefer familiarity over unfamiliarity?
18. Are you generally passionate about social causes?
19. Do you like being pushy?
20. Do you tend to always see the good in people, no matter what the circumstance is?

How Do Team Personality Tests Help You Learn More About People?

Team personality tests assess how you make decisions, what motivates you, what angers you, what you need to feel happy, what makes you feel anxious, what makes you feel secure and much more.

This kind of insight into the people you work with will help you find roles that are perfect for each person in your group. Furthermore, it can help aid in conflict resolution. For example, if you know a certain personality type needs personal space when upset and another person needs reassurance, you help facilitate a situation where each person has what they need.

How Much Value Should You Place on a Personality Test?

Personality tests can be an excellent indicator of what makes a person tick, but it’s important to remember that they require 100% honest answers in order to be accurate. If someone takes the test and strategically selects answers in hopes of getting the desired result, their personality type will not accurately reflect who they are.

It’s also difficult to boil anyone down to a single personality type. People are complex! We recommend taking people’s test results into consideration when interacting, but not basing your entire perception of them on one test result!

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Exactly what traits does a team personality test measure?

A personality test can measure a variety of different things depending on the subject of the test. They can assess what a person values in the workplace or how they like to communicate with their co-workers.

2. Can a team personality test uncover a mental illness?

Not likely. Team personality tests aren’t medical questionnaires and focus on assigning someone one of several pre-determined test results. They are not meant to be used in clinical citations or to diagnose a mental illness.

3. How long does it take to complete a team personality test?

It depends on the length and complexity of the test. Some can be as quick as ten minutes while others can be about an hour if there is discussion time post-assessment!

4. Should I use personality tests in hiring?

It’s up to you! Most personality tests assess a person’s communication style, conflict resolution style, or general temperament. A personality test can help you determine if someone is a good culture fit for your team.

Which Personality Test Is Right For My Team?

While you can’t really go wrong in your choice of a team building personality test, there may be some that can answer specific questions more than others. Are you trying to discover more about colleagues work styles to help employees work better together? Are you trying to learn more about people’s personalities or interests? Different tests, like those mentioned above, can answer those questions!

Each test will give you and your team valuable insight into one another. Conducting a team assessment is a great way to create bonds. It also shows your team you care to understand and will give you better employee appreciation to understand what makes everyone unique.

Beyond that, your team will feel closer with each other in a couple of ways. Now, they know more about each other and have bonded over learning about themselves. That enhances team culture and improves the work they do together.

Team building personality tests can do wonders to continue improving your work environment. No matter your departmental level, everyone can benefit by learning more about their co-workers!

The post 12 Team Building Personality Tests appeared first on Team Building Hub.

Depending on the job, Work Sample Tests can be virtually anything. There are lots of different jobs, which require other traits and skills. Almost anything related to the role’s day-to-day activities could be considered a work sample test. 

So, for this post, I’ll briefly go over some of the different ways different organizations perform their various work sample tests prior to employee hiring and onboarding. My goal is that these brief case studies will inspire you to come up with your own. 

Let’s get started.

Use A Consulting Project As An Audition.

In 2021 On Deck, a fast-growing start-up building a community for top talent acquired Lean Hire. Lean Hire made it easy for small, growing companies to connect with potential future employees and have them do a consulting project. 

The idea behind Lean Hire is pretty simple. Hiring, particularly for leadership positions at small companies, is fraught with risks for both the company and the applicant. Lean Hire matched candidates with companies for short-term consulting projects so both parties could get to know each other better before making a full-time commitment. 

Once you understand the concept of a work tryout, you start seeing them all over the place.

• Automattic, the company behind WordPress and lauded for its pioneering support for remote work, conducts “Auditions.” ¹
• New, fresh out of residency MDs pursue fellowships at hospitals where they’d like to work.
• Leading banks and consulting firms conduct “Leadership Rotations” or “Management Training Programs” for new grads. At the end of the program, not all participants are asked to return.
• Law firms hire summer interns. Not all of them receive offers to return after graduation (and not all new lawyers accept the offer).

