Virtual Team Development Sessions

Team Building Time: 1 minute / person

Goals:  To Break the Ice

Exercise Description:  Participants will be shown a group of random images and be asked to pick one and explain why they picked the image.

Reflection:  A good conversation starter to provide some insight into each group participant.

Team Building Time:  3 minutes / person

Goal:  To get people to share something impactful in their life with others.

Exercise Description:  Each attendee will share a memorable experience in their life in the form of a story sharing critical background info, the event, and why it was important to them.

Reflection:  By sharing something important in each person’s life, others can gain insight into their team members and perhaps what makes them tick.  Did you notice the different levels of details people shared?

Team Building Time: 1 minute / person

Goal:  To stimulate people to be creative and actively listen to each other

Exercise Description:  The group will create a make believe story.  The facilitator will call on each participant to weave a portion of the tale for about 60 seconds.  When the facilitator calls on the next person, they must pick up the characters and storyline.  Occasionally the facilitator will say “change” and the next person must significantly change the characters, time, place, or theme.  Participants may use paper and pen to help them keep track. 

Reflection:  Was this stressful or fun for people and why?  How did you make sure you heard or remembered the story?  Did anyone plan ahead or a possible change request?  Note that some people are planners and others are more spontaneous.

Team Building Time: 5 minutes to take online test and then 20 minutes to explain.

Goal:  To understand the dynamics of personalities and how preferences affect behavior.

Exercise Description:  Using the simple Rainbow Leadership Personality Profile exercise, participants will learn what makes them tick. and how armed with this knowledge, groups can be formed to optimize strengths.

Reflection:  Participants gain knowledge an understanding of who their group members are.  Participants can use this knowledge to develop diverse teams and modify how they interact with each other for optimum results.

Team Building Time: 60-90 minutes including 5 minutes for a presentation

Goal:  Stimulate creativity and collaboration as teams organize themselves, delegate tasks, and use the powers of persuasion

Exercise Description:  Each team is trying to get funding for a new business, creating an amusement park, or school.  They must vet ideas, agree, delegate tasks and come up with a presentation to win funding from a venture capitalist.  This is a great exercise in conjunction with the personality profile exercise.

Reflection:  How did people’s knowledge of personality profiles affect team roles and delegations?  Did everyone feel like they were heard?  What behaviors helped/hindered the process?  Who surprised you?

Team Building Time:  45 minutes

Goal:  Identify components for individual and group success.

Exercise Description: Participants discuss what attributes makes  a successful leader and team.  The group then puts down in writing via a visual representation what they commit to the group to contribute to its performance.

Reflection:  How different is what you commit to do from what you are currently doing?  What barriers are preventing you from achieving your goals?