Team Building UK

Team Building Events

2011-10-29T12:25:00.000Z

We've been extremely busy with our team building events in 2011. It was a long Summer with some remarkable weather in October, at times it was almost tropical. The sunshine certainly made people want to be outdoors enjoying each other's company.

Popular events this year have been The Parmesan Job, Crystal Challenge and we've seen an increase in Hostage events. The latter are great fun and highly memorable!

We now move into the realms of indoor team building and we have a full range of events so that team building doesn't have to stop just because the weather is more challenging.

Visit our indoor section on the team building website to explore the options in detail.

Team Building Activities

2011-08-02T11:58:00.004Z

What makes an activity team building as opposed to just an activity? Some activities are individual, others require a team to make it happen.

Social team bonding is at the core of the team building activity. Groups have a positive shared experience and this bonds them into a team. The best events have a lasting effect, with recalled memories and photos to remind people of the fun that they had.

Some activities, for example bungee jumping and even high ropes, can be divisive - splitting the team into those who enjoy heights and those who don't. A good team building activity will appeal to as many in the team as possible. There are plenty of activities that will appeal to everyone.

Team Go Team Building

2011-05-11T09:43:00.003Z

Our own team decided to head off for a bit of team building so we turned to Solent Events to organise a day of sailing with a RIB support boat to take us out for some high speed blasting.

It was a great day out on The Solent. We had a bit of extreme weather in the morning and then after lunch the sun came out. It was like two different days, as is so often the case on The Solent.

When we got back to land we hoisted poor Hannah up the mast to take this picture of all of us!

Olympic Themed Events

2011-05-10T11:26:00.003Z

The Olympics is a hot theme as 2012 rapidly approaches and companies are looking to reflect that in their conferences and events.

Various events are suitable for an international sporting contest theme. It's A Knockout is an obvious choice with a variety of games that can each be themed to a different country.

Care must be taken not to infringe any copyrights, but events can still feel suited if well planned.

The Generation Game

2011-04-11T09:30:00.003Z

Our Generation Game evening team building event is as good as it has ever been. There are four different activities and the audience gets really involved, with some hilarious results. The challenges include:-

Catwalk Capers - A volunteer steps forward and the rest of the team create an elaborate costume using a variety of materials. We then have display the results on the catwalk with all the style and sophistication of a real designer show but with two significant differences; the style and sophistication.

We also have The Hakka or Morris Dancing and the evergreen Cake Decorating. The Generation Game is great fun and getting excellent feedback.

Edinburgh Treasure Hunt

2011-04-08T15:36:00.003Z

Just back from a fabulous Treasure Hunt in Edinburgh. It's a great city for a Treasure Hunt because there's so much to do in such an accessible area. We finished up in The Caves in Old Niddry Street which is a great venue and perfect for the end of an event. We flew from Southampton and it took one and a half hours, with a half hour bus trip to get into the city centre. It's almost as close as London.

Team Building For 2011

2011-02-21T12:23:00.003Z

Our Hustle event seems to be very popular at the moment. Teams play against our casino to try to tip the odds in their favour using techniques that our hustlers teach them.

The Parmesan Job continues to attract a lot of attention and we've followed this up with The Parmesan Job II, which brings speedboats into the plot. Very exciting and the ultimate sequel.

The trend for short notice events continues, we're often contacted one or two weeks before the event date. Some people in the industry say that budgets remain low but we think that if you have the right product you can still get the higher budget events.

Essentially if you believe that budgets are low and you reduce your offering to a lower budget level what result will you get? Low budgets.

It's important to keep the ideas big and exciting.

Gingerbread House Challenge

2010-12-14T11:10:00.003Z

As a creative team building company we felt it was important to come up with something interesting and fun for our partner hotels this year. In our Gingerbread Challenge teams are invited to build their own gingerbread house and submit a photograph for judging. The best example will win the team a huge one metre tall gingerbread house.

All in all, that's a lot of gingerbread.

Treasure Hunt Locations

2010-10-06T11:20:00.006Z

Treasure Hunts are a great way of exploring interesting areas. Favourite locations include London Tower Bridge and West End, Brighton, Windsor and The Solent.

In some areas it's quite difficult to find interesting clues but somewhere like Windsor, for example, has great clues every few places.

Here's a great Treasure Hunt picture featuring an interesting landmark in Windsor.

Green Team Building

2010-09-08T10:18:00.003Z

It is possible to hold a Green Team Building event with really enjoyable activities without compromising on fun.

Laser Clay Shooting uses infra red instead of shot and it's a very enjoyable competitive activity. Pulse Ranger is an electronic combat game, a bit like paintball without the paint ... and pain. Segways are one of the most popular activities available, whether the event has a green objective or not.

