Great news – the corporate away day is back! Whether it’s team building or idea generation, relaxation or reward, there’s a corporate away day to fulfil your team’s desires. Companies across the country are taking advantage of the numerous benefits days out of the office can offer by booking corporate away days for their staff, today.
What are the benefits? Fantastic question – there are several to choose from! Away days offer teams a whole host of advantages, including:
- Boosts morale –who doesn’t love a day out of the office? Away days offer staff the opportunity to let their hair down, de-stress and take time out of their busy working lives, all on company time.
- Increases in team cohesion –a day out of the often strictly professional office environment does wonders to break down walls between team members. Working together on unusual tasks means team members build their network and make connections that they can use back in the office.
- Encouraging new ways of thinking –a relaxed and informal setting, less pressure on delivery and removal of the distractions of a typical day to day office life can really encourage staff to think and operate in new ways. Staff who might not usually consider themselves as creative might demonstrate themselves as deft problem solvers, for example – something that benefits the individual and the team once back in the office.
- Inspiring and motivating the team –well-planned and carefully thought-out away days can prove to be truly inspiring events, bolstering team motivation and increasing creativity and efficiency back in the office.
Whilst it’s clear that a well-organised away day can work wonders for your team and company, a failure to plan carefully can leave staff feeling devalued, flat and put out. So how does one go about setting up a successful away day – one that leaves staff and management feeling satisfied and fulfilled?
- Draw up the list of attendees
The first and most important parts of any away day are the attendees – your staff, the team or whoever it may be. It’s important to carefully consider who is actually going to attend the event as it will (or at least it should) affect the rest of the planning and preparation.
One thing to consider – does senior management need to be there? If invited they’ll often turn up, paying lip service to the idea rather than getting fully involved. Moreover, the presence of senior management can often make more junior team members anxious and less willing to participate.
- Plan the event
Planning the event is absolutely crucial – so invest plenty of time in working out exactly what you want to achieve from the day out and how you are going to achieve it. Many companies will enlist the help of a professional away day firm, which takes over the running and planning of the day to ensure it’s executed to a high, professional standard.
The type of away day you plan should match your goals and the team you are taking. Wacky adventure days such as zombie events, for example, are brilliant for team building and de-stressing. For a relaxing day out of the office, however, something like a spa session might be more appropriate and to cherish your memories of a lifetime don’t forget to find a professional fashion photographer.
- Thorough preparation
Once the plan is in place it is time to prepare. If you’ve enlisted the help of professionals, this should be as simple as ensuring staff know where they need to be and what they need to bring on the date of the event.
If you are taking on the logistics yourself, this could prove quite a task. Ensure you remember to book and record every little detail to ensure you remain on schedule and within budget.
- The big day
Finally, the big day is upon you! Make sure you have fun whilst delivering clearly but succinctly the message you planned to deliver. If your aim is simply to reward staff, let them bond or have them relax then leave them to it without continually bothering them about an agenda or goal.
Gently encourage participation where appropriate, but be careful not to go overboard. If made to feel comfortable and relaxed staff will open up and contribute of their own accord.
Throughout the day, discretely make notes on what has gone well and what could be improved upon next time. These will help you or the next person in your team to organise an even better day next time around!
