Virtual Team Games For Employees

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Summary. Team virtual games have been developed as a way to encourage groups of people to connect remotely. Using those games in a remote work environment gives employees a chance to connect with people they don’t normally see in a social and entertaining way. This strengthens bonds and facilitates communication, which can boost productivity.

Team virtual games gained widespread recognition during Covid lockdowns as friends, families, and co-workers tried to stay in touch. Today, team virtual games are becoming a staple for employers with remote employees.

By playing games together, people have an opportunity to communicate in a lighthearted way that can increase their engagement, communication skills, and creativity. Read on to learn more and discover some popular online games.

Key Takeaways:

Team virtual games are online games people can play when they’re in a remote working environment.
Companies that host virtual games open the door for their employees to connect in a social and fun way.
There are a lot of benefits to online team-building games, including increased productivity and employee engagement.
Virtual games don’t have to be difficult or elaborate to have the desired effect.

What Are Team Virtual Games?

Virtual games for teams or online teambuilding games grew in popularity during the Covid lockdowns in 2020. They have continued to be an important aspect of team building for companies that have kept remote employees on their roster or have moved to a remote environment.

Virtual games are played online between co-workers and team members for a variety of reasons; the most popular reason is to promote collaboration and professional connections. The games are different, and they can often be done through an office facilitator or with an outside agency specializing in team building games.

Why Host Virtual Games

While it’s true that most offices don’t host a game time, there are other times within a business day in which coworkers can physically work together and build rapport. That’s not true in the virtual environment with remote employees, and it’s why online work games are so popular.

By introducing your remote team to all the other players in the company, they’re more likely to feel as though they’re a part of the group. There are a lot of benefits that can come from virtual games.

Benefits of Remote Games for Employees

Some of the benefits of having regular virtual teambuilding events include:

Promotes collaboration
Better familiarity with online tech
Improved communication
Increased productivity
Sparks creativity
Employees are connected and develop bonds/relationships
Builds morale, potentially leading to increased engagement
Strengthens company culture

These are just a few of the benefits you’ll see when your remote team connects in ways that are outside of normal business operations.

Best Team Virtual Games for 2023

Thinking about giving games a go? The following are some popular and relatively simple games for your next remote work event.

Scavenger hunt. Gather your team remotely and tell them their scavenger hunt prompts. Then, set them free to find items that fit the bill. It’s best if this is a short game with only a few items and a minute or two of hunting. Later, each person will have an opportunity to share their items.
Listen and draw. This game is a great way to improve communication and listening skills. Have one person describe how to draw a simple image without saying what the image is. Everyone else has to try to follow the directions to create the right image.
Virtual charades. Virtual charades is just like regular charades, but you’re doing it through your computer camera.
Trivia. Create trivia questions with multiple-choice answers. Team members will have four sheets of paper in front of them; one with the letter A, one with B, one with C, and one with D. Those are the options for the trivia answers. Ask the question, and then after giving them time to think, have everyone lift their answer sheet at the same time.
Two truths and a lie. Let people know beforehand that you’ll be playing this game, so they have time to think about their truths and come up with a good lie. When it’s their turn, they will say their two truths and a lie, and the rest of the team has to guess which one is the lie.
Ten things. Each person holds up their hands with all ten fingers up (you can do five things for time or if you have a small group). One person shares a true statement, such as, I have a pet snake.

If that statement is not true for anyone in the group, they put a finger down. As soon as someone has all their fingers down, they’re out of the game. The goal is to be the last person with a finger up.

Virtual Games FAQ

What do you need to play team virtual games?

In most situations, all you need to play a team virtual game is a computer with video conferencing abilities and a conference program. For work situations, this is usually a mandatory part of working remotely. Sometimes you’ll need some extras like a pad of paper and a pen – it depends on the game you decide to play.
How often should I host team-building events online?

Quick online games can be a weekly huddle event for your team; more involved games might only be needed monthly, quarterly, or as a refresh in the middle of a big project.

There’s a fine line when hosting virtual games with your remote staff. You want to have them enough that they’re a fun break from work and true communication can blossom. You don’t have to host games so much that employee feel their work time is being wasted.
Can I do a team game with a very small team?

Yes, even teams of two can play virtual games. In fact, some might say it’s easier because there’s less cross-talk. It might take some work to find a game for only a couple of people, but they’re out there. You might also want to simply have a “coffee talk” and spend some time talking over a morning cuppa as you discuss your plans for the weekend or an upcoming vacation.
Are hosted virtual team builders worth it?

Yes, the need for hosted virtual games has created an entire industry of hosts that plan games for you and your company. They are in charge of explaining how to play and getting everyone on board. Using these companies is a great way to eliminate any bias and remove the burden of planning from a manager’s or other person’s shoulders.

The downside to using a hosted service is that it can be expensive. You might want to save hosted events for virtual work parties or as a big event before or after a busy period.

Final Thoughts

Virtual team games are a great tool for companies that have remote employees. This allows everyone in the virtual meeting to connect on a new level. It helps people feel connected and inspires greater creativity and communication. This can lead to improved productivity, and it can also build affinity within employees for their co-workers and for the company.

Start with some relatively easy games that don’t take a lot of time to ease your staff into sharing with people they may not have met in person. As things go well and a comfort level is developed, you can begin to push that boundary slightly and introduce longer games and ones where more personal connections are made.

References

National Library of Medicine – Team Building Through Team Video Games: Randomized Controlled Trial

Employee Motivation

Author

Kristin Kizer

Kristin Kizer is an award-winning writer, television and documentary producer, and content specialist who has worked on a wide variety of written, broadcast, and electronic publications. A former writer/producer for The Discovery Channel, she is now a freelance writer and delighted to be sharing her talents and time with the wonderful Zippia audience.