Have The Candidate Do A Sales Pitch On The Recruiter Screen

This is one I’ve done personally and has been successful. Here’s how it worked:

1. Before opening the job requisition, I worked with the recruiting team to help them understand the components of a good discovery sales call. The goal was to get them to the point where they 1) understood the components and 2) could easily recognize them.
2. Recruiters posted the job, and candidates applied.
3. The recruiter/sourcer determined which candidates they’d like to invite to a phone screen.
4. During the 30-minute phone screen, the recruiter told the candidate that they’d allow 10 minutes to role-play a sales discovery call where they (the candidate) would be the product they were selling.
5. After the discovery call, the recruiter noted which components the candidates covered. Eventually, we got to the point where we determined that there were five components we wanted to see. So the recruiters would make notes like “candidate got three of the five components, didn’t summarize or set-up another contact point.”
6. Recruiters would pass any candidates who got three or more of the discovery call components on to me.

If you’re conducting candidate phone screens, then you’re likely new to talent acquisition and probably pretty ambitious and eager to learn so you can advance your career. The surprising thing about this approach was how much the recruiters enjoyed it. They appreciated that they had direction, a rubric that gave them autonomy and taught them how to determine sales skill fundamentals objectively.

Screen For Consciousness And Attention To Detail At Job Application

Before I cared too much about my ability to evaluate talent, I interviewed candidates for a project manager position.

One of them went on and on about how detail-oriented they were, which is an excellent trait for project managers. The only problem was that their resume had three apparent errors.

At the time, I wasn’t confident enough to tell the hiring manager that I didn’t want to hire this person. I went with the flow, we hired them, and it didn’t work out. At all.

Looking back, I wish that I had been more assertive. But the experience made me realize that there was probably a better way to screen this person out earlier by screening candidates for attention to detail during the application process. 

Years later, I came across a job posting from a growing and respected SaaS company called Fleetio. Fleetio, as it happens, screens for attention to detail well before the interview stage. I’m not going to spoil it for you, but check out this posting to see how they do it.

Using Play As A Work Sample Test

My friend Sharon, a renowned data scientist, is a big fan of using situational play to see how someone approaches a problem.

One example of play that can tell you a lot about someone’s skills? Online escape rooms from Team Building Hub. 

While it’s not always practical to do with candidates, observing yourself and your team interact in a virtual escape room experience will tell you a lot about your collective soft skills. For example:

• Are you all communicating in a way that’s consistent with your values?
• Is there someone who is leading well above their current pay grade?
• Is your team a collection of individuals or acting as a true team? 

Another benefit of game-style work sample tests is that they can be done as a group. When evaluating job candidates with a work sample test you have to look at them individually. But by watching a team play a virtual escape room with Team Building Hub you observe how the team comes together and can get a better understanding of the collective’s strengths and weaknesses.

Wrapping Up

I hope these use cases help you implement Work Sample Tests in your work, and frankly, I’d love to hear from you if there’s something you do to evaluate a candidate’s ability to do the job.

Thank you for reading! If you’d like to make hiring your superpower (and you should) subscribe to my newsletter, Lying to Ourselves. People seem to really dig it.

The post Work Sample Tests: Your #1 Predictor of Success appeared first on Team Building Hub.

Let’s face it: Communicating through email and clicking between different programs is exhausting. There’s too much information in different places and too many opportunities to make mistakes.

Now that companies around the world are embracing remote work, it’s never been more important for leaders to implement team collaboration tools that will help everyone stay productive while being as efficient as possible.

In order to help you make the best decision, we’ve compiled a list of the best collaboration tools for teams! But first, let’s talk about what to consider when choosing the best collaboration software for your team.

5 Things To Consider When Choosing Collaboration Tools for Virtual Teams

1. Features

It would help to sit down and write a list of all the features your ideal virtual team collaboration tool has. This will help guide your decision and pick the best tool for your unique set of circumstances. For example, some collaboration tools are mainly for communication while others have scheduling, goal monitoring, communication, and social media integrations. The best collaboration tool for your team will depend on what you need.

2. Complexity

You might find a collaboration tool that has every feature you could ever want, but if it’s too complex for your team to learn quickly you might find that you become less efficient. Take advantage of free demos and try it out for yourself or with a couple of team members before introducing it to everyone.

3. Security

If you don’t want everyone on your team to have access to the same information, you may want to implement security features on certain conversations or features. Look into privacy options before you choose the best collaboration tool for your team.

4. Cloud-Based Tools

Cloud-based collaboration tools are the best for teams that are remote and teams that work together in an office. They allow everyone to make changes together, see edits and activity, and access information from any location.

5. Integrations

Even if you find the very best collaboration tool, you’re likely still going to have to use other tools and programs. Make sure your chosen tool can connect with your other tools so you can have everything in one place.

The 10 Best Collaboration Tools For Virtual Teams

Now that you know what to keep in mind when choosing the best team collaboration tools, it’s time to dive into the options!