All of these activities are safe and environment friendly. They don't damage the ground where they are held and they are very energy efficient. The cost of charging all three is less than £1 and they are fully charged for a day for 30 or more people.

Other activities are available with a minimal or event non-existant environmental impact. The Crystal Challenge event, in particular, makes no impact at all.

It sometimes seems that we need to compromise to fit in green ideals, but there are many events available where this is not so. That is when our commitment to a better environment will really start to work; when it is effortless, enjoyable and doesn't have to come with an evangelical message.

The Team Building Team

2010-06-11T14:06:00.003Z

What a great bunch of people. Here is our team of event instructors at the open day of our new office and warehouse building. Dame Ellen MacArthur came down to perform the opening ceremony in front of 200 guests and we set up all of the activities in the adjacent field and put on a hog roast.

It was a great day. All of our people are hand picked for their attitude and aptitude and many of the emails we received after the event commented on how engaging they were on the day.

Great work team!

DaVinci's Designs

2010-05-12T10:16:00.006Z

If ever there was a visionary and a genius in our midst it was Leonardo DaVinci. Although his ideas were legendary by all accounts he was not much of a team player, preferring to work alone.

In tribute to DaVinci's genius we created an event called DaVinci's Designs in which teams solve problems based on his work to earn materials with which to paint a picture, using our mosaic format. So teams build a crane and costruct a bridge using Davinci's ideas. Then they finish up by each contributing to a canvas which eventually joins other canvasses to make up one big picture.

It's a great event and a fitting tribute to the great man.

Team Building

2010-04-14T10:17:00.003Z

Team building is starting to take off in a big way this year. Finally, after a long period where teams were being taken apart, the mood is changing and teams are being built again. It's great to see the large corporates coming back and investing in their people. For a while they were concerned that they should not be seen to be doing anything which could be viewed as frivolous.

It's a shame that words like 'frivolous' and 'jolly' are used around activity based team building. We always say that fun is not a four letter word in business, in fact it's an essential factor in increasing productivity and retention in a business. It would be intolerable if everything had to be serious after all.

Hustle - Learn to card count

2010-04-12T11:36:00.004Z

Hustle is our latest event in which participants learn how to card count and master other techniques to improve the odds at a casino. They then get into teams to take on our real casino with trained croupiers. This can be set up in an hotel or venue in the UK.

Card counting is not as hard as it might sound. People usually think of Dustin Hoffman's character in Rain Man remembering the order of four decks of cards. Actually the technique is much more straightforward and it's interesting knowledge to get to grips with.

This is an interesting new event, and learning how to play Black Jack and Roulette is good fun.

It's A Knockout

2010-03-01T12:19:00.005Z

We're looking for an outgoing host for our It's A Knockout events. Stuart Hall was the original host and he had a unique style, laughing his way through many of the games.

Our host needs to have an outgoing personality and the sort of voice that makes people smile. They need to comment on the ongoing event, interview participants and generally give the event tempo and enthusiasm.

Applicants should visit The Team Building Company's website and make contact.

How does team building work?

2010-01-26T17:19:00.008Z

A picture speaks a thousand words. You can have the cleverest ideas, the most expensive equipment and the most comprehensively thought through itinerary, but what really work on the day are the random moments of fun that the particpants create themselves.

Our role, as the professional team building event organiser, is to create a stage and give the players everything they need to have a fun and enjoyable experience. The rest is up to them.

Successful team building away days create memories of fun shared experiences and that is one of the foundations of team building. It's no different from friendship. Your friendships are built on a series of good shared experiences, often hundreds of them going back years. They make a chain that is hard to break.

Conference Icebreakers

2009-12-17T14:52:00.005Z

Another use of activities and events is the conference icebreaker. These sessions are usually run at the beginning of a conference to help delegates get to know each other and start the conference in a positive way. When these sessions are run during a conference they are generally 'energisers'.

The drumming event shown on the left is a good example of a professional icebreaker. It's fun and enjoyable and not corny, so people will want to participate.

Chocolate Making

2009-11-20T11:20:00.003Z

Chocolate making is a relative newcomer to the team building market, and it's very popular. Teams are coached in the art of making fine chocolates and then undertake the challenge of producing a box of luxury confectionery.

A chocolate making event is different and appeals to many rather than being more popular with men. It can also be themed to Christmas, Easter and even Halloween.

Catapults

2009-10-21T09:12:00.004Z

Catapults, or slingshots, are very popular on team building events, people see them as they approach the field and can't wait to pick them up to relive childhood fun and games.

