When team members get along, they communicate better, trust each other more, and work together more effectively. But how can leaders encourage this camaraderie and bonding, especially when budgets are tight?
Here, a group of Young Entrepreneur Council members share some low-cost ways leaders can foster a sense of community and connectedness among their teams.
Teams work better when everyone gets along, so what's one low-cost way leaders can encourage camaraderie and bonding among their team members? Why is it effective?
1. Sponsor a team
We love sponsoring the recreational soccer team that quite a few of our team members play in. Hearing about their wins each week and seeing our company logo on the jerseys is awesome. What better way to team build than by playing on a team? —Patrick Barnhill, Specialist ID, Inc.
2. Focus on individual connections
While camaraderie across teams is important, don’t forget to focus on individual relationships; after all, those relationships are at the core of the very teams you’re building. Remember that camaraderie often comes from a feeling of openness and connection, which is often more easily fostered one-on-one or in smaller groups. —Lindsay Tanne, LogicPrep
3. Host a daily huddle
In our daily huddles, we each say one thing we are grateful for, and that helps our team members get to know each other on a personal level. For example, one of our team members said they were grateful to start their rowing class, and this led to a discussion in our #notworkrelated Slack channel as others asked about other ways people stay fit and have work-life balance. —Givelle Lamano, Oakland DUI Attorneys
4. Encourage staff to share photos
We have a Slack channel that’s specifically dedicated to nonwork conversations. Our team members love sharing photos of their kids, pets, vacations, and adventures, and it allows us to get to know one another in a very organic and authentic way. Plus, it’s proven to be an effective way to connect with remote colleagues who may miss out on the social interactions inherent to an office setting. —Samuel Saxton, ConsumerRating.org
5. Send shout-outs to team members
We do shout-outs in our biweekly all-hands calls. This enables team members to praise the efforts of their peers in front of the entire team. This not only means that the called-out team members feel appreciated, but they also appreciate the team member who gave them the shout-out. It's the small acts that add up. —Andy Karuza, NachoNacho
6. Set up quarterly happy hours
Quarterly happy hours are the best way to gel your team. Each quarter, we get together as an entire team just to hang out for an hour. There's no agenda, and the goal is just to catch up with people and find out what is new in everyone's world. We started doing this a few years ago and found that it creates camaraderie within our team, and surfaces great ideas to grow our business! —Arian Radmand, IgnitePost
7. Encourage group lunches
While buying lunch for the team is impractical on a regular basis—unless your company has the overhead—creating a space where people can eat together on their breaks can allow for casual conversation. Before 2020, our office set up a ping-pong table by a conference table, and employees could play games after finishing their meals. They bonded over the moments of fun. —Duran Inci, Optimum7
8. Set the right tone
Setting the company culture standard for any company or organization allows the employees to be more open and friendlier than usual. As a leader, you have to set the tone. I treat my employees like family, but of course still have boundaries when it comes to business matters. —Fritz Colcol, Simply Thalia
9. Host team outings
Leaders can encourage bonding among their team members with team-building activities or outings. These can be as simple as going out to lunch or happy hour, or something structured like going to a sports game or an escape room. These activities allow people to interact with each other in a more relaxed and informal setting, and this builds personal connections and a sense of community. —Blair Williams, MemberPress
10. Create fitness accountability groups
You can encourage team members to take hikes or work out in outdoor facilities, all of which are free. This will allow the team to open up and get to know each other outside of work. In the meantime, they'll be growing as individuals. —Michael Fellows, Solidity Beginner