1. Slack

Slack is one of the most popular collaboration tools for teams all over the world. One of the things that people seem to like the most about Slack is the fact that it has a user-friendly interface for both desktop and mobile devices, so it can easily be used on the go.

Slack allows teams to share instant messages with each other one-on-one, in a group chat, or in separate groups, depending on who needs to be in on a conversation. There is also a video chat feature in Slack so you can get your virtual meetings in without having to branch off to another app like Zoom.

Slack doesn’t have its own cloud storage system, but it does support file sharing and is compatible with Google Drive, Dropbox, and Box so your team can easily drag, drop, and share documents with one another. Slack has a free version, but you can upgrade your account to access more storage capability.

2. Asana

Asana is one of the best collaborative project management tools for teams that have large projects and need to keep things organized. This collaboration tool has features that include allowing teams to assign roles and tasks, track progress, create to-do lists, set reminders for deadlines, send work requests, and more. Team members are also able to comment on things within the app if they have questions or would like to suggest changes.

Asana is a great project management software that can increase viability across your team and projects. It’s easy to see who’s doing what and when so you can monitor what is getting done and make sure no one is too overwhelmed with their workload. It also has a mobile app version so you can track projects even when you’re away from your desk.

Once you finish a project in Asana, you can move on to the next without losing the information. There is a search feature within Asana that makes it easy to find specific things that you’re looking for in both past and current projects.

3. Trello

Trello is another one of the best collaboration tools for teams because it has tons of features, yet it’s simple to use. This option has desktop and mobile versions so teams can stay connected even if someone must step away from their computer for the day.

Within Trello, you can organize your projects on ‘boards’ or ‘lists.’ Once you have everything organized, each team member can view the information, assign roles and tasks, create to-do lists, and communicate. There is even a ‘comment card’ feature to provide feedback.

Many online apps can be integrated with Trello including Slack, Google Drive, Evernote, and GitHub. Teams that have a lot of information in different places often find Trello to be one of the best collaboration tools because they can have everything that they need in one place.

4. Nectar

Nectar is a great way for teams to collaborate with one another by recognizing achievements. It is kind of like a social media platform that is exclusive to members of your team. Within the platform, you can give out bonuses, create wellness challenges, award team members’ success, and more.

 Nectar is a collaboration tool for virtual teams that focuses on work differently than most. Nectar is all about keeping teams connected by boosting morale and activating your company’s core values.

 You can make Nectar work even harder by connecting it with other collaboration tools like Slack and Microsoft Teams.

5. Microsoft 365

Microsoft 365 is one of the best collaboration tools for teams that are larger and spread out all over the world. It’s a cloud-based program that has a variety of different tools within it that can all be connected to one another for ultimate efficiency and collaboration.

Teams that use Microsoft 365 can collaborate on Word documents, Excel spreadsheets, PowerPoint presentations, and take advantage of Microsoft Teams, Microsoft’s powerful communication tool. 

Microsoft Teams can connect up to 10,000 people no matter where in the world they are located. It can even support users with their web version, so downloading an app is not required. This can be a huge benefit for teams to communicate with clients that don’t use Microsoft 365.

6. Nextiva

Nextiva is one of the best collaboration tools for teams that operate across different time zones. Working like a traditional phone system, Nextiva also provides viability into who is connected to the network, where they are located, and their local time. 

Communicating with team members that operate on opposite schedules can be very challenging. Nextiva allows teams to communicate via phone, email, SMS, and chat. It also has the option to set up a cloud-based call center, which can be incredibly helpful for international teams that need someone to bridge that gap between operating times.

7. Flock

Flock is an excellent alternative to Slack. It has similar features, but many users find that Flock is easier to use and has faster load times. Teams can communicate as a whole, one-on-one, or create a group only with certain team members.

Another thing that users like about Flock is the fact that the entire tool is searchable. You can quickly and easily find past conversations, files, specific messages, and URLs by typing keywords into the search bar.

In addition to communication and search features, Flock also allows users to create surveys, set alerts, share notes, and assign roles and tasks.

8. Karbon

Karbon is a collaboration tool that was designed for accounting firms and companies that offer other professional services. This tool makes it very easy for teams to streamline their individual and overall workflows to maximize efficiency and deliver top notch work. 

Karbon puts everything you need to communicate with your team and clients in one place. Your email, internal discussions, tasks and deliverables, Gantt charts, and timelines will all be in one spot for everyone to access at any time. Karbon has many automation features built in, which help users save a ton of time. In fact, a recent survey reported that the average Karbon user saves about 10-hours per week.

