Category: Teambuilding

Our second team building this week was held at Thavorn Beach Village Resort & Spa in Kamala, Phuket. The highlight for me personally was the small petting zoo in the resort. Two little miniature pigs, a giant tortoise, a small tortoise, white rabbits, and some exotic birds that, for some reason, refused to fly away. Oh, and some Japanese chickens that were without doubt the most attractive chickens I have ever seen.

But enough about the wildlife. My team and I welcomed our participants for a full-day team building sales challenge with lunch along the way. To maintain my client’s privacy, I won’t reveal much information about the event nor feature any photos of the group. Hence the featured image of a Lego Superman.

What I can say is that we once again travelled the streets of Patong before and after lunch in a unique and highly engaging sales challenge. It’s a complex and technical team building challenge that requires each person in the team to play a role. The end result provides great memories and it’s worth the effort.

Finishing up at 1630, I had to do a quick change of clothes like Superman. He famously used a phone booth while I had to manage in the sweaty confines of the gent’s toilet. After remembering to wear my red underpants on the inside of my trousers, I was ready for the group’s beachside dinner. A very pleasant evening of light entertainment, games, plenty of food, some more food, and just a little bit more food.

Our client this time was from the financial sales industry in Singapore. An ultra-competitive group of young sales professionals with a leader who, knowing how driven his team members were, surprised everyone on the day by offering a very generous cash prize for the winning team.

The venue was the group’s villa overlooking Patong Bay. It’s unusual to start and finish a race in a private villa. I felt a bit like an intruder setting up our equipment in someone’s living room. Some of the team members who woke up late were clearly surprised to see a group of strangers sitting on their sofa first thing in the morning. But I informed them that we were, in fact, the event team and not leftovers from last night’s party and the call to security was cancelled.

Then, it was off around the streets of Patong for an extended version of our Amazing Race to include lunch. A tasty Thai set menu at a restaurant right on the beach at Patong. A fantastic spot to chill for an hour in the middle of a high-energy team building program.

Finishing back at the villa with the generous cash prizes and the remains of a Johnnie Walker Blue Label from the night before. Smooth.

This race was slightly unusual in that we were starting and finishing the race at my client’s office. Usually, my clients (most often companies from Singapore, Malaysia, and Hong Kong) stay in a hotel, often somewhere along Sukhumvit Road, and the event will start in the hotel’s meeting room. On this day, my team and I headed down to an industrial area down by the river where the company’s Thailand headquarters were.

For an Amazing Race, the local area did not offer anything particulary interesting so part of the race consisted of teams making their way to the city centre. The traffic was surprisingly easygoing and not at all like one would expect in Bangkok. Teams were able to quickly reach the game zone and get on with the contest. A packed lunch on the way and some preparatory activities kept teams busy.

It was a great afternoon with this cosmetics company and some unforgettable characters in the group led to a new experince for me; being blindfolded in the middle of the event. I’ll say no more about this until I properly recover…

I was incredibly impressed with their enthusiasm and engagement levels. Team leaders set the strategy, the extroverts stepped forward and provided energy, and the introverts were encouraged to get stuck in. There was a role for each person and it was an exceptional display of team synergy from every team.

There’s a reason that the Amazing Race is my biggest-selling team building program. It’s a great way to get out of the hotel (or office in this case), experience a bit of Bangkok, and participate in a team building event that offers something for everybody. Young or old, introvert or extrovert, fit or unfit….it is suitable for all.

I have quite a few video-based team building programs on my menu. I find that they are some of the best team building experiences because they allow participants to get creative and innovative. They are also absolutely hilarious!

My client for this event was from the financial services industry and the group was made up of sales professionals. When you combine video work, marketing projects, and plenty of extroverted salespeople, the result is a noisy, high-energy and incredibly funny half-day event.

The event was held at InterContinental Phuket Resort and when the group arrived at 0900, it was non-stop until 1300. Acting prowess, marketing knowledge, and technical editing skills were all required in this program so there was a role for everyone – the extroverts, the introverts, the creatives, and the geeks. A highly-inclusive program that is non-physical and therefore suitable for all.

For sales and marketing teams, this program is one of the very best options and I have had clients actually incorporate elements of these videos into their real-world marketing campaigns. The highlight of the event was sitting together and watching the team videos, cinema-style. I will have fond memories of this group for a long time.

