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Are you ready to plan a large team building day?
Perhaps you have planned and executed a team building day for 20 to 50 of your co-workers in the past, but now you are faced with a new challenge – your boss has asked you to plan an event for 100 participants, thus potentially doubling the headaches associated with such an event. But it doesn’t have to be that way if you follow these simple guidelines for success.
5 Point Checklist
Assess Your Venue Carefully
Whether you are holding the large team building event on premise or off, you need to really assess all the risks associated with the space. For example, is the room large enough to hold 100 people comfortably? What about all the activities – is there room to spread out? If you engage in the ropes course, will it be able to handle 100 individuals with ease?
In addition, make sure the space is ADA compliant in case you have individuals with special needs. The key is to provide a space that works well with a large group and yet can create a culture of trust and safety.
Choose Your Date Wisely
When you are trying to coordinate a full-day team building session for 100 people, it can be a bit difficult. In order to get as many people there as possible, it is important to plan far in advance, perhaps even a year out. Flush out the best days to plan – perhaps a Friday or the day before a long weekend – as that is the time your team may be the most relaxed and ready to learn more about team building.
Put A Marketing Plan in Place
Just because you have the venue and day scheduled, don’t count on most employees to just show up on the allotted date ready to team build – especially if many of them are from other parts of the country or virtual employees.
Remember to do the following to ensure maximum participation:
- As soon as you have the venue and date selected: Send an email with a “save the date” describing the purpose, date and venue of the event. Include the person to contact if they have any questions.
- 3 months before: Send the invitation requesting they RSVP to a specific person – tell them more about the day and the facilitator.
- 1 month before: Send the invitation again to anyone who has not RSVPed
- 14 days before: Send the invitation the last time to those who have not responded
- 7 days before: Call those who have not RSVPed
- 3 days before: Send a collective email to everyone reminding them of the event and where it is located.
You can also post it in the company newsletter or on social media.
Remember to Include the Basics
Remember to plan for food and beverages – don’t assume people will eat at home. Eating breakfast and lunch gives attendees a natural networking time to talk about ways their team can more effectively work together.
If you want to add a fun element, give everyone a goody bag as they depart or give out raffle tickets and pull tickets for random giveaways.
Have a Plan for After the Event
It is important to have a follow-up measure that will keep the team on task and on track. Having SMART goals will help measure success. Make this an annual large team building day as a way to measure your success year-to-year and a wonderful way for attendees to continue to build long-term relationships with each other.
About Fun Team Building with Larry Lipman
When planning a large team building day, Larry Lipman wants to talk to you about transforming your team into a cohesive unit in one team building day! Let Larry’s unique approach to team building provide you with the tools you need to eliminate negativity. Reserve your team building day now by filling out our contact form!