Team building has a bit of a bad rep, but we want to change that. Team building doesn’t have to be daggy, it can be great fun and still help your business get something out of it. Plus it beats another day in the office anyway!
The best team building ideas in Adelaide can bring colleagues together, help with problem solving, and create a better office atmosphere. And there are so many great ways to bring a team together. We’d take beach days, creative workshops or escape rooms over another video call any day! But rather than planning a day of forced fun, focus on something that actually improves relationships and the office vibe. Use our guide to help plan your next team-building day.
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Everything you need to know to engage your team
Look, we all know the way teams work has changed. Remote and hybrid working mean teams are more spread out, and yes, for a lot of people it works, but it has changed those short tea break conversations that helped people get to know each other better. A quick kitchen chat or quick meeting debrief is a lot harder to recreate through a screen.
Team building used to be a lot more about competition and tasks, now it’s about connection. A great team building activity will get everyone involved, even if they’re not the loudest voice in the room.
Before you book anything, you need to think about what you’re getting out of it. If you’re welcoming new starters, getting people out of the Teams chat or just need to improve communication, then a clear objective makes it much easier to choose a relevant activity.
Be realistic about what people will enjoy. Not everyone wants to run a race, do karaoke or spend the afternoon competing in different games. Ask your teams what they want, including their accessibility and dietary requirements. You need to know what people are up for before making a plan. A little input can stop the event from feeling like forced fun.
If you plan team building well, you’ll get so much more out of it. Sure, you can communicate and work better together, but you’ll also help teams bond. It’s really important to help teams see each other outside of the typical work setting.
Make some notes about what worked well and what didn’t. Ask teams for feedback and use what you’ve learnt to plan the next one. It’s all well and good having a fun day out of the office, but you need to tie things back to work and how you can improve the way you do things.
Fun Things to Do with your Team in Adelaide
It’s like Adelaide was made for team building. The CBD is compact, Glenelg Beach is easy to get to from the city and there are loads of fun activities to choose from.
What is your team like? Some teams will love a challenge and a bit of competition, but others won’t want the spotlight on them. We’ve got plenty of ideas for you here to brainstorm, so you should find something your teams can get on board with.
Outdoor Activities
Take a Coastal Walk
A coastal walk is super easy to organise. And let’s face it, we’re pretty spoiled in Adelaide for places to go. Glenelg is ideal if you want to finish with lunch around Jetty Road, but the Marino to Hallett Cove route will be better for some group photos. Not everyone is super fit, so choose a route that’s easy for everyone, and see if you can mix up the walking mates to help people mix a bit better.
Host a Barbecue or Beach Day
Everyone loves food, so why not book a barbecue area or head to Glenelg Beach for an easy-going afternoon involving food, games and time away from the office? Everyone can help out, either through the food, music or some games, meaning everyone is involved somehow. Just remember to keep it safe and have a back-up plan for rain too!
Join a Fun Run
If you’ve got an active team, you could enter an Adelaide fun run. The most team-friendly events will be ones with walking and running distances, or ones with a good course that spectators can enjoy too. Not everyone will want to do a fun run, but they might want to help out with refreshments, taking photos or just cheer from the sides.
Get volunteering
Corporate volunteering is the perfect way for businesses to give back to the community. And it’s something different for your teams to do too. Some great Adelaide activities for adults include dog walking, building something together or more practical charity work. Meals on Wheels SA is one example of somewhere that offers corporate volunteering opportunities. Ask your team about causes that matter to them and ask them to come up with some suggestions.
Outdoor Debrief
It’s good to get everyone’s feedback at the end of the day, but try not to bring down the good vibes. You could ask for feedback afterwards to see what people enjoyed and what they think could’ve worked better.
Indoor Activities
Try Speed Meeting
We love the idea of speed meeting, which can help bigger teams get to know each other a bit better. The idea is you pair people for short chats before they move on to the next team member. Topics could be work-related, but mixed in with some fun talking points too. The trick is to structure it enough to avoid people feeling awkward but keeping things informal.