9. Google Drive

The Google Drive suite is familiar to most people. This fact alone makes it one of the best collaboration tools for teams! Your team can save time when implementing the tool and when onboarding new team members in the future.

Google Drive has all the tools team members need to succeed: Sheets, Google Docs, Slides, Forms, contacts, calendar, photos, email, and more. Because Google Drive is cloud-based, your team can access and edit files at the same time, see activity and changes, and access all of Google Drive’s features from anywhere in the world – on desktop or mobile.

10. Monday.com

This project management software helps “manage simple to complex projects and everything in between.” Monday.com allows teams to collaborate virtually on projects, marketing initiatives, design tasks, sales and CRM, and even IT. This all-in-one tool also allows users to create custom work plans and assign tasks to team members so that everyone can be aligned and working as efficiently as possible!

11. Bonus Option: Peerspace

What better way to facilitate collaboration for your virtual team than by booking a creative space⁠—whether monthly, quarterly, or annually⁠—on Peerspace and getting the group together in person. Choose from industrial lofts, sun-drenched studios, hidden rooftops, and luxurious houses with beautiful backyards on Peerspace. Book your space by the hour, so you never pay for time the team isn’t using. We can accomplish so much remotely, but it makes a difference to gather in person, no matter the cadence.

Team Building and Collaboration

Effective team building is in itself a collaboration tool. At Team Building Hub, we understand that and coordinate plenty of virtual team building events and activities to keep your team connected and successfully working together!

The post 10 Essential Collaboration Tools for Virtual Teams appeared first on Team Building Hub.

What is a virtual coffee break?

A virtual coffee break is a scheduled break for co-workers that happens over Zoom where they can chat and connect with one another, often while drinking coffee.

This post includes:

• Virtual coffee break topics
• Virtual coffee break ideas
• How to organize a virtual coffee break

Just like other team building activities, virtual coffee breaks can help keep teams engaged and on task by providing a reprieve from the isolation and burnout that comes from working remotely. But without the right kind of planning, scheduled “hang out” time can at best be awkward and at its worst a total flop. Below we provide the essentials on how to host a successful virtual coffee break!

Virtual Coffee Break Topics

Ice Breakers

To get off to a quick start, ask invitees to bring their favorite coffee mug to the meeting. This is an easy way for the team to share a little something about themselves. Ice breaker questions are also a good way to spark conversations. These questions are usually light-hearted and can lead to longer discussions. Often, participants find out that they have some things in common and these commonalities build group unity! Check out this list to find 160 ice breaker questions. But here are ten to get you started!

1. What’s your preferred hot beverage: coffee, tea, chai, or something else?
2. Where did you grow up?
3. What are some of your recently used emojis?
4. Are you reading a book right now, and if so, what’s it about?
5. What is your favorite part about working from home?
6. Who was your role model when you were a kid?
7. If you could have any superpower what would it be?
8. What was your first job?
9. Are you listening to any good podcasts right now?
10. What’s one country you would like to visit and why?

Virtual Coffee Break Ideas

Ironically, recreating the casualness of an in-person coffee break requires some artificial structure. If the flow stops or begins to feel forced, here are some ideas for what to do during this team building time.

1. Share Your Gratitudes And Wins For The Week

Have participants share something they are grateful for in their professional or personal life. Sharing information like this can provide a necessary shift in perspective, either for the person sharing or the people listening.

If your team is working on a difficult project or needs a morale booster, sharing gratitudes can help relieve and shift a stressed mental state! 

Aside from saying what they’re grateful for, your team can also celebrate each others’ wins for the week, whether that be something work-related or personal.

2. Get Physical!

Staying active isn’t just good for the body physically but also mentally. Quick workout sessions can help your team get their blood flowing, increasing productivity and focus. Even though they’re working from home and staying active might seem more convenient, that’s not always the case. Encourage your team to get up out of their chairs and get moving! 

One simple activity that everyone can benefit from is performing stretches at their desks. When it’s time to return to the office permanently, they can do these stretches anytime! You can also try a quick yoga session or for those with limited mobility, a guided meditation.

3. Tour Each Other’s Work From Home Setup

Sharing workspaces can be a light-hearted way to spark conversation. Teammates may also enjoy the chance to show off the efficiently laid out work-from-home setup they’ve created. For those who prefer not to show their space, have them describe it!

