Team-building events designed for larger groups are obviously a bit more challenging to organize than a smaller 20-person outing.
If you’re trying to organize such an event, you’ll need to find a venue that’s large enough to hold everyone, activities that appeal to a large demographic, and transportation to and from your event.
Plus, you’re gonna need someone to handle crowd control!
Luckily, we’ve got you covered. Our list of team-building ideas for large groups is just what you need to ensure your event goes off without a hitch — and is one that your company will be talking about for years to come!
Essential Tips for Organizing Team Building Events
Got a large group? You may want to do a little research before organizing your next team-building event.
If you want your team-building day to be a success, we recommend managing expectations, abiding by federal, city, and state COVID protocols, splitting up large groups, and opting for an outdoor event if possible.
Manage Expectations
If you’re planning an event for a large group, it’s hard to please everyone. And when you’re trying to please everyone? You end up making no one happy.
You may want to ask your employees what they want to do for their team-building event — though again, you won’t be able to make everyone happy. Ask employees what they want to do (or give them a few options), and ask everyone to vote on their favorite option.
Be very clear about what will happen throughout the day, what everyone can expect, and what makes a successful team-building event.
Abide by COVID Protocols
When it comes to public spaces, there are still federal, state, and city COVID ordinances in place. You’ll need to abide by these rules, and you may want to enforce your own rules, too, to make sure everyone feels safe.
Though many employees may be vaccinated, some may be unable to be vaccinated. It’s important to ensure everyone has the opportunity to feel safe and have fun at the event. And there are now many organizations that can do on-site rapid Covid tests. Check out https://dalrada.com. (It’s FREE and they handle everything!!)
Split Large Groups into Smaller Teams
In order to ensure that everyone gets to play a part in the activities, it’s a great idea to split up large groups into smaller teams for these events.
Smaller teams can compete against one another which will raise the energy of the event – and let’s face it, we all enjoy a little light-hearted competition! Just make sure you don’t choose activities that require athleticism – most people don’t want to feel like they are back in gym class!
Smaller Teams also give everyone an opportunity to shine and show their strengths.
Hire a Professional
Project management may be your strong suit, but organizing your team-building activity day and your regularly scheduled work activities may be too daunting of a task.
Just as you would hire a professional to plan a party, you can hire one to plan your team-building event.
A professionally-run activity with objective facilitators will ensure that people are more likely to get involved and have fun – without the interference (or the appearance of any inter-office favoritism or politics).
Outdoors Vs Indoors
It’s typically a bit easier to organize events for large groups outdoors. But the downside to outdoor events is that they require a little extra planning.
What is your rain day plan? Do you need permits to host a large group in a public space? Does your team have transportation to and from the event?
Of course Indoor events also present challenges as you’ll need a space that can fit a large group. (And you’ll also need to enforce stricter COVID protocols.)
Again, an event planning professional or a team building company will be able to help you with all of the arrangements!
Team Building Ideas for Large Groups
These team-building event ideas are perfect for larger groups.
Many of the below events are meant to take place outdoors, where you have unlimited space. Some of these events also allow you to break up larger groups into smaller groups. Each group can compete against other groups, which encourages both teamwork and competition!
Amazing Race Scavenger Hunts
Amazing Race team-building events are the most popular among larger companies.
These events allow you to split up into smaller teams and compete against each other as you race to solve puzzles and take pictures – or shoot videos of your group performing a variety of activities.
These events are also a great way to get outside and explore a city center – and they typically don’t require any permits. Just make sure to do the event on public streets, not in a privately owned shopping mall where you might get stopped by security!
Field Day
If your team wants to kick it (a kickball that is!) old school, a field day might be the ideal team-building event for your crew.
Field day events feature a wide variety of activities and generally take place on large, open fields or even on the beach — perfect for a larger group. Split your group up into smaller teams and organize the day with a variety of fun challenges that have teams playing against one another. The team with the most points at the end of all of the challenges gets the bragging rights!
Social Responsibility Events
Social responsibility events are ideal for large groups.
You can organize a beach clean up. Or contact your city’s parks and recreation division to see about cleaning up a park. There are even organizations that can have you building playgrounds.
Feet First Events runs several social responsibility events that vary in theme and cause. Your employees will work together to help underserved communities by gathering or building items needed by the local community.
While these types of activities work well with groups of every size, there’s something really special about seeing what an impact a large group can make.