Make Pizza Together
Food is always a winner for team building, and pizza making is a simple but fun idea everyone can get on board with. Teams can divvy up the prep, choose their toppings and try to create pizzas everyone wants to try. Marcellina Cooking Academy has some fun sessions you can try.
Book an Escape Room
We love an escape room. They are PERFECT for getting teams to communicate. There’ll be a challenge, clues and a clock to beat. Escape rooms should take about 1 to 3 hours, so you could do one as part of a bigger team building day or as a bit of a warm up to break the ice.
Organise a Pottery Workshop
A pottery workshop is a bit of a different team building idea in Adelaide that will suit more introverted teams. You don’t need to be an expert, and it can be a lot of fun seeing what people come up with. Some cool providers like Three Little Potters can run workshops for you in the office or somewhere suitable.
Go for After-Work Drinks
After-work drinks is a classic team activity. And not everyone does it anymore. It’s an easy way for teams to get together to celebrate a project or welcome new starters. The best places will have some food, great seating and plenty of alcohol-free options. If you’ve got a larger group, you could book one of the private function rooms Adelaide venues offer instead of competing for tables in a busy bar.
Indoor Debrief
Talk through how the day has been and see what people’s highlights have been or what they’ve learnt. Keep the conversation light and use any feedback to inform your next team building session.
Remote team building
Remote team building activities can be a bit tricky, as nobody wants to spend a whole day on a video call! Stuff like digital escape rooms and quizzes can help keep people entertained, and workshops can be useful, even if they are on a screen. We reckon smaller groups work best for this one, as it’ll keep numbers manageable while giving everyone a chance to get involved.
Finish up with a quick poll or discussion to see if everyone got the chance to get involved. This helps connect the activity to how collaboration can be improved between teams.
Where to host your team building event in Adelaide
Now you’ve pinned down what you’re doing, you need to nail the venue next! It should be somewhere easy to get to and have everything you need for the day. It also needs to be accessible to ensure everyone can attend comfortably. An Adelaide function room is ideal for this. If you choose a hotel with meeting rooms, it can make things easier for colleagues travelling from all over as you’ll be able to keep everything in one place.
Oaks Adelaide Embassy Suites
We love the Oaks Adelaide Embassy Suites for team events. It’s on the North Terrace, so it’s directly opposite the Adelaide Convention Centre. It’s perfect for meetings and other activities, and there’s some really good restaurants and entertainment spots nearby for after-work plans.
The hotel has two conference rooms. Conference Room 1 can fit up to 20 guests in theatre or cocktail layouts, 12 boardroom style or eight in a classroom setup. Conference Room 2 can seat 10 boardroom style. They’ve got everything you need like WiFi and an AV kit, which is all included in the room hire charge. If you want to book catering, you can do that through The Coffee Club. The hotel has plenty of accommodation, plus a swimming pool and gym, so it’s a top option if you’ve got colleagues attending from outside Adelaide.
Oaks Glenelg Plaza Pier Suites
Oaks Glenelg Plaza Pier Suites is right by Glenelg Beach, so it’s perfect for outdoor team building or beach days. It’s about a 15 minute drive from Adelaide CBD, so it’s a great central location.
It’s so easy to keep things casual here. Combine a meeting with a walk on the beach or go and have a group dinner or afternoon drinks on the sand. There’s loads of apartment-style accommodation, and there’s an indoor pool, a gym and plenty of parking, so everyone will be happy.
To wrap it up!
The best team building days don’t need to involve extreme challenges or a school-trip itinerary. It just needs to be simple and help teams communicate in a different setting.
There are loads of fun things to do in Adelaide, like beach walks, volunteering, cooking, escape rooms and of course, a trip to the pub! As long as you’ve got a goal and can get the team onboard, you’ll have a day that’s both productive and enjoyable.
