If you are not familiar with the concept of an escape room. This is a real (as in face-to-face teambuilding) or virtual (as in online teambuilding) situation where the players discover clues, solve puzzles and complete various tasks to reach a goal.
Escape rooms contain the elements of a classic work situation: reaching a common goal, limited resources to achieve that goal and a deadline. Add to that deciphering codes & riddles; finding hidden elements and a dose of competition and you have a unique framework to strengthen team dynamics.
Escape games cannot be solved on your own. You need a team and therefore focused cooperation and communication. Experienced managers know the powerful effects of such learning games that stimulate communication, insight into the individual strengths of your colleagues and working under time pressure.
Escape games stimulate communication
Escape games contain information. A lot of information, often hidden or cryptically described. Everyone in the team has to help to gather information. But that is only the first step. The information must be brought together so that each team member can work with it. In short, escape games require you to communicate.
In a physical escape room, communication is usually verbal. In itself, this is not strange – the team is present in the same room. During an online escape game, however, verbal communication is not easy, precisely because of the uniqueness of a video conference. Here, the key to success may be the technology used. Is information being displayed visually, such as chat and sharing a screen? Teams that are used to working in a decentralised way quickly move on to a collaborative document or whiteboard platform such as Miro.
Understanding the individual strengths of your colleagues
Escape games, whether an in-person escape room or an online team building, are always time-bound. The clock is ticking mercilessly. It is because of this time pressure that the thought process of many participants changes to typical problem solving. The most successful teams, however, are often not those who throw themselves into the riddles; but those who discuss a plan of action, involve the more quiet team members and regularly check whether everyone is on the same page.
Anyway, the playful and competitive nature of escape games can bring out talents that would otherwise have gone unnoticed because colleagues have become accustomed to the specific roles they (have to) play in a certain environment. It gives the individual the chance to excel.
On TeambuildingGuide you can find In-Person Escape Rooms as well as Online Escape Games.