A professional layout is set up using colourful targets and firing mini paintballs, which give a pleasing 'splat'.

This makes an ideal element in a round robin format where teams rotate around a collection of activities in round robin format on their away day. Other activities might include archery, quad bikes, laser clay shooting and so on.

Team Building for Schools

2009-10-14T13:37:00.002Z

We've done a number of team building events for schools this year and it's been very successful. The activities are enjoyable and feel novel to the participants and they promote skills that will be very useful when they move on into the workplace, for example teamwork, planning and leadership.

It's something that we'd like to do a lot more of. The current generation of school leavers need all the positive experience they can get and having something like this that they could discuss in interviews is really useful.

Roman Numerals

2009-10-13T15:51:00.002Z

When I started out over 20 years ago I used to use a conundrum as a time filler, when teams finished early or for extra points. What is this word?

100010001000UN1100AT100N

It's based on roman numerals and in those days I would say that half of team members would know what they were. They might not get it straight away, but they knew the principle behind the puzzle.

Nowadays people don't know and they look at you as if you're insane when you explain it. So, after many years of faithful service I am retiring this team building conundrum.

Team Technology

2009-10-06T14:44:00.002Z

Team Technology is an incredible resource, full of information about team building theory. They do not deliver team building challenges as such, but their website is full of useful information on any number of team theories and management training material.

Team Building Blog

2009-09-29T11:35:00.004Z

The blog at fun team building activities profiles some interesting team building activities one by one, including Go Mad In The Country, The Parmesan Job and Segways, the two wheeled ride on experience that is taking the event world by storm.

Falconry and Archery

2009-09-11T13:52:00.003Z

Falconry and archery are good events for relaxed social team bonding. They can be part of a larger day and provide a moment of more sedate tempo. They are also very interesting. Experienced instructors can go into a bit of the history of archery.

Did you know that it's still written into the law that men of fighting age (over 14 years) must practice longbow for two hours every day under the watchful eye of the local clergy? More disturbingly it's still legal to shoot a Scotsman on sight with a bow and arrow in England (except on Sundays) and in certain cities you can shoot a Welshman within the city walls after midnight. I'm not sure how well your defence would stand up in court!

Archery has affected modern language with phrases such as bolt out of the blue, fast and loose, straight as an arrow, brace yourself and highly strung coming from the sport. Having more than one string to your bow is a sensible precaution for anyone, but particularly an archer.

Falconry also has interesting tales to tell. Stoop so low and one fell swoop are phrases from the sport. A 'fed up' bird will be reluctant to perform and when it's under control in the falconer's hand it's 'under the thumb'.

These activities suit certain types of events. They are enjoyable, fun and very interesting.

Teem Esteem

2009-09-11T10:40:00.002Z

Team Esteem is about the self esteem of a team of people, or how they feel about the group they are in. It's something that we notice on events; some teams have a really good feel about them and enjoy each others' company and with others it's harder work. Generally most of the teams we meet on our team building days seem to have high Team Esteem. That may be because the days we run are enjoyed and looked forward to, or it may just be that teams who aren't like this don't do things like fun team building.

Whatever it is, there's no doubt that a fun team building event is great for morale and high Team Esteem.

Team Building Events

2009-08-19T14:28:00.003Z

We've in the high season and although business has been affected by the economic situation we've been undertaking plenty of team building events around the country. Treasure Hunts are always popular and we've been doing a lot of our Crystal Challenges and It's a Knockout events.

Earlier in the year we got some Segways and they are very popular. Clients always enjoy them and typically it's their first experience of them. As one of our instructors said, we do these activities all the time and it's easy to take it for granted - but for the clients most of it is a new experience.

Corporate sailing events

2009-04-06T16:31:00.005Z

Now that summer is coming many clients think about having a day on the water on a corporate sailing event. This is a very popular corporate option because you get a very powerful team building experience in a very nice environment, complete with glamourous locations (for example the Solent) and fabulous restaurants close to the water.

A real test of a team is to spend a couple of days living in close quarters on a yacht. Facilities on board are limited and you really do have to work together and learn to compromise to survive this event!

Solent Events are an excellent provider of corporate sailing events and we work alongside them for this activity.

Istanbul Treasure Hunt

2009-03-30T17:50:00.003Z

March saw a crack Progressive team head out to Istanbul to carry out a spy themed treasure hunt. A day's travelling each way hat the team installed in the luxurious Hyatt Regency hotel. The event itself was centred in the Grand Bazaar and involved plenty of local interaction and even a visit to a Turkish bath.

The event was a great success in spite of rain and even hail at some points early in the event. Meanwhile, back at home everyone had enjoyed a glorious sunny Spring day.

