Team building is on the wain in the high-tech industry and I’ve missed most of it. My wife, an engineer a few years older than me, tells stories of blindfolded bowling, mall scavenger hunts, and a dozen other team building activities ranging from somewhat useful to downright painful. Never wear open-toed shows to blindfolded bowling.
Team building works differently in far-flung teams. CodeSourcery is a small software company with no offices anywhere. They spend most of the year working apart from around the world, but every January they take a group vacation. Instead of obstacle courses and scavenger hunts they bring their families and go somewhere warm. For new employees this is often the first time they meet the group face-to-face.
The group from CodeSourcery uses this as a chance to get to know each other a little better. They see their teammates as real people and it helps them build the relationship throughout the rest of the year.
Personally, I haven’t done much telecommuter team building outside of infrequent dinner with the guys at a local barbeque restaurant. Most of my teammates are in different time zones.
What have you done to get closer to your virtual team? Do you see them on a regular basis? Have you done official team building, or do you just spend a little time together? And be sure to share those team building horror stories.