Can team-building activities increase productivity in a recession? When the economy slows, company leaders have to be cautious with every expense. They often put off hiring new employees until more certainty develops.
When we do this, though, team members end up having to do more to make up for the lack of personnel. Eight-hour days may increase to nine or ten-hour days.
Interestingly, these team members will develop natural efficiencies. They will figure out shortcuts. People naturally find ways to do more with less. But, eventually, there just aren’t enough hours in the day.
When this happens, how do you keep morale high? How do you help your team members stay positive and forward-looking? As time goes on, morale can drop.
At this point, leaders will look for a fun way to build morale. They may investigate organizing a team-building activity. So, in this situation, can team-building activities help increase productivity? Can we avoid the expense of adding new personnel?
Also, is this process more difficult in a down economy? The answer to that question is… “Well… It depends…”
Don’t Confuse “Morale Building Team Activities” with “Productivity Building Activities.”
Team Building is almost a generic term for both “morale building” and “productivity building” activities. But confusing the two can be a costly mistake.
Let’s first cover how these two types of activities differ.
By the way, each has a purpose. Each of these types of events should be used. The problem occurs when leaders want to improve productivity but schedule a morale-building activity.
Although people will often call both of these types of activities “Team Building,” the activities themselves get totally different results. Both are needed to create a team culture. But quite often, leaders will schedule one type of activity, hoping to get the needed result from the other. They will often be sorely disappointed.
Show Notes: Can Team-Building Increase Productivity in a Recession? Well, It Depends (https://www.leadersinstitute.com/can-team-building-increase-productivity-in-a-recession/)