Strong teams don’t just happen overnight. They’re built through years of dedication and encouraging trust among coworkers. While there may be an air of staleness surrounding the idea of team building exercises, there doesn’t need to be. In fact, there are many fun and unexpected ways you can build camaraderie and collaboration right here in the Merrimack Valley.
The Valley is a large cluster of New England towns and cities all centered around the beautiful Merrimack River. Major cities include Manchester and Nashua, New Hampshire, and Lowell and Lawrence, Massachusetts, but there are plenty of other small, vibrant towns that provide no shortage of fun ways to build your team.
If you’re stuck on how best to bring your employees together in a way that feels fun and not phony, we’ve got five awesome ideas that will get your creative juices flowing! All take advantage of this wonderful region we call home.
Walk Through History at Minuteman National Historic Park
Minuteman National Historic Park, while technically just outside of Valley limits, is chock full of history. If you’ve got history buffs on your team, you’re going to want to check this place out. Filled to the brim with 18th-century homes, rock walls, and beautiful woodlands, Minuteman is the perfect place to take your team for an outing.
Head out on the Battle Road Hike to see the path that the Massachusetts Militia walked to meet the British Soldiers at Lexington. The surrounding history also makes the park perfect for a scavenger hunt!
These may be old school, but there are few better methods of engaging your team than a scavenger hunt. As an activity, it encourages people to think critically and strategically, with a little friendly competition thrown in for good measure.
Make sure whatever tasks you set for this scavenger hunt are tested by you first. This ensures there’s enough momentum to the game and that none of the puzzle pieces are too tricky to solve. A tacky trophy should do the trick for the winning team. (Maybe everyone will even want to compete for it again!) And a local gift card is always a nice token, as well.
Treat Your Team to Music at the Lowell Summer Music Series
With the warm weather here, why not treat your team to a night out with the Lowell Summer Music Series? Presented by the nonprofit Lowell Festival Foundation, all concerts are set at the beautiful, tree-lined Boarding House Park. Events accommodate a wide range of musical tastes, from folk bands and local rockers to Taylor Swift cover bands. Invite your team to bring their lawn chairs and enjoy an evening out with some fantastic music.
You can also stir up excitement about this BIG EVENT beforehand! Instead of simply choosing a show and making the announcement, try turning it into a competition of sorts. Think of it like a March Madness Bracket.
Split your team into groups based on their musical preferences and provide each group with a work goal to meet. The matched team to meet the goal first gets to knock the other off the bracket. Continue until the winning band is chosen, and then go ahead and score your tickets!
Grab Some Ice Cream at Kimball Farm
Who would say no to ice cream? We certainly wouldn’t, and neither would your team! While there are a number of fantastic ice cream places in the Merrimack Valley, Kimball Farm has to be the most famous. In business since 1939, they’ve been serving up scoop after delicious scoop of homemade ice cream for over eight decades! There are 50+ flavors to choose from, all of them made in-house at their Westford, Carlisle, Lancaster, and Jaffrey, NH locations
For some serious team building, plan ahead and make arrangements for your team at the Westford location. There are tons of great activities to choose from, ranging from mini golf to bumper boats. One of the great things about treating your team to some old-fashioned fun here is that it puts everyone at ease. With good summer vibes in action, there’s plenty of room for people to connect.
See Your Team Soar at SkyVenture
If your team is close to Nashua, New Hampshire, consider a trip to SkyVenture to see your employees literally soar. Home of indoor skydiving, SkyVenture offers an air tunnel that mimics the feeling of taking the dive. But it doesn’t require anyone to actually jump out of an airplane. It’s a fun and safe venue for the whole team to enjoy.
Apart from the skydiving tunnel, SkyVenture also offers rock climbing, a waterslide, and a café for a little downtime when you’re finished thrill seeking. Keep in mind that some team members may prefer to keep it low-key. Team building is meant to be fun, and that should never come at the expense of someone feeling uncomfortable.
For an event like this, invite the whole crew, but create a separate sign-up sheet specifically for those interested in skydiving. This will show that you take everyone’s comfort levels into consideration. Who knows, watching other coworkers “skydive” may encourage another, more reluctant employee to stretch themselves outside of their comfort zone.
Enjoy Endless Fun at Chucksters Family Fun Park
There’s always something to be said for staging a big team building event, whether it’s a summer concert or a company-wide picnic. But having a more casual day together is also great. If that sounds up your alley, try Chucksters Family Fun Park.
This park is absolutely enormous and one of New Hampshire’s top locations for family fun. Located on Route 4 in Chichester, New Hampshire, Chucksters offers more than you could possibly add to one list, but we’ll try to summarize. Here you can minigolf, zipline, rock climb, trampoline, eat ice cream, and demolish your coworkers in bumper cars. What makes Chucksters even more fun is that it’s a place where team members can bring their families along. Group discounts for over 100 people are offered and allow you exclusive use of the party tent at the Grove Picnic Area.
Here at Moore Staffing Services, our clients Get Moore than just a new employee. They get a dedicated team member who will help their business grow for years into the future! If you’re looking to hire in one of our many specialty areas, give us a call today at 978 682 4994. We can’t wait to hear from you!