We're good, but we can't control the weather! Mission accomplished:- client delighted.

Why is Rob so excited?

2008-09-08T12:08:00.004Z

Rob Baxter is our logistics manager based in the warehouse at Progressive. He also looks after all the vehicles.

Rob is delighted because tow new vans have arrived. They are Citroen's and the new models are a full 18 inches longer. They also have Trafficmaster built in. This provides satnav and an interesting little feature which tracks the vans, so Rob can log in and see exactly where they are at any moment in time. The question is whether to tell the crews of his new all-seeing powers!

We buy new vehicles every three years because reliability is of critical importance in our business. A van broken down on the motorway can mean 50 people standing around with nothing to do and a very embarrassed organiser. We believe that we have the newest vehicles and equipment in the business.

You don't get a second chance with events. It has to be 'right first time'.

Nicola Abad is one of our project managers

2008-09-04T14:46:00.002Z

At the moment I’m working on putting together a new event which is based on a “Going Green” theme. The teams will each have their own low carbon vehicle with driver along with GPS, maps, clues, riddles etc which will help them make their way around the New Forest finding activities along the way. All of the activities have a“Green” theme that is eco friendly, they then finish with a Tree planting group finale. My job is to ensure that all of the details for the event are in place and all staff as well as the client knows how the day will run by putting together a detailed Event Schedule and Itinerary for the day.

David Getzig's blog

2008-08-28T11:10:00.002Z

David is Progressive's Director of Operations and has responsibility for the warehouse team in Ringwood and the entire field operation, ranging from vehicles to equipment and managing our team of more than 50 instructors. It's a key role in the Progressive Resources team.

What is David up to at the moment?

I am currently in the process of introducing a new activity into our event portfolio. We have purchased a Pinzgauer, which has been described as one of the most “competent off-road vehicles in the world”. This will be used for delivering 4 x 4 activities to clients up and down the country.

The Pinzgauer is a remarkable offroad vehicle Its capabilities are comparable to that of the American Hummer.

45 degree approach and departure angle
100% slope or until tyres lose traction
700 mm (27.6 in) fording depth
Can climb down a 360 mm (14.2 in) wall
43.5 degree side-slope
1000/1500 kg of payload (4x4/6x6)
335 mm (13.2 in) of clearance (lowest point when fully loaded)
110 km/h (68 mph) / 100 km/h (62 mph) top speed(4x4/6x6)
Full engine power available at 4 km/h (2 mph)
M body type carries 10 people (4X4), 14 people (6x6)

Hannah from the Projects team

2008-08-27T15:53:00.002Z

Hannah is with us on a placement and, sadly, will be going back to uni soon. However, she's determined to come back and work for us after her studies, so we won't lose her for long. What has Hannah been up to recently?

"I am currently working on updating and finishing a few larger projects before returning to University. The first of which, event analysis, has involved recording all events and activities within the events to identify which are most popular and what equipment does or doesn't get used. This goes with the dot board analysis to find out hot spot days and which months are busiest at Progressive, such as a record July this year with 84 events.

I am also analysing expenditure on suppliers and where operations buy equipment from. This will allow us to see where we spend money regularly and find out if we can set up trade accounts or bulk discounts for loyal custom."

Newsletter and new website

2008-03-19T14:48:00.002Z

Our Spring Newsletter headed out this afternoon. We publish this quarterly and send it out to our steadily growing database of now 5,000. We hope you all enjoy it!

We have also launched a new website; www.productlaunch.co.uk. We were able to get this url towards the end of last year. We feel that only having the best domain names underscores our commitment to any service that we promote and we now have an impressive stable of names. We added www.treasurehunt.co.uk earlier last year.

We feel that this approach says that we're serious about what we're doing and that if we do something we do it well.

Sea Business Launches

2008-03-07T14:49:00.003Z

Sea Business, the water based event division of Progressive Resources, has officially launched with a mailshot to the company database. Chris Welch has moved from Progressive in Ringwood to head up the new division backed up by experienced event manager Sam Griffiths. Sea Business is based on the historic Quay Hill, the cobbled street at the bottom of Lymington High Street which leads down to the Quay.

Business is reported to be brisk after the launch. Sea Business arranges a variety of events including team building on yachts, ribtec treasure hunts and sailing regattas.

Preparing for the 2008 Season

2008-02-15T16:33:00.003Z

It's all hands on deck at the moment preparing for the main season. We're painting, reparing and building to get our kit up to scratch and cope with higher demand this year. The world seems to be full of doom and gloom but we're experiencing a higher volume of enquiries than usual. One theory is that companies who are doing well are organising team building events to keep their employees feeling positive and motivated in the face of the media onslaught of negativity.

