Are Treasure Hunts An Effective Team Building Activity?

Treasure hunts can be a very useful and effective form of team building. There are many different forms and many different company's that offer this type of event but how do you know if it's the right activity for your group and how do you know if you are picking a good company?

Firstly, let's take a look at the advantages of hosting a treasure hunt event for your team building session. Communication has to be high up on the list of benefits, on good events your team will need to communicate the information to each other.

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Getting people working together and breaking the ice is clearly achieved. There is a habit to want to stick with what you know and on these types of events you can mix up your team into small groups and by the end they will have bonded with their team mates.

Friendly competition, teams will be competing for points usually, this will give the edge to the event and give a reason for completing the hunt. Time management, motivation and lateral thinking are three other skills that are flexed in a good solid event.

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How do you identify a good treasure hunt event from a bad one? Well firstly you have to ask yourself what does your company want to get out of the event? If you want a well structured event, one that has something for everyone and one that has a professional feel to it then you need to approach a professional team building company.

Take a look at their hunts, most companies will give a detailed overview of what you will be doing. It's vital that you do not get a self managed hunt, one that resembles something that the Girl Guides would do.

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Look to see if there is an event manager over seeing the event. Look to see how many other members of staff the team building company will be providing. Measure the amount of staff against the number of teams. If you have five teams and only one person from the event company then this spells a problem.

This is for two reasons, if any teams have problems then this person will only be able to help one team at a time, any other team will be left hanging around - not very motivating. Also at the end of the event it will take some time to mark up your results, you need it to be quick, slick and professional.

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Look to see what different things you will be asked to do. If it's just answer trail questions and collect treasure, is this going to stretch your team? You need multiple sections that will engage everyone.

There are so many different elements to consider when choosing the right treasure hunt event. The most important thing to do is to pick up the phone, get the team building company to talk you through their event and get a feel for it, this way you will be sure you are getting the right team activity for your group.

About the author: Shaun Parker has been at the forefront of team building activities for several years.