Fostering remote team building is one of the most important responsibilities a team leader has. With Slack—a streamlined app for team members to communicate—team building is easier than ever! Slack offers many exceptional features that make communication both fun and efficient. Most importantly, there are games and polls available on Slack that will foster remote team building, decrease team member stress, and encourage more open communication!
There are many virtual team building activities to choose from, but Slack takes the stress out of decision-making. Which remote team building activities are best for your group? Which time frames are suitable for the entire team but don’t interrupt productivity? Be sure to communicate with your team prior to designating time for activities at your own discretion.
It is extremely important to take team member opinions into account when deciding on a team building activity, specifically because it is meant for the team itself. One of the best team building activities and planning tools available on Slack is the poll feature! You can use polls to get input on team building sessions, or even use polling as a team building activity in itself!
How It Works
Slack allows its users to conduct surveys and polls regarding certain topics, and even react with emojis! The Slack App Directory offers users their choice of several apps that allow you to reach out to members and collect feedback expeditiously. Apps like Simple Poll, Survey Monkey, and more are available in the Slack App Directory. There are a number of different polling features available: hidden results, scheduling, anonymity, reminders, event-triggered surveys, templates, and more. Leaders should definitely look into the Slack App Directory to find the app that is best suited for their team!
You can also easily poll your teammates with a Slack message using emoji reactions. In your message, you simply set up your poll by choosing an emoji for each option that team members can vote on (thumbs-up or thumbs-down is an easy place to start). Once the message is sent, team members can react to your message using one of the emojis you’ve selected. Whichever option has the most reactions becomes the winner!
Poll Ideas
It may seem daunting to craft the perfect idea for a poll, but don’t worry! We’re here to offer you some suggestions! Take some time to consider these ideas, as one or even all six of them may be the perfect fit for your remote team!
1. Music And Media. Learn more about your team’s music, television, and social media preferences! These polls can range anywhere from selecting the team’s overall favorite movie to discovering the team’s favorite emoji. What better way to get to know someone than their taste in music, shows, movies, apps, and more! This poll can also serve as a perfect segue into a virtual team movie night or even for a get together to jam out to some music!
2. Celebrations. This poll can extend to any kind of celebration! Maybe you’re interested in your team member’s favorite holidays, or what they like to do for their birthday. This is a great way to become familiar with other cultures as well, as many team members may celebrate different holidays. This poll will also be a great indicator of which holiday would be best for a get together either online or in-person!
3. Food & Drink. Can’t decide on what to eat for lunch? Poll it! Learning about your team’s favorite snacks and dishes is a great way to learn more about their upbringing and their culture. Who knows? Your team members may inspire you to make a dish that you’ve never tried before!
You can even use this poll to discuss a controversial-but-fun culinary topic. What’s better: pizza or tacos? Should you put ketchup on hot dogs?
4. Sports. Is your team fanatical about athletics? Show them that you recognize that about them! Poll about major sporting events like the Super Bowl, NBA Finals, World Series, Olympics, and more! You’d be surprised how quickly team members can bond over their favorite teams—and even rivalries!
5. Fashion. Does your team know a thing or two about what’s in and what’s out right now? Maybe next time you hit the mall to try on some new clothes, send a poll out to your team to see what they think! Or, if you are all preparing for a work-related event, take on a poll to choose the best-dressed! This is a great way to boost confidence and keep team members up to date on the latest trends in fashion!
6. Business-Related. Sometimes it can be an exciting and beneficial practice to ask for insight from your team members regarding upcoming projects, deadlines, and goals. Communication is key to the success of any business. Open communication and asking for insight from team members also indicates that you value their perspective, advice, and what they have to offer as individuals. Try something new this time around, and get your team involved in some of the things that might be stressing you out. It could prove to be very helpful, not to mention very fun!
Fostering Remote Team Building
It can prove to be very difficult to foster remote team building when there is minimal face-to-face contact. This is why businesses are starting to rely so heavily on Slack for all of their communication needs. Slack is a quick and efficient way to communicate and also features many things that make communication fun! Now that you have some knowledge of how polling on Slack works, and what to poll about, make it a point to get your team more involved and get excited to hear from one another! Every team needs to bond, and what better way to do it than reacting to their favorite things with their favorite emojis!
For more information on virtual team building, or to schedule rewarding events with your remote remote team, get in touch with TriviaHub today. We are proud to offer a wide variety of games and events for remote teams, including pub-style trivia, music-themed games, and even virtual parties.
