You may have heard the adage, “Those who work together, stay together.” Or wait, is it, “Those who play together, stay together”? Which one is it? Does it matter? I think they’re both true and important. Especially at work.
A big part of getting a group of employees to gel is by adding non-work-related elements. From a study by the State of Friendship, a good portion of adults met one or more of their closest friends at work. And when employees have good friends at work, they’re much more likely to stick around—therefore, helping with retention. One study found that 67 percent of employees chose friendships with coworkers as the top reason why they were staying at jobs.
- Share Food. It’s one of the first things employees do together (many companies take new hires out to lunch on the first day) and then we have to eat again every day. That’s why it’s only natural that you would take time to catch a bite with a coworker at that new burrito restaurant or bring in donuts to share.
- Play Games. One of the fastest ways employees can get to know each other—especially from different departments—is to play a game together. At our office, we have a group of people from HR, development, marketing and sales that meet up in the conference room and plays games.
- Exercise. Of course, exercise is good for us on so many levels. Some companies organize basketball or softball teams to play together on off hours. Groups of people go lift weights or do cross-fit together on their lunch breaks—maybe even a weekly “ultimate Frisbee” group.
- Watch TV. Some people gather around one of the televisions at lunch to watch TV. Sometimes they’ll even break up a movie over several lunch breaks and pop some popcorn to catch a movie they’ve wanted to see.
- Celebrate. We’re all at work to do a job, but there’s no harm celebrating at times. Use some of those special days, like Pi Day, theme based food to have a chance to all bring food and celebrate the day.
- Carpool. It can be fun and cost-effective to organize a carpool for people who live in the same area. You get to know each other better and can even sneak in a little extra brainstorming on projects when you’re pressed for time. And, of course, the world will be a better place (think about the environment).
Most of the time we’re focusing on hiring for skills and training our employees. Just remember, one of the most important aspects of working together as a team is enjoying the work. Work should be fun and productive.
