Split teams, where some members work in-office while others work remotely, present unique bonding challenges. Traditional team bonding activities often work better for co-located groups, leaving remote team members feeling disconnected. Creative approaches that address the hybrid dynamic can build genuine team cohesion.
This guide explores bonding ideas specifically designed for split teams.
Understanding Split Team Dynamics
The Inclusion Challenge
Split teams face inherent inclusion challenges:
Energy asymmetry: Physical gatherings have energy that virtual participation cannot fully replicate.
Spontaneous interaction: In-office team members have casual interactions that remote colleagues miss.
Visual communication: Remote participants miss visual cues that enrich communication.
Side conversations: In-office participants may have conversations inaccessible to remote colleagues.
Bonding Requirements
Effective split team bonding must:
Create equal experience: Both in-office and remote participants should have comparable experiences.
Enable genuine interaction: Both groups should be able to interact naturally.
Build shared memories: Both groups should share memories and reference points.
Strengthen relationships: Relationships should develop across physical boundaries.
Creative Bonding Activities
Hybrid Games and Competitions
Virtual escape rooms: Online escape room experiences where teams solve puzzles together. Both in-office and remote participants can form mixed teams.
Hybrid trivia: Trivia competitions with questions spanning topics of team interest. Teams mix in-office and remote members.
Digital scavenger hunts: Scavenger hunts using digital platforms and physical locations simultaneously.
Online game tournaments: Multiplayer games that in-office and remote teams play together.
Collaborative Creation
Hybrid cooking classes: Professional chefs guide teams through cooking challenges. In-office teams cook in office kitchens; remote participants cook from home.
Digital art creation: Collaborative digital art projects where all participants contribute elements.
Group music projects: Collaborative music creation using digital platforms.
Video creation: Teams create videos together, with both in-office and remote participation.
Experience Sharing
Virtual tours: Explore museums, landmarks, or destinations together through virtual tours. The National Museum of Singapore offers virtual programmes.
Show and tell: Regular sharing of personal interests, hobbies, or expertise. Both audiences participate equally.
Expert sessions: Team members share expertise on topics of interest to the group.
Cultural celebrations: Celebrating diverse cultural traditions with both audiences participating.
Connection Rituals
Virtual lunches: Teams eat lunch together on video calls. Simple but effective.
Coffee roulette: Random pairing of team members for virtual coffee conversations.
Friday wrap-ups: Weekly informal sessions to share weekly highlights and lowlights.
Morning huddles: Brief daily check-ins that include all team members.
Designing for Split Team Success
Equal Experience Design
Parallel participation: Both in-office and remote participants should participate in the same activities.
Equivalent engagement: Both groups should have equivalent opportunity to contribute.
Similar takeaway: Both groups should gain similar value from the experience.
No hierarchy: Physical presence should not create communication advantages.
Technology Optimisation
Video quality: High-quality video for all participants.
Audio clarity: Clear audio so remote participants can hear and be heard easily.
Screen sharing: Effective screen sharing for collaboration.
Collaboration tools: Platforms that enable genuine collaboration.
Facilitation Excellence
Inclusion awareness: Facilitators must actively ensure remote participation.
Remote-first questions: Direct questions to remote participants first.
Chat engagement: Active monitoring and elevation of chat contributions.
Energy compensation: Facilitators must compensate for reduced remote energy.
Bonding Best Practices
Regular Cadence
Weekly connection: Regular brief connection opportunities.
Monthly activities: Monthly bonding activities beyond work meetings.
Quarterly events: Quarterly events that bring teams together.
Annual celebrations: Annual celebrations that create shared memories.
Variety and Freshness
Activity rotation: Rotate activity types to maintain interest.
New experiences: Regularly introduce new activities.
Team input: Seek team input on activity preferences.
Surprise elements: Include occasional surprise elements.
Follow-Through
Memory sharing: Share photos and memories from activities.
Conversation continuation: Continue conversations inspired by activities.
Application to work: Connect bonding insights to work collaboration.
Relationship maintenance: Support relationships formed through activities.
Virtual Bonding Ideas
Online Experiences
Virtual escape rooms: Multiple platforms offer engaging digital escape rooms.
Online games: Board game apps, trivia platforms, or multiplayer video games.
Virtual tours: Explore museums, galleries, or destinations virtually.
Watch parties: Synchronised viewing with shared discussion.
Interactive Entertainment
Virtual game shows: Professional hosts guide teams through game show experiences.
Online karaoke: Virtual singing sessions with large song libraries.
Digital talent shows: Team members share hidden talents online.
Murder mystery: Guided narrative experiences solved by the team.
Learning Together
Virtual workshops: Skill-building sessions led by experts.
Book clubs: Regular discussion of shared reading.
Language exchange: Team members teach each other languages.
Expert talks: Invited speakers on topics of team interest.
In-Office Bonding Ideas
When Teams Are Together
Team lunches: Shared meals when in-office and remote participants join virtually.
Office explorations: Exploring office neighbourhood on foot.
Celebration events: Celebrating birthdays and milestones with both audiences.
Team traditions: Building shared traditions that include both audiences.
Physical Activities
Walking meetings: Meetings held while walking outdoors.
Desk decorations: Collaborative decoration projects.
Office games: Games that can be played in office while remote colleagues participate virtually.
Fitness challenges: Activity challenges with both audiences participating.
Building Sustainable Bonding Culture
Cultural Investment
Leadership modelling: Leaders who participate genuinely in bonding activities.
Time investment: Allocating time for bonding as legitimate work activity.
Inclusion commitment: Genuine commitment to including all team members.
Recognition of connection: Recognising relationship quality as valued outcome.
Process Integration
Regular scheduling: Regular bonding activities built into team rhythm.
Feedback integration: Regular collection and response to bonding feedback.
Improvement practice: Continuous improvement of bonding approaches.
Capability building: Ongoing investment in bonding facilitation capability.
Conclusion
Split teams can build genuine cohesion when bonding activities are designed specifically for hybrid dynamics. The key is creating experiences where both in-office and remote participants feel equally valued, engaged, and connected.
Creative approaches that address the unique challenges of split teams can build stronger relationships than either fully in-person or fully remote activities.
Explore corporate event team building activities options designed for split teams.