4. Play A Round Of A Trivia Game

Playing a trivia game is a guaranteed way to get your team members’ minds off of work and into fun! Team members can do this one-on-one or if you’re interested in gathering the whole crew together check out these virtual trivia game options!

5. Play an Ice Breaker Game

A platform like Virtual Coffee Chat makes ice breakers easy. First, your team answers ice breaker questions. Then the answers get shuffled and team members guess who gave what answer. This is a great way to turn ice breaker questions into a game and keep the conversation going while people sip their drinks.

How To Organize A Virtual Coffee Break

Scheduling

We recommend scheduling a virtual coffee break at least once a week. Of course, you can have more depending on the needs of your team, but once a week should be the minimum to keep everyone connected!

Scheduling and sending invites is easiest through e-mail or a shared calendar. Don’t forget to include the video conference link to the scheduled meeting! Aim for between 10 and 20 minutes of chatting time. Less than that can feel rushed, but longer can feel forced or bleed into important on-the-clock hours.

Use Breakout Rooms To Keep Groups Small

There are several video conferencing platforms you can use for your virtual coffee break, however, we recommend using Zoom for its breakout room feature. This feature allows you to bring your whole team into a meeting, then split them off into smaller groups for certain activities.

Smaller groups make it more comfortable for everyone to speak and stay engaged. This could be an especially useful feature if you have a large team.

While keeping things small is great for helping everyone have a chance to talk and connect, it can also be awkward. Be sure to include an ice breaker question or two before you send everyone off into their separate rooms!

If you’d like to make sure that all team members have time together, keep track of which teammates have met in a breakout room. This way you can ensure that the same people don’t end up in a breakout room together over and over again!

Avoid Potential Technical Issues And Distractions

Double-check prior to the date that everyone can sign in and knows how to navigate the chosen virtual coffee break platform! Just like the coffee machine in your office, you want everyone to know how to brew a fresh pot!

We hope that we’ve given you the tools you need to start having fun virtual coffee breaks. Though it’s often a challenge connecting hybrid and remote teams, an intentional virtual coffee break can make it possible! Learn more virtual team building insights and ideas here.

The post Virtual Coffee Breaks | Ideas and Topics (2022) appeared first on Team Building Hub.

Watching a motivational Ted Talk as a group is a fantastic way learn together, without comprising safety or travel. Great leaders inspire action. We’ve gathered five Ted Talks here geared towards leadership and team building. Your team can use them as inspirational material in your next team building activity.

Top 5 Ted Talks For Team Building

1. “Build A Tower, Build A Team” By Tom Wujec

In Tom Wujec’s “Build A Tower, Build a Team” he explains how teams solve problems together using an example called the “Marshmallow Problem.” Teams are tasked with building a tower with 20 sticks of spaghetti, one yard of string, one yard of tape, and a marshmallow. Teams have only 18 minutes to complete what seems like a simple team building exercise. However, this task is not as simple as you might think!

The “Marshmallow Problem” requires collaboration amongst team members and fosters a sense of camaraderie that can spread to the rest of the company. This fun activity works well for companies of various sizes.

2. “The Power Of Introverts” By Susan Cain

Susan Cain is the author of “Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking.” She is often regarded as a leading voice on how introverted people are often misunderstood and undervalued. According to studies, 30-50 percent of the world’s population is introverted. Therefore it’s would be a safe assumption that a sizable portion of your company identifies as introverts.

Cain’s TED Talk discusses facilitating healthy dialogue with introverted coworkers and helping them feel comfortable being a part of the collective.

3. “How To Foster True Diversity And Inclusion At Work (And In Your Community)” By Rosalind G. Brewer

Creating more diverse workspaces is something that many companies are seeking to make a larger priority for their organization. Statistically speaking, diversity has been shown to positively impact productivity and creativity for companies.

In her TED Talk, the former chief operating officer of Starbucks addresses the benefits of creating a culture where all people feel seen and heard. Brewer encourages companies to rethink how to foster an inclusive workplace by focusing more on the building of personal relationships within the organization.

4. “Confessions Of A Recovering Micromanager” By Chieh Huang

There are few things that breed frustration and suppress team engagement more than being micromanaged. As companies continue to learn what working remotely looks like, managers find themselves having to re-learn how to lead effectively without virtually hovering.

In his TED Talk, Chieh Huang speaks about the importance of trusting team members to function autonomously. Company culture is a reflection of the culture of the teams within it, and managers ultimately are the ones who set the tone.