WARNING: Too much smiling and laughing can cause severe discomfort in the facial muscles.

The main talking point from this week was the weather. How British of me, right?

I’m not exaggerating when I say that it was “end of the world” weather. Well, I might be exaggerating a little since we’re all still here but the rain was certainly apocalyptical. There I go again, exaggerating. It was merely of biblical proportions. Bugger – I can’t stop myself.

It was really, really bad. Is that better?

In fact, Bangkok was very pleasant. Phuket though was experiencing volumes of rain that hadn’t been seen for decades. Roads were flooded and several large landslides caused massive damage. As I flew out of Phuket Airport the plane felt more like a boat, pitching up and down until we broke through the clouds and stabilised. I am not ashamed to admit that I reached for the travel sickness bag. I held it in my hands, sweating, debating whether to open it or not. At the time, I didn’t want to embarrass myself. However, after careful thought, I realised that vomiting all over the passenger next to me might bring me more shame.

I carefully peeled back the perforated top of the bag and surreptitiously puffed up the bag, ready for my deposit.

It was at this moment that we reached cruising altitude and the worst of my symptoms started to pass. It’s always one of the greatest feelings in the world when the waves of nausea begin to subside. It’s a monkey off your shoulders, a winning lottery ticket.

Now For The Team Building Bit

After a cheeseburger and a good night’s sleep, I was welcoming some old friends at Grand Hyatt Erawan for an indoor team building event. My client was a tech company who I had first worked with in 2022. As before, such a pleasure working with them. They only had 2 hours available but I have a program on my menu that is designed specifically for such situations. It’s a non-stop and time-focused event that keeps everyone busy at all times. In fact, this team building program was quite a high pressure situation, just like my client’s workplace.

Two days later and I’m back on the plane to Phuket. Now fully medicated with some travel sickness pills. I arrived in Phuket to similar conditions to when I left. This time however, while everyone else on the plane was reaching for the sick bags, I was able to look down on my fellow travellers with a look of disgust. Amateurs, I thought.

Straight to the Pullman Phuket Arcadia Naithon Beach Resort for a really fun outdoor team building for 30 pax. There was, fortunately, a break in the rain for the duration of the event. As soon as we finished though, the rainclouds returned and we got soaked packing up.

The week of mega rain continued for several more days. More floods, more landslides, more sick plane passengers no doubt.

I’ve worked with team building groups as small as 7 people and as large as 1000 (although I wouldn’t want to do another group of 1000!). While there are pros and cons to both small groups and large groups, I believe there is a sweet spot. So, what is that sweet spot?

Team Building for Big Groups

Large team building groups naturally create high energy levels. During a competitive event such as an Office Olympics, you can feel the excitement and sense the energy. The adrenaline levels are high and people are pumped. Positive energy is infectious and participants are driven and motivated by those around them. Large group team building is exciting, powerful, noisy, and creates a wonderful atmosphere with a really cool vibe.

However, these large groups are not my favourite. An important goal of team building is to strengthen relationships while getting to know one another better. This doesn’t really happen when the group size is too big.

For me personally, I like to develop a personal connection with my guests. I like to build rapport. But this is impossbile when there are hundreds of people. There is simply no time nor opportunity to get to know everyone.

Team Building for Small Groups

I’d class anything less than 20 pax as a small group for a team building program. A benefit of small groups is that participants can work closely together and the activities can be more challenging and more intellectual. Close collaboration between participants is possible and this is a great way to strengthen relationships.

Participants are generally calmer and more conservative when there’s only a few of them. This allows the facilitator to form a close bond with the group and create a friendly and intimate environment.

However, these small groups often lack the high energy and excitement levels of large groups. There’s a certain ‘spark’ that is harder to find.

Team Building for Medium Groups

For me, a team building group with between 30 and 60 pax is the sweet spot. These groups are big enough that they create good energy levels but small enough that bonds can be formed and relationships strengthened. Just like Earth lies in the “Goldilocks Zone” (the perfect distance away from the sun to support life), medium-sized groups are the Goldilocks Zone of team building. For Goldilocks herself, Daddy Bear’s bed was too big, Mummy Bear’s bed was too soft but Baby Bear’s bed was…just right.

