Problem solving team building activities listed in this article will help improve your team's efficiency and collaboration in a fun and engaging way!
Problem solving is a vital attribute for any professional working in their field. It will help them to be as successful as possible in their endeavors, and it is definitely something that employers look for in potential employees when hiring, or handing out promotions.
However, possessing problem solving skills is easier said than done, with the majority of managers expressing concern that new graduates do not have this skill. In fact, problem solving is the skill that is most commonly lacked in the workplace!
The reason that problem solving skills can be quite hard to come by is because they must be honed by practise and perfecting on a consistent basis. This allows them to be used effectively and efficiently when needed. This is why in recent times problem solving team building activities for adults are being increasingly used in the workplace.
Here's our pick of some fun problem solving team building activities that you can try straight away!
Cardboard Boat Building Challenge
Divide the workers into teams and task them with creating a boat out of cardboard. They will have just tape to hold it together, and the boat must not just look the business, it has to be functional as well. It must be able to float on water and be able to move across it as well without any problems. Once their masterpieces are finished, a presentation must be put together to show why their particular boat is the best boat that could have been made.
Egg Drop
The aim of this activity is to create a device that will protect an egg from a fall from a certain height. The teams will be given a certain variety of construction materials, and some eggs, obviously. Be sure that you conduct this test in a place where you wouldn’t mind getting covered in eggshells and yolk. There is a time limit for this challenge, so the teams will have to act and think quickly! The materials can consist of any basic materials that you have in the office, or anything that you can think of.
Marshmallow Spaghetti Tower
Teamwork is critical to this activity, where the teams have to build the highest possible tower using marshmallows, tape, string, and uncooked spaghetti. Along with this difficult task, there is a time limit! The team that possesses the highest tower when the time runs out, wins!
Reverse Pyramid
The “Reverse Pyramid” is a simple exercise created to get the problem solving gears in the team’s head moving. Creative solutions will be needed here, where the group is separated into small teams and instructed to stand in the shape of a pyramid. The team must then flip the pyramid by only moving three people. This will require a lot of collaboration between the team and group decision making. This can also be completed with plastic cups, where a pyramid must be constructed from the top down, starting with one cup. One team member must lift the bottom of the pyramid by the bottom row only, and the rest of the team must work together in order to construct the next row as quickly as possible.
A Shrinking Vessel
A Shrinking Vessel is a fun game for teams that may be struggling with their teamwork and adaptability when working together. The team members will have to work together quickly to solve the problem of the shrinking vessel.
The principle of this game is a rope of sufficient length is laid in a circle on the ground and all team members must stand inside of the rope. Over 15 minutes the size of the circle will be gradually reduced, forcing the team to think quickly to keep everyone inside of the boundary. You will be amazed at what ideas people will come up with to save their colleagues from being eliminated from the game!
Idea Trial
This is a simple idea which can have some great results. To find a solution to a specific problem a fun idea is to have a mock trial about the issue. Some or all members of the teams will come up and give their view or ideas in “court” and will also state their opening and closing statements. This gives everyone an idea of the various perspectives of the problem in the team, and makes it much easier to come to a solution.
Dumbest Idea First
In order to increase all team member’s confidence when solving problems, the game “Dumbest Idea First” can really help show that everyone's input, no matter how small, is valuable. The team is presented with a problem they have to solve, but they must all quickly think of the dumbest ways of solving the problem. Once all of the “dumb” ideas have been collected it will easily be seen that even suggestions that one might think are stupid or silly, help to shape a suitable solution to any problem.
Human Knot
This activity is perfect for teams who don’t mind getting up close and personal with their colleagues. All members of the team must hold hands with someone that is not standing directly beside them. When everyone is fully connected, they must untangle themselves to make a correct circle without anyone letting go of anyone’s hand. Great fun for everyone!
Will you be trying any of these activities at your workplace? Do you have any activities that you have tried previously that deserve to be on this list? Clinked would love to hear your thoughts in the comments below!
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