The Parmesan Job

2007-10-24T16:01:00.000Z

The Parmesan Job is one of our most popular premium events. It's a themed event based on the classic film The Italian Job and at the end of it teams get to blow the doors off a white van to get to the gold bars. Each team is given a Mini for the day which they get to drive for themselves. We can hire as many of these as are needed for an event, the record being more than 20 on one day; that was fun.

We've just taken delivery of our own Mini Cooper. This will be used on the events and also in promotions. We had one on our stand at an exhibition and that really attracted attention. The things the team here is really interested in is borrowing it for the weekend when it's not in use. They're great little cars and the Cooper really has oomph.

When team building gets a bad name

2007-10-22T10:54:00.000Z

Police were called to a mass brawl on a Dieppe to Newhaven ferry between 25 passengers which started as an argument over which team (Arsenal or Chelsea) would win the football league. The news report, which has featured in most of the national papers during the past week, went on to gleefully state that the group were on a team building day out.

It's easy to see why the media would revel in this story so much. There is a inescapable irony in a team building event resulting in drunken fisticuffs.

The reality is that the purpose of the event was defeated by too much booze. It happens all the time and you just can't get it through to some clients. A little alcohol is a social lubricant and can be great for bonding, but too much and it often gets out of hand. People say things they regret or don't mean - I don't think that the old adage In Vino Veritas holds true. You tend to get a sort of extreme thruth; thoughts you wouldn't usually express because they are unmitigated.

So, if you're planning a team building event bear this in mind. In Vino Big Trouble.

Hello 2007

2007-02-05T23:08:00.002Z

We've undertaken our most significant marketing activity to date with a quarter page advert booked in The Business Magazine every week for 52 weeks. James Coakes buys and sells internet domain names as well as using them for our own marketing strategy and he happened to have http://www.thebusiness.co.uk/, purchased from the receivers of a bust company.

The advert is a swap and it has lead to a significant increase in traffic to our website, particularly from London and the EC1 city area where many of the companies with a budget for events are based. We're now busily brainstorming new ideas for the year ahead. Ours are sophisticated clients and they need creative new ideas. Quad bikes, clay shooting and archery are all very well but clients increasingly say they've done it all before and want something different.

This, combined with the launch of our brand new brochure at Confex later this month, will mean a big marketing push forward. Details of the new events for 2007 will follow shortly.

Team building and Sustainability

2006-06-18T12:06:00.000Z

I was looking at an article covering a speech about sustainability given by the CEO of a global multi national. At around the same time I saw a company report from another blue chip company and the Chairman's statement was all about sustainability. It seems that it's the big trend in business at the moment.

Then I was thinking about team building events and how they fit with sustainability. If the CEO is saying that nothing is more important than sustainability but then the next day a group of the company's executives is burning around a field on quad bikes, leaving a scar on the land that will take months to heal, then you wouldn't be completely out of order pointing out the hypocrisy. Words are important, but actions speak louder than words.

The sustainability issue is going to start to impact on the sort of team building events that corporate clients choose. Quad bikes and tanks will be out, Community Projects will be in. Speedboats will be out in favour of sailing.

Team building providers are often small businesses who do not necessarily listen to the things that large corporates say are important. However, the industry needs to change and become more environmentally focussed. The corporate client is a very sophisticated entity and the days of petrol heads yahooing around a field will soon be over.

Progressive Resources has a wide variety of sustainable team building events.

2006 - Happy New Year!

2006-01-13T11:55:00.000Z

The year has started well and all the signs point to 2006 being an excellent year for team building. We have a variety of new events on offer and added various new equipment over the Winter. We invested in a lovely old fire engine, a 1978 Bedford TK, and have created an event in which teams can take on the challenge of being a fire crew. This is great fun and involves rolling out the hose and hitting targets with a jet of water. She is also very useful for transporting water for our Water Wars event and It's A Knockout.

We are now prepared for the year ahead. It's going to be a good one!

September Team Building News

2005-09-10T07:37:00.000Z

August was extraordinarily busy. Usually it's quiet because of holidays, but this year it was like a normal month. September is looking very busy too. We're having a night shift in for the first time to unload vans, clean and prepare equipment and reload ready for the following day. We have sold our old Lasersport systems and bought two brand new ones complete with electronic traps. These are extremely slick and a great improvement. We have also ordered two brand new vans from Virgin Cars. They had a very good deal on Citroen Relays offering a discount of nearly 40%. Citroen make a very good diesel engine. You can't cut corners on transport because we need it to be absolutely reliable so that we don't let clients down. Our policy is to have new vehicles and kit and replace them regularly. We're up to 50 instructors in the field and we're now recruiting actively. Our target for next year is 70 and these must be trained to full competency over the winter.