Getting It Right

There often isn’t a choice when it comes to group size. It will depend upon the size of the company, which department(s) are involved in the offsite, whether everybody will attend or just a small section of the workforce, and of course budget. The group size is determined by other factors, not by choice.

As a team building facilitator, it’s important to adapt to each and every group. It’s my job to make the event fun, constructive and engaging for everyone, regardless of the group size. My team building menu offers something for every group and I will make recommendations and design things to fit. It’s then on me to use the appropriate facilitation style for the group standing in front of me.

What Can I Say?

There’s not a lot I can say about this team building in Phuket a couple of weeks ago. That’s not because nothing happened. Indeed, it was a pretty awesome and memorable afternoon. It’s that my client has requested full anonymity. Hence the generic placeholder image.

All I can really say is that we welcomed a large group of 250 pax. But it leads me to an important conversation about discretion.

This is not the first time I have been asked to keep event details private. It happens quite frequently when one is dealing with high profile organisations. In fact, on several occasions, I have been required to sign an NDA (non-disclosure agreement) in order to legally ensure that no information is made public.

Discrete by Nature

As a rule, when I write about a particular team building event on my blog or on LinkedIn (every business needs to do some sales and marketing), I never reveal the name of my client. I only mention the industry. Any images that I use will not display any logos or identifying features. I also avoid sharing too much detail of the event – just a general overview.

This is my standard operating procedure. I’m a rather private person myself and so this is how I prefer to do it.

The only place that client names appear is on my public client list.

For those clients that desire even more privacy (as in this post), all you have to do is ask me. In these cases, I will use an image of a racoon or similarly cute mammal instead. Who doesn’t love racoons?

Phuket Offers Something for Every MICE Group

The phrase ‘team building program’ can mean different things to different people and, as a personal brand, I like to focus on one particular style.

It’s important to note that Phuket has a lot of options for MICE groups and there should be no difficulty in finding an activity to fit with your requirements.

Facilitated Team Building Challenges

These are team events that are led by a professional team building facilitator in which there is often some form of fun, interactive challenge for the group(s) to complete.

Think cooking challenges, Amazing Race-style programs, movie-making events, problem-solving initiatives, and sporting competitions. These types of programs have long been associated with team building because, when properly facilitated, offer fun-focused activities that keep participants fully engaged.

When properly designed and debriefed, there can be real learning outcomes that align with a company’s training goals. It’s often the case that I’m asked to incorporate a brand’s corporate values into a team building program and so it’s important to select the right option if you’re looking to reinforce elements of teamwork such as communication, problem-solving, idea sharing, and team leadership.

These programs are most often conducted within your hotel and both indoor and outdoor options are available. Some programs will also include some travel or offsite elements.

This type of team building program is my personal focus and you can read more about my style of team building here.

Often combined with a facilitated team development workshop, these team building programs can be a crucial part of an organisation’s training goals.

Group Leisure Activities

These are non-facilitated leisure activities that are either conducted in a group’s hotel or would take a group offsite. Perhaps a yoga class in the meeting room or a Muay Thai training session in the garden. These would generally not be conducted by a team building facilitator but led by a specialised activity instructor. In many cases, the hotel’s recreation team may offer these types of group activity.

Outside of the hotel, options in this category might include ATVs, ropes courses, or paintball for example. There are plenty of group leisure activities to choose from in Phuket.

I do not offer this type of activity. Best to ask your hotel directly or engage the services of a DMC.

Tours and Excursions

Island-hopping on a speedboat or a city tour of old Phuket Town would both fall into this category. They can be a great way to get out of your hotel for a while and see a bit of the island. These would not be facilitator-led and would be best arranged through a registered tour company with a fully qualified tour guide as I do not offer this type of activity.

Team Building or Team Bonding?

For me, team building programs are designed to reinforce elements of leadership, collaboration, communication, and problem-solving. Aspects of our professional lives that can be simulated in these events. They are designed to have real learning outcomes – learning experiences that can be applied back at work. They’re also a huge amount of fun and can significantly strengthen relationships.

Group leisure activities and tours/excursions would more accurately fall into the team bonding category. They can be a great way to spend time together and allow team members to get to know one another better but do not include any leadership or collaboration elements.

