Decode the Craft of Organising Outbound Activities for Employees

With globalisation and technological advancement, competition in the corporate sector has drastically increased. Organisations are at a constant pressure to increase their output and productivity. Now, who helps the companies to achieve their lofty goals? It’s the employees. Therefore, employee welfare is becoming a top priority for new enterprises.

However, anyone familiar with the work environment of the corporate sector will agree that it can be extremely monotonous and non-energising. Every individual needs a change once in a while to effectively cope with life’s pressure. Same applies to employees in an organisation.

Today, an increasing number of companies are investing in outbound activities for employees to increase productivity and performance.

Here is why –

• Enables proper assessment –

In an outdoor setting, employees are more likely to express their true selves, which allow managers and HRs to assess an individual’s personality closely. Consequently, HRs get a better understanding of how to deal better with a particular individual.

• Builds trust –

To complete a given outdoor challenge, employees need to depend on each other. Hence, the trust amongst individuals deepens and enables them to gel along with each other better.

• Enhances team performance –

Offsite activities help teams gain a better perspective into coordination and achieving goals by working in harmony. The lessons learned through these activities can translate to the workspace and boost team spirit.

• Personality development –

Outdoor activities present the optimal amount of challenge for employees. After completing these tasks, an individual feels a sense of achievement. As a result of which employees enjoy high self-confidence which in turn increases workspace performance.

Thus, with all these benefits of outbound activities, companies must utilise them for their growth. However, organisers must also keep in mind that the activity they choose must be relevant and contribute to employee development in some way.

So, here are a few guidelines for organising successful corporate development activities

1. Consider the difficulty level of an activity carefully. Any outdoor sport should be within the zone of optimal challenge; i.e. it should be enough to excite the participant, but shouldn’t be too tough to discourage them.
2. Keep a moderate level of risk in these activities. Avoid anything that can potentially cause physical damage to an individual.
3. Choose activities that emphasise on cooperation and competition at the same time. Furthermore, an organiser should strike the right balance between the level of cooperation and competition. It shouldn’t be so competitive that it hurts sentiments in the process.
4. Outbound activities should be such that those encourage participants to think creatively and use improvisations. Additionally, set rewards that are attractive to the participants so that they are motivated to do their best.

When choosing the right outbound activities for employees, it can be beneficial to take help of a professional organisation.

• These organisers have expertise in event planning and may have pre-set plans that will save time.
• Professional organisers will carefully consider the needs of an organisation and choose activities that meet these requirements the best.
• A person from outside an organisation will be able to see through the inefficiencies of an organisation. As a result, they will be in a better position to suggest appropriate activities.

Additionally, outsourcing such event management tasks saves valuable time. In conclusion, outdoor activities are highly effective for boosting workspace productivity, and with the help of professional organisers, today's progressive-minded companies are harnessing their potential.