Most team building goes wrong before the day even starts, in the choosing. After running events for companies across Ireland for years, here’s what we’d ask before you book anyone, us included.
1. Start with the outcome, not the activity
Are you welcoming new graduates, settling a team after change, or just saying thanks? Each one needs a different kind of day. If a provider starts by pitching an activity rather than asking what you want to achieve, that’s worth noticing.
2. Ask where they can run it
A good provider works around your venue, not the other way round. Ask what they’d do in a hotel function room, in your office and outdoors, and what happens if the weather turns. You want a wet-weather plan before the day, not on it. Our indoor team building options are built for exactly that.
3. Be honest about group size
Fifteen people and one hundred and fifty need very different formats. Ask what the biggest and smallest groups they’ve worked with looked like.
4. Decide how much facilitation you want
Some teams want a good laugh and a break from screens. Others want to leave with something useful: clearer communication, a shared language for how they work, a way through a change. Both are fine, but they’re different products. Programmes like The Belbin® Experience and Inspiring Change for Teams sit at the facilitated end.
5. Think about the people who’d rather not
Not everyone loves being pushed into the middle of a circle. The best events are inclusive, work for mixed abilities and give quieter people a role. If half the team is dreading it, it’s been chosen wrong.
6. Ask what happens afterwards
The day itself is the easy bit. What can your managers do the following week to keep it going? A provider who has thought about that usually cares about results.
7. Ask for recent references
Reviews from this year, from companies of your size, tell you more than a logo wall. Check independent review sites like Trustpilot as well as the testimonials on a provider’s own website.
Planning something in Dublin or Wicklow? See our post on the best team building activities in Dublin and our page on team building in Wicklow.
If you’re weighing up options for an away day, onboarding programme or Christmas party, get in touch. I’m happy to talk it through, even if you end up going elsewhere.
Kind regards,
Damian
