Once Memorial Day Weekend hits, most often employees are preparing for warmer weather, outdoor activities, and vacation days. As employees make plans for these summer months, workplace dedication can also wane.
With the majority of workforces still working remotely, it’s extra important to boost your team’s morale during this time. Here are ideas to keep your team motivated and engaged and overcome the summer slump:
Weekly Virtual Team Lunches
Team lunches are an easy, remote get-together option as they create an opportunity for everyone to connect at once. This also encourages employees to take a legitimate lunch break, which is a valuable time to de-stress and decompress.
For conversation starters more creative than, “What did you watch on Netflix last night?”, try having a weekly food theme. Employees can discuss their recipes, how they made their meals, and perhaps swap some tips and tricks from their time in the kitchen. (Or where to order takeout, if everyone is local.
Or, if possible, buy your team a delivered lunch or give a gift card to Seamless, Uber Eats or another delivery option and let them choose their own.
Swag Gift Idea – Kitchen Utensil Set
Virtual Happy Hours
Another way to encourage team togetherness and camaraderie, while working remotely, is through virtual happy hours. However, try playing games that most people already know, like Jeopardy, so that there is no awkwardness and dead noise. Competitive nature encourages employees to keep coming back for fun, and also prize money. To take the burden of game planning off of the same person each week, have different pairs organize the games.
More tips” See our recent blog post more ideas for Virtual Happy Hours
Summer Fridays
Whether offering half days, every other Friday, or every Friday – Summer Fridays always boost team morale. The popular employee perk of reduced hours and flexible scheduling lets your employees know that you trust them enough to prioritize their work.
Swag Idea: Customized Flip Flops
Virtual coffee dates
Encourage remote workers to take virtual coffee breaks by setting up weekly pairings. Employees interact like they would in an office by getting to know one another, or they are encouraged to get to know someone from a team that they usually wouldn’t have gotten coffee with. Growing personal and professional connections allow for a better understanding of everyone’s business role and job responsibilities.
Swag Idea: Glass Coffee Press
Book Club
Whether using Zoom, Google Hangouts, Microsoft Teams, Skype, or all of the above, create some channels for your team to have some water-cooler conversations (aka conversations just for fun.) A popular go-to chat over the summer is a book club. Start by gathering a group of interested employees. Pick a book that everyone agrees on, and an end date to meet up for a discussion. Read, meet, discuss, repeat! Book clubs can build a sense of community and open an opportunity for employees at different levels to mix.
Swag Idea: Send a customized bookwith a branded belly band or a promo page. We can provide almost any popular title. Just let us know what you are looking for.
Equipment for working outdoors
As the weather gets nicer, working outdoors seems more appealing and being outdoors is a healthy option. However, while we can handle the heat, can our technology? Laptop visors and cooling pads can be a great solution to help your employees solve their struggles as they desire to work outside, without causing damage to the company’s equipment.
Swag Idea: If you are going to be working outside, don’t forget some branded sunscreen.
Although our work lives have changed, building team morale can be a fun and creative challenge. Remember to continue trying new ideas and also engage with your team directly for feedback! The best way to boost morale is to get their own thoughts on how you can best support them.