Preparations for Halloweeen are underway and people have already been caught out by heads appearing from holes in tables and a very spooky 6ft vampire which swoops down from the roof on invisible fishing wire. Every so often we've heard a scream from downstairs and some of the girls in the office are refusing to go down there until it's finished. Our product development area is like a mad cross between Department Q and Santa's Workshop!

As the Summer starts to draw to a close

2005-08-25T20:05:00.000Z

Well, I suppose it's still a bit early to say that. We had a few events on today and the weather was just bizarre. Hailstones in August. August is usually a bit quieter because people go away on holiday and so clients avoid having events during the month. Still, we've had events most days. Now the busiest season of the year for team building events starts to build up. September through to mid November tends to be the big conference season. Hopefully it will be good this year, after all we're still owed a summer!

Busy year for events

2005-06-05T15:42:00.000Z

2005 is going to be a good year. I estimate it will be more than 30% up on last year. The past five years have included a range of geopolitical events that have adversely affected the events industry. Foot and mouth, 9/11, Sars and the Iraq War are all examples of these events. Team building and corporate events are one of the first things to get cut when corporates aren't feeling confident and nothing affects confidence like uncertainty. This year, however, has been a level playing field (so far) and corporates are investing in their teams. This investment improves morale, teamwork and communication and these things have an accumulating effect in a business.

Team Building Galore

2005-04-23T21:57:00.000Z

It is now clear that this is going to be an extremely busy year for our team. Bookings are very good and clients have reacted well to some of the new events we have developed. In particular our Parmesan Job treasure hunt event has been very well received. People love the new Mini Cooper and it does look fantastic when we have a group of them running around together - it really turns heads. Hunt The New Forest Beast has not been so popular as a team building event. It attracts interest on the website but we've only actually run a couple. I think that the idea of camping appeals to some but not others, personally I love it. My theory is that in a group of, say, 30 people between 5 and 10 people will be averse to physical activity and perceived hardships such as camping and they will veto such events. This explains why Treasure Hunts are the most popular event in the corporate event industry. They are acceptable to most people in any given team.

On the subject of camping I have signed up for two weeks' arctic survival in February of next year. I enjoyed the week surviving in the woods last year raising money for The Anthony Nolan Trust and so I have decided to go one step further with this event which will involve living in snow caves, fishing through the ice and travelling by husky and skidoo. I can't wait!

The year is underway

2005-02-16T18:20:00.000Z

There is a day in the year when the events business, being seasonally affected, changes and becomes extremely busy. I have been monitoring this for the last few years and one date always comes up; 11th February. So, on 11th February this year I came into the office with a spring in my step and it there did seem to be some excitement in the air; more enquiries than usual and people actually looking to make decisions and pin down dates. This week, the week after the key date, has been extremely busy and that surprises me because it's half term and also Confex, the industry exhibition, is on this week. Given all of that I am expecting next week to be very busy, so it's all hands on deck again!

New Year!

2005-01-03T11:29:00.000Z

We ran almost up to Christmas with team building events and Christmas parties. The Christmas break has been longer than usual, but we return to work tomorrow and the first big event is on 6th January. The first couple of months tend to be taken up with launch events as companies prepare for the coming year. There are still plenty of team building events, but they really kick in from March onwards. I think most of our team have had enough of the break and now want to get back into the swing of things.

Christmas Events Begin

2004-11-23T16:45:00.000Z

We have still been running plenty of outdoor team building events, probably due to the mild winter. On Thursday we have the first of our large Christmas events in the form of a Winter Wonderland in the new Itchen Suite at the Southampton Football Club. The team in the unit is busily putting together all the theme decorations; we're going to transform the huge suite into a snow covered winter landscape, Elves are being measured for costumes and it's all a bit surreal.

Promotional Team Building Event

2004-10-12T16:12:00.000Z

Today we held a promotional event at Somerley, a stately home close to our offices in Ringwood. In the grounds they have Old Somerley which is the site of the old house which burnt down before the current house was built. It seems to be a rule that stately homes have to burn to the ground and be rebuilt at some stage in their history. They now have a very attractive walled garden and a single storey building for hospitality which has been finished to a very high standard. We worked in conjunction with The Holt who have some static team building challenges in the woods there and we took along Laser Clay Shooting and Human Table Football. Guests from various companies took part in these activities, had a good lunch and went away with our brochures considering team building events for their companies, or so I hope.