5. “How To Turn A Group Of Strangers Into A Team” By Amy Edmondson

Our world is becoming more globalized. The way that organizations now address problem solving reflects that shift. Businesses are resolving complex issues with a greater level of partnership that extends past the limits of time, location, and fields of expertise.

Collaborative work aimed at addressing some of the world’s greatest issues requires a more flexible team dynamic. That may call for teams made up of people who are unfamiliar with one another. So how can a group of strangers team up to solve unpredictable and challenging problems?

In her TED Talk, Amy Edmondson addresses the concept of teaming, which she defines as “teamwork on the fly”. Edmonson explains how teamwork functions by examining the 2010 Chilean mining accident. In that tragedy, 33 workers were trapped in a mine for 69 days until a team of experts worked together to pull off an extraordinary rescue. 

Why Ted Talks For Team Building?

We are continuing to discover the ways that the pandemic has redefined teamwork. Viewing these TED Talks together can be a starting point to create an environment where each employee feels a part of a bigger picture.

The distance that comes with working remotely doesn’t have to lead to stifled creativity and innovation. Instead, organizations can capitalize on the opportunity to create healthy teams and productive work culture through intentional virtual team building activities.

The post TED Talks For Team Building appeared first on Team Building Hub.

The initial transition was unexpected and filled with uncertainty. However, after a year of adaptation, many have adjusted to the work-from-home corporate format.

5 Tips For A Seamless Transition Back To The Office After Covid

If your organization is returning back to its normal, in-office structure, you can help prepare your team and make it a positive, seamless experience for everyone! Even if your company has already returned to full-time work, it’s never too late to implement these practices and tips to your team.

1. Create A Timeline

Teams appreciate clear and consistent communication. Giving your team an idea of when exactly they will be expected to return to the office full-time can help them in various ways. Pragmatically, team members who have been able to forgo child or pet care for the past year can make the necessary arrangements to get those started again. Furthermore, employees can mentally prepare to go back to their old, and potentially more stressful, routines. Keeping your team in the loop will help them feel confident that their company is prepared, organized, and cares about their well-being! 

We also recommend a gradual return. No one wants a life change sprung on them unexpectedly. That’s what happened with COVID in the first place! Instead, try transitioning by starting with a few days a week. You should also let employees know ahead of time, preferably a month in advance if possible. This way, people have time to make adjustments and such.

2. Facilitate Open Communication

Something as simple as telling employees that they are welcome to voice their concerns goes a long way. Many remote workers often feel disconnected and unheard because of the distance. It’s just the nature of the situation. Letting team members know that their thoughts and opinions are valuable to the company contributes to better overall job satisfaction and harder effort at work! Communicate about plans going forward, any new office rules, the tentative schedule for re-opening, anything else that would be relevant to your company.

We suggest sending out an anonymous survey prior to returning to the office in order to determine where people are at and read their suggestions. The more concerns you can address and relevant information you can give the team about plans going back after COVID, the more confident they will feel returning to in-person work!

3. Utilize Ice Breakers

Going back to the office after COVID, your team may be a little rusty on the water cooler small talk. Feel free to help them out and bring back the friendly chemistry with some ice breaker activities! Ice breakers don’t always have to be literal ice breaker questions. You can also use simple, but effective, games or email chains. Quick ice breakers can also help loosen everyone up at the beginning of meetings!

No matter what kind of ice breaker activity you choose, they serve as a fun, low-pressure way to help people develop a rapport with each other and become more comfortable together going back after COVID.

4. Generate Excitement

Make going back to the office something to celebrate! As a leader, it’s imperative you foster an environment where your team feels excited to be together again, rather than dreading having to be in the office. Try hosting lunch for the team on the first day back in the office after COVID and inviting employees to have fun together again. During lunch is also a great time to go over any important company news or updates that you may need to share. 

Another way to create excitement when your team returns back to the office after COVID is to present something new! Perhaps there are a few office renovations your company never got around to. Now’s the time! A new and improved office is just another reason to celebrate!

5. Prioritize Team Building

We definitely understand the value of team building, especially during a transitional period. Scheduling a few team building activities at the beginning of your new full time schedule is definitely worth it! Participating in an activity, like a virtual escape room, together will assist your team with their communication skills, boost their morale, and help them feel happy to be part of a caring company.

Best Of Luck To Your Team As You Make The Transition Back To The Office After COVID!

Whether you’ve already returned full-time to the office, are in a hybrid situation, or are still working remotely, creating a strong team should always be a top priority!

The post Back To The Office After COVID | Prepping Your Team appeared first on Team Building Hub.