Gift-giving team building activity for culturally diverse employees

Team Building Activity

The activity is presented with a summary, which offers a brief explanation of the activity and its aims. Next, the logistical considerations, activity goal, and the steps needed to prepare for the activity are carefully laid out. Following this detailed introduction, are step-by-step instructions for the team building activity and how it is concluded. In conclusion, some benefits for a company to offer this team building activity for culturally diverse employee base is given in bullet form, followed by a complete summary of the overall activity goals.

Gift-Giving Activity

This activity offers a series of competitive, team oriented goals that are aimed at increasing team interaction, building communication skills, expanding mutual respect, and improving productivity between team members with diverse cultural backgrounds by providing an opportunity for cross-cultural communication, and skill assessment.

Logistics:

Group size: works best with 4-12 teams of 8-10 members each

Required Space: Large conference room or ballroom

Length of Activity: 4 hours

Activity Goal:

Teams will construct small gifts to donate to a non-profit charitable organization to benefit local families-in-need. Teams will compete to meet construction goals. And will have 90 minutes to complete the task.

Preparation:

Activity organizer to contact local homeless shelter, red-cross, or other charitable organization to ask:

1. If they would like to participate in company's team-building activity to raise awareness of local families-in-need and to receive a donation of small gifts

2. charity representative to fill out a simple form with first name, photo, and short biography of families in need who would benefit from event

3. representative from the charity to speak at the event

Participants in the team building activity will pre-register for activity, and will be divided by activity organizers into teams of 8-10 members each. Teams should be diversified by gender, age, culture, etc.

Choose and purchase construction projects to prepare four project kits. Each kit should have one large, or several small projects. For example one kit may consist of material to make one bird house, while another kit may have enough material to construct 4 small wooden boats. Examples projects: birdhouse kit, message board kit, wooded toy kits, towel rack kit, recipe box kit, or photo board kit.

Construction projects ideas can be found at http://www.craftkitsandsupplies.com/wood-craft-kits-c-2.html, price per project $2-$15 each, purchase enough projects to make 4 kits per team.

Room preparation to include registration table, hospitality table

Getting Started:

Members of the same team to sit around large table (preferably round)

Activity director to lead a meet/greet or ice-breaker (10-15 minutes)

Presentation to be given by charity speaker about their work that the charity does and the people they serve (15-20 minutes).

After purchase, team will construct the items

Teams can sell their finished products for a profit, to other teams or to the 'company store.' (The company store should have pre-made rules regarding purchases)

Teams can also earn money by creating award-winning gifts. Awards for creativity and beauty will be given as each project is completed and will be determined by company judges.

As each team earns enough money, they may purchase additional kits.

Wrapping it Up

At the end of the construction period, all funds are tallied and the team with the highest balance wins the game and receives a ribbon and a round of applause.

The Activity director should tally the number of gifts made and make a presentation to the representative from the charitable organization on behalf of the company, thanking him/her for all they do in the community and for joining the activity.

Invite the representative to end with a few to thank participants for their donations and to reiterate the benefit of gift-giving to those in need in the community.

Benefits:

This team building activity will provide an opportunity to improve skills in the following areas:

Team Interaction:

recognize and respond to leadership skills among members learn what skills and talents each member brings to the table interact in an informal, non-judgmental setting improve adaption and flexibility

Communication:

give and receive feedback in positive light strengthen ability to accept change, group consensus cultivate attitude of constructive criticism adopt or improve active listening skills work toward resolution of conflict

Respect

understand cultural values, people and communities grow in team confidence and trust encourage support and mutual respect

Productivity:

work together to reach goals in positive atmosphere encourage innovation and creative approaches toward goals establish leadership to clearly state goals and delegate tasks fairly assure group participation through recognition of talents and gifts

Summary:

Advertising managers, faced with an ever growing culturally diverse population including those in the customer base as well as those in the workplace, appreciate the strength that diversity of skills, perceptions, and insights can bring to a company. Differences among co-works can be brought together in a complementary way to accomplish a wide variety of tasks to be completed during the work week. The strengths of one employee can address a particular challenge in a way that another's talents cannot.

However, wide diversity among staff members, left unaddressed, can present an employer with an unwanted headache. Differences can sometimes cause fear, anxiety, or insecurity within a group. Cultural differences, especially, can solicit reactions like these due to unfamiliarity. An example of differences among cultures is expressed by anthropologist Edward T. Hall in his book Beyond Culture. He classifies cultures into two general categories of 'low context,' and 'high context.' For Hall, a 'low-context' culture is one that focuses more on the individual figure or a specific circumstance. European and American cultures fit into this category. In contrast, a 'high context' culture puts more emphasis on things like community, tradition, honor, and respect. Cultures that fit this category include Arabic, Asian, and Indian. Having two members on a team from each of these two types of cultures could produce basic misunderstandings in communication or understandable differences of opinion. While one member seeks to close a transaction quickly, the other may want to supply a more complete presentation, thinking more of the long-term benefit.

An employer can reduce these tensions through team building activities that place employees in a non-threatening, relaxed atmosphere to give participates an opportunity to simply get to know one another better and to improve or practice skills in communication and respect. Activities, like the gift-giving activity described above, can offer members of a group the chance to establish familiarity and respect for one another in a way that may not be possible through everyday business. A team-building activity can be accomplished without threat to one's position or current business goals. It puts co-workers in a working but fun environment that allows one to "let their hair down," so to speak, in order to strengthen relationships. Activities that help build trust provide a crucial step in the development of a team-spirit, which is fundamentally different than a mere "group" that has no significant bond or common goal. Building a team among a culturally diverse group is complex and takes time. One activity is not enough for members of the team to recognize, evaluate, and respond to cultural differences in things like perception, communication, and goals; however, team-building activities can offer one facet of a well thought out, comprehensive approach to increasing cohesion for a culturally diverse work place.

Resources

Brislin, Richard W. Working with Cultural Differences: Dealing Effectively

with Diversity in the Workplace . 1st. Westport, CT: Praeger, 2008. Print.

Cox, Taylor. Creating the Multicultural Organization: A Strategy for Capturing the Power of Diversity. 1st. SanFrancisco, CA: Jossey-Bass Inc. Pub, 2001. 5-10. Print.

Hall, Edward. Beyond Culture. New York, NY: Anchor Books, 1989. Print.

Moran, RT, PR Harris, and S. Moran. Managing Cultural Differences: Global

Leadership Strategies for the 21st Century. 7th. Burlington, MA: Butterworth-Heinemann, 2007. 245-246. Print.