Nine Team Building Events

2004-09-02T08:56:00.000Z

There are nine team building events today and although that's a fairly high number for us we don't seem too pushed. Sometimes the content of the events make these busy days easier than other occasions just because the type of events fit with our staffing. Last October we moved into the offices we are now in. We have about 5,000 square feet with a mixture of offices and storage and this has enabled us to increase our stock of equipment. Other advantages of this location are that we're just off the motorway system and we are opposite a large van hire company. When we were based in Lymington the distance from the motorway combined with picking up and dropping off hire vans pretty much added a day to each event. Today we have a military style operation with vans coming in loading up and leaving with their team of instructors.

Here we go again!

2004-08-19T16:07:00.000Z

There is always an increase in business after the holidays. I think people feel that they have been away, maybe lost some connection with each other and the business and the best solution is a team building event. Most of us in the office get our holidays out of the way before this starts but the effect has already started and a couple of people are still away so it's rather manic. We're having to turn away bookings that we usually would try to cover but frankly if clients want us to travel and won't pay full price it's not really going to happen, particularly when it's like this. 10th September is a real hotspot with 6 events, one of which is a huge It's A Knockout for 2,000 people requiring more than 40 staff. It will be one of the biggest of the year and we're all looking forward to seeing the field. When you've had a hand in putting together a large scale event it's really exciting to see it come together on the day.

When team building attacks!

2004-08-17T14:43:00.000Z

We're all reeling from an event last night for a client who will remain anonymous. It was an event for trainees for a large financial. They were all men and sometimes these events can be a bit boisterous. It was an evening event and by the time they all arrived with us they had clearly had a skinfull and then they proceeded to drink heavily for the rest of the evening. By the time the events came round many of them were reeling on their feet. One of our older chaps was dressed in the chilli costume and for some reason they decided to try to remove his underpants. It was schoolboy prank style wedgies I think, but it still left our poor chap rather shaken. We had an attractive female instructor working and she had a lot of trouble. Most companies use drinking as part of their team building and I agree that this can work but sometimes it just goes too far. When they are that drunk I really don't think they care about the events; our priority then becomes damage limitation and making sure our own staff are safe. I understand the venue was trashed as well. Some companies need to be a bit more careful about the culture they promote.

August's Team Building events

2004-08-09T11:44:00.000Z

August is traditionally a quieter month, however we have events every day this week. Unfortunately the weather isn't great; there was a storm last night and it's generally overcast. The events we do have are generally entertainment rather than team building, although there's always an element of each in every event. Today is also the Monday of Cowes Week, the famous yachting event. We have two yachts out with client teams on board today and this overcast weather with very little wind is bad on both counts. Never mind, we always put on excellent catering and plenty of drink so they will still enjoy the day.

A new week

2004-08-02T09:40:00.000Z

This is a lighter week with the holiday effect kicking in. We are taking the time to repair, renew, paint and generally sort out our kit after one of the busiest runs of events that we have experienced. Our own team building went very well, although there were a few sore heads the morning after. The events during the day were excellent; low ropes, high ropes and general team challenges. They were a more challenging batch of activities than those we tend to deliver to our own clients but even those who were a little reticent enjoyed them. The acting workshop that many people were concerned about was great fun and, as always, people were surprised at how much they enjoyed it. It's amazing how the mind conjours up terrible images of what something is going to be like and it is always much better when it happens.

Our own Team Building

2004-07-30T10:41:00.000Z

I had been expecting things to be quieter this week as business tends to decrease when the school holidays start, however it's been busy and we've had three or four events most days and five today. There are a few over the weekend but the main event is our own company team building. Last year we went to Paulton's Park and enjoyed the rides but this year it's more serious. We're going camping complete with team activities; high ropes etc, a barbecue and plenty of drinks afterwards. The itinerary went around the office this morning and we found out that we also have a drama workshop. Opinions are divided and some are really upset about it. It's fascinating to observe as this is what happens within our client companies in the run up to their events. There's always plenty to learn!

Mid Week Teambuilding Report

2004-07-27T16:34:00.000Z

The Game Fair at Blenheim went extremely well. Pulse Ranger was very popular, but mainly with children. It works well for both children and adults. Rowan Atkinson was there with his son and they had a go on Laser Clays; he was fairly quiet but polite. This is the last busy week before the holiday lull. Usually the end of July and all of August is more quiet but this year it has carried on later. We will probably only have about 40 events through the whole of August because people go on holiday and firms therefore don't organise events. September through to November will then be very busy as the events start again and make up for lost time. No strange events or incidents to report.

