Making a difference one bike at a time.
Teambuilding exercises can offer several benefits to a company. However, the benefits don’t have to stop there; companies are becoming wise to the fact that they can coordinate activities that not only serve themselves, but also make a difference in the community.
PLATO Learning is an innovative educational technology company. The company is know for their creative products that cover a wide-range of learning and teaching needs, from traditional classroom instruction to distance learning. Finding creative solutions and forward learning is what the company is all about, so it’s no surprise the company found a way to give back with their recent teambuilding exercise.
Teambuilding exercises can offer several benefits to a company. However, the benefits don’t have to stop there; companies are becoming wise to the fact that they can coordinate activities that not only serve themselves, but also make a difference in the community.
PLATO Learning is an innovative educational technology company. The company is know for their creative products that cover a wide-range of learning and teaching needs, from traditional classroom instruction to distance learning. Finding creative solutions and forward learning is what the company is all about, so it’s no surprise the company found a way to give back with their recent teambuilding exercise.
Diana Brasch is the Manager of Meetings and Events at PLATO Learning. She shared with Midwest Meetings her experience coordinating a Build-A-Bike Teambuilding challenge that the company recently sponsored.
Midwest Meetings: Tell us about the bicycle teambuilding challenge.
Diana Brasch: The Build-A-Bike Teambuilding Challenge was held at the Peavey Plaza in downtown Minneapolis on August 6, 2010. The event followed a full-day of all company business meetings. After the business meetings, employees were given instructions to walk from St. Thomas University to Peavey Plaza where they would meet up with the rest of their team.
MM: What interested you in doing this teambuilding activity?
DB: I was given four objectives from my leadership team and this event met all of our objectives. Our objectives were: 1.) Everyone must participate in the event 2.) The Event needed to have both physical and non-physical challenges 3.) The event needed to give back and 4.) The event needed to be within our budget guidelines.
MM: What type of work went into putting together this type of event?
DB: I worked with Pete Nelson from Event Lab, which helped facilitate this event. They offer a Build-A-Bike event, which we customized for our organization using their standard event to match my leadership goals and objectives.
MM: How many people participated in the event and how many bikes were built
DB: There were 225 people that participated in our Build-A-Bike teambuilding challenge and 25 bikes were built. Teams of ten had to complete puzzles, challenges and tasks in order to earn parts. Once they had all of their parts, it was time to construct each bike… without instructions!
MM: How did you choose to donate the bikes to Big Brothers Big Sister?
DB: Big Brothers Big Sisters was a perfect match for this event. PLATO Learning is an educational company that focuses on the success of students, so working with an organization that also strives towards children’s success was a natural match.
MM: Why do you feel it’s important to give back and host events “for a cause”?
DB: Doing events for a cause is very important to us at PLATO. By donating our time and resources, we all felt better than doing a typical teambuilding event that didn’t have a cause or give to those less fortunate.
MM: In what ways does “giving back” set your teambuilding event apart from activities that you had held in the past?
DB: By doing a teambuilding event that gave back, we had a great participant level with our employees and a higher dedication from the teams to be part of their team.
MM: Have you done other teambuilding activities in the past? If so, have you “given back” in those teambuilding exercises?
DB: As an entire company, this was our first “give back” teambuilding event. PLATO encourages events that give back, so department events are typically designed to give back to the organization of their choice.
MM: What benefits do you think teambuilding exercises offer your employees?
DB: Teambuilding events offer several benefits to our employees. The benefits are building current relationships, creating healthy competition, allowing people to feel good about the event and offering the opportunity to meet new people.
MM: Are there any events you’d like to do in the future?
DB: This event was at our annual all company event, which it has been clearly stated by the feedback from our employee survey and leadership team that we will do a teambuilding event that gives back again.
MM: Do you have any advice for companies that would like to host a teambuilding event that gives back?
DB: The biggest tip I can say is DO IT! The employees loved it and we all felt wonderful when the children came to pick up their bikes.
Midwest Meetings: Tell us about the bicycle teambuilding challenge.
Diana Brasch: The Build-A-Bike Teambuilding Challenge was held at the Peavey Plaza in downtown Minneapolis on August 6, 2010. The event followed a full-day of all company business meetings. After the business meetings, employees were given instructions to walk from St. Thomas University to Peavey Plaza where they would meet up with the rest of their team.
MM: What interested you in doing this teambuilding activity?
DB: I was given four objectives from my leadership team and this event met all of our objectives. Our objectives were: 1.) Everyone must participate in the event 2.) The Event needed to have both physical and non-physical challenges 3.) The event needed to give back and 4.) The event needed to be within our budget guidelines.
MM: What type of work went into putting together this type of event?
DB: I worked with Pete Nelson from Event Lab, which helped facilitate this event. They offer a Build-A-Bike event, which we customized for our organization using their standard event to match my leadership goals and objectives.
MM: How many people participated in the event and how many bikes were built
DB: There were 225 people that participated in our Build-A-Bike teambuilding challenge and 25 bikes were built. Teams of ten had to complete puzzles, challenges and tasks in order to earn parts. Once they had all of their parts, it was time to construct each bike… without instructions!
MM: How did you choose to donate the bikes to Big Brothers Big Sister?
DB: Big Brothers Big Sisters was a perfect match for this event. PLATO Learning is an educational company that focuses on the success of students, so working with an organization that also strives towards children’s success was a natural match.
MM: Why do you feel it’s important to give back and host events “for a cause”?
DB: Doing events for a cause is very important to us at PLATO. By donating our time and resources, we all felt better than doing a typical teambuilding event that didn’t have a cause or give to those less fortunate.
MM: In what ways does “giving back” set your teambuilding event apart from activities that you had held in the past?
DB: By doing a teambuilding event that gave back, we had a great participant level with our employees and a higher dedication from the teams to be part of their team.
MM: Have you done other teambuilding activities in the past? If so, have you “given back” in those teambuilding exercises?
DB: As an entire company, this was our first “give back” teambuilding event. PLATO encourages events that give back, so department events are typically designed to give back to the organization of their choice.
MM: What benefits do you think teambuilding exercises offer your employees?
DB: Teambuilding events offer several benefits to our employees. The benefits are building current relationships, creating healthy competition, allowing people to feel good about the event and offering the opportunity to meet new people.
MM: Are there any events you’d like to do in the future?
DB: This event was at our annual all company event, which it has been clearly stated by the feedback from our employee survey and leadership team that we will do a teambuilding event that gives back again.
MM: Do you have any advice for companies that would like to host a teambuilding event that gives back?
DB: The biggest tip I can say is DO IT! The employees loved it and we all felt wonderful when the children came to pick up their bikes.
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