Organizational Psychology Offers Strategies for Building Team Bonds
Office attendance has stagnated, corporate retreats are on the rise, unique events draw employees in, organizational psychology provides a guide for building team bonds.
Our research on the current state of hybrid work led to some unique insights from the field of organizational psychology on how bonds are formed in the workplace.
It’s a tale as old as (covid) time: leadership asking for staff to come to the office more frequently, while employees are prioritizing hybrid work and flexibility. Recently we’ve seen that a hybrid model punctuated with key event days drives engagement and builds team relationships, satisfying both camps. Knowing the importance of these event days the Ark Research Lab set out to understand the types of events that drive engagement and build team bonds which leaders are looking for.
Many companies have been looking to company retreats and out-of-work team building events. These retreats are most often conceptualized as multi-day events designed to improve morale, provide training, and above all build strong bonds between teammates.
Others have experimented with “workcations”, where teams live abroad for a period of time and work in a locally owned or rented coworking space.
These ideas sound like a lot of fun but they do come at a cost. And for smaller companies who are remote, but not quite global, renting a coworking space and paying for travel in just isn’t feasible- and in our opinion, not necessary. Research shows the best way to build strong connections is to bond over shared experiences. This is because when we share experience, we rely on those people around us we to accomplish a task or navigate a new setting. It builds a level of understanding and trust that is difficult to replicate other ways.
But not all shared experiences are created equal. According to research by Brian Uzzi, professor of Leadership and Organizational Change at the Kellogg School of Management, bonds are built most successfully when three elements are involved; passion, interdependence and competition.
So what does this mean for workplace events?
Competition
Competition makes us strive for a top level of our capability in ourselves and others. It’s also probably the easiest to embed in a workplace events. Competitive games that don’t require a lot of physical coordination are great. Think about things like kickball, axe throwing, or bingo.
Interdependence
Interdependence puts us in a slightly vulnerable state in which we need to rely on those around us for support. It’s a little bit harder to imbue into your work event but there are ways to make it happen. Shared activities that involve group problem solving like an escape room, or the scenario challenge. A classic game here is one in which participants are “lost at sea” and given a list of supplies. The team then has to work together to prioritize supplies and develop a plan for survival.
Passion
When you do something your passionate about it shows off a core element of your personality. When you bond with others over a passion you share that core element. But this can be the hardest to imbue into a work event as everyone may be passionate about something else. If there isn’t a common passion there may be other ways to expose a greater degree of ones personality. A volunteering event at a soup kitchen, or tour of a local museum, a novel situation to be in with coworkers, can expose team members full personality.