Blenheim Palace

2004-07-22T17:17:00.000Z

Lots of events today but all pretty straight forward; Command Tasks, Laser Clay Shooting, a Treasure Hunt, some Team Building theory, that sort of thing. I am spending the next three days at Blenheim Palace at the CLA Game Fayre where we will have Laser Clays and Pulse Ranger which is a Laser combat game; like paintball without the pain. We charge the public but it's also a promotional opportunity. So, I've been clearing my desk and preparing for a weekday out of the office. I'm quite looking forward to a break, albeit a hard working one. The total immersion in something with no time to think of yesterday or tomorrow can be as relaxing as a holiday.

More Team Building

2004-07-21T13:14:00.000Z

Just one event today but tomorrow is very busy with five large events, mostly of a team building nature. There's lots of preparation in the unit today; vans being loaded, kit prepared. A couple of the events are a fair trek away so the teams arrive this afternoon, head to the venue and stay overnight in a Travel Lodge. This became company policy last year - previously we have left early and come home late. However, it's safer this way and clients get a fresh team rather than a tired one. The James Bond event went well at the weekend. There were one or two hitches, but there are on most events - the key is not to have zero problems but to make sure that clients don't feel any problems that there are. That's what separates the best Event Managers from the average or bad ones.

James Bond Theme

2004-07-17T11:05:00.000Z

Just off to Beaulieu Motor Museum where we have a huge James Bond themed event for 500 people in a huge marquee. We have dancers, decorations, staff dressed as henchmen, lookalikes, casino tables etc. It's a massive event and I won't be finished until about 3 a.m. tomorrow.

Rib Riding on The Solent

2004-07-16T13:30:00.000Z

Four events today, one of which is a team building Treasure Hunt on The Solent in RibTec speedboats. These are the high speed inflatable side but rigid hull boats used by special forces, the Coastguard etc. They are fantastic fun and teams always come back with huge grins set on their faces. The Treasure Hunt visits towns on the mainland and The Isle of Wight. The other three events are a Go Mad (murder mystery / treasure hunt), Laser Clay Shooting and other activities and finally an It's A Knockout tournament. No staff problems today, no lost Treasure Hunt characters, no rain. In fact the only problem was that the doors jammed shut on one of the vans so we couldn't offload it. One of the reasons we moved into our new premises is that we are opposite a large van hire business - extremely useful for emergency van hire and repairs. You can find out more about any of our team building events by visiting our website.

Seagull moved on by Police!

2004-07-15T16:26:00.000Z

Just two events today but plenty of action. We had a big Treasure Hunt in London and one of our characters, dressed in a seagull suit in Trafalgar Square, was moved on by the Police. We managed to find a new location and all of the teams were informed. It all adds to the fun and memorability of the event. That is important because if the fun and games are remembered and discussed in the future it adds to the team building effect. The weather has improved. We're considering adding Inflatable Volley Ball to our range of activities. It's good team building and would stand well next to Human Table Football, of which we now have two sets because it is so popular.

Midweek status

2004-07-14T16:58:00.000Z

Four events today; one It's A Knockout, one team building day, a day of motorised activities in Bournemouth and a session of Falconry at Tylney Hall Hotel. The latter is fairly straightforward as we just send in a falconer but the other days required four vehicles, 20 staff and all of the usual logistical effort. All went well though. The weather is showing signs of picking up. I do feel for clients who plan a big day for months and then have bad weather on the day. Having said that we have run some excellent events in atrocious weather. The event in Budapest is coming along. I think I will go - it's not a country I've visited and it sounds interesting.

London Treasure Hunt etc

2004-07-08T08:48:00.000Z

Today is a less hectic day with just two events. We have a day of Team Building Challenges for the Health & Safety Executive, so we are being very safety concious (we always are!) and we also have a London Treasure Hunt. In this event we have two costumed characters and one of these (the Cheeky Chilli) phoned in sick last night. We have managed to get a replacement, but it's always a challenge when this sort of thing happens. So, all is well today. We're collecting in costumes for this weekend's Eurovision Song Contest event. There are some pretty wild ones. I almost wonder if clients will actually wear them, but they always get into the swing of it in the end.

Summer Weather!

2004-07-07T16:22:00.000Z

This weather is appalling for July. Outdoor team building events tend to be a seasonal thing because, naturally, people want to be outdoors when the weather is nice. We have four events running today and it feels more like November. Hopefully this means better weather later in the year, but it's not good.

We are currently working on a proposal for a Pink Panther themed Murder Mystery to be delivered in Budapest. The team really like events in other countires. The only problem is deciding who gets to go. Earlier this year we sent a team out to La Manga and the schedule meant that there was a spare day before and after the event with accommodation and meals provided. We have to draw lots, as everyone wanted the sunbathing time by the pool.