Reply To: Do you think outside of work team building is necessary for team culture?

I think it can be a bonding experience for a team to spend time outside of work together, in a different environment and a different capacity. It is great if those experiences are voluntary and self-directed at a team level but if they were to be prompted or organized by management, staff may see it as an expectation and feel pressured to participate which may create resentment and have a negative impact on the team culture. Social events can be planned for staff outside of work hours but participation must be voluntary or it defeats the purpose. Staff may see it as work time encroaching on their personal time. I think that some team building time and social time should be built into organization events or team meetings on work time if the need is there and if it is a priority for the organization.