Read more about the difference between team building and team bonding.

Team Building Through Food

As remote working has become more widespread over the last couple of years, annual team get-togethers have become even more important because many team members may have joined the company and never had the opportunity to meet their colleagues in person. I’m noticing that organisations are primarily using these annual retreats to get to know one another and strengthen bonds. As a result, a common request is for a team building session that is easygoing and informal that offers plenty of opportunities for participants to mingle, chat, and have a laugh together.

In these cases, Masterchef is a great option. It always has a really cool vibe – relaxed fun in which everybody is kept busy while my infamous 90s playlist keeps people entertained (or arguing about which music decade was the best). Our venue was right next to the beach at JW Marriott Phuket Resort and Spa and we were cooking right up until sunset. A cool breeze and a hot stove made it a very pleasant early evening.

Our client this time was from the financial services industry and, to meet their privacy requirements, I am not sharing any photos from the event. It was a real pleasure working with them for this team building program. Great fun and plenty of laughs. A couple of standout dishes were presented as well as a couple of dishes which should probably be hidden away in the back of a cupboard.

Fortunately, they did not have to eat their own food as the hotel had put on a beachside dinner for them. As the lead judge, I was not so fortunate.

However, to be fair, it was not the worst I’ve ever had. There, that’s positivity for you.

Mixology at Its Best (and Worst)

Cocktail-making is a classy and sophisticated team building activity in Bangkok. It’s perfectly suited to Bangkok’s high-end hotels and offers an on-site option that remains engaging and fun-focused. I often recommend it for groups with participants that don’t know each other particularly well (increasingly common these days with the rise of remote working). Unsurprisingly, alcohol breaks the ice quite well.

The Westin Grande Sukhumvit was our venue and our client was from the financial services industry, a group that we had previously worked with in Chiang Mai.

The organiser had requested a 3-hour indoor event with an easygoing feel to it. Our cocktail-making program, Shakers, fit the brief perfectly. I fondly remembered this group from our previous engagement and was keen to lead them through a cocktail event.

It is said that you should not mix your drinks. However, as a judge, I had no option. I tasted concoctions that have never before been created. Some were surprisingly tasty. Others were spectacularly foul and should never again be imagined – kind of like a herbal tincture given by an old witch to some lost and injured traveller somewhere in Middle Earth.

Even so, the Irish guy still seemed to enjoy them.

A really fun team bonding experience in Bangkok, lots of adult humour, and an all-round memorable afternoon that moved on to the pub a little later. A great way to bring people together and build relationships.

Team Building with A Movie

Our movie-making team building program is my personal favourite. I believe it is the funniest, most creative and most engaging team building program on our menu. I recommend that every group should try it at least once. Just get in touch to learn more about it.

Held at Pullman Phuket Arcadia Naithon Beach with its stunning sea views from its clifftop location, this group was a joy to work with. The team building was held throughout the afternoon with teams doing their filming. Our professional photographers were stressed trying to keep up with them. It’s a busy program with lots going on.

While rain prevented us from holding the dinner on the sunset deck, the evening event was just as memorable in the ballroom thanks to some intriguing individual performances, hilarious stage games and, of course, the team movie. The food was exceptional and the open bar was always kept busy. A great way to end the year on a high.

This group brought amazing levels of positivity, energy levels through the roof, and a wonderful sense of humour – in fact, it got a bit naughty and I shall stop writing now.

Big Group. Big Energy.

I’ve always loved working with Malaysian groups. I find them particularly warm, friendly and up for a laugh.

This group of 94 pax from an environmental management company continued that trend and it was a real pleasure working with them. The Holiday Inn Resort Patong was the venue. This hotel is right in the heart of Patong and an easy walk to Soi Bangla and the main strip. An awesome location for an Amazing Race as teams are thrown into the mix immediately without the need to travel anywhere.

It was also quite a late start for this event. This meant teams were experiencing Patong in the late afternoon and early evening. The streets are busy, there’s people everywhere, it’s hectic and extremely noisy. The perfect environment for our high-energy and competitive race.

At the end of November, Phuket is coming into high season. Tourist numbers are up. Loads of new bars and restaurants have opened. The beach is in full swing and the town has a real buzz about it

All these factors combined made this race one of the most memorable of the year.