Expert Team Building Advice / Program Selection

Expert Advice on Selecting the Appropriate Program for Your Unique Group

When selecting a team building event and a provider for these services, you need to ask yourself four important questions before you start looking at specific options:

1. What is your end goal and what does the end result of the program look like? Whether you are focused on training and development or fun and bonding will make a huge difference in your program selection.
2. What amount of time and what amount of money are you willing to invest in this program? Programs vary everywhere from 2.5 hours and $50 per person (based on the inclusions), up to 5 days and $5,000 per person. To make sure you receive an initial proposal that fits your time and budget requirements, you should be very clear when communicating your needs, goal and objectives. Our most common request is similar to this: “Our group is the most intelligent, most competitive, most diverse group you have ever encountered. We have done many events before and we need something novel. Please propose to me your most creative, unique, fun, and effective program.” This request is well-intended and the client is usually looking to see what we can do before figuring out how to squeeze it into their budget and time limitations. Unfortunately, this reverse buying process will typically result in squeezing the creativity, uniqueness, fun, and effectiveness out of the proposed program in order to adhere to the reality of time and budgets. Start with stating the reality of your time and budget requirements, you will find this is the most efficient way to make your group’s optimal program become a reality.
3. What are your group’s demographics and overall size? Eighty mature engineers, Eight executives, or Eight Hundred young Sales associates will experience the same program very differently. Some programs work well with every size and group type, but most are designed to function best with a certain size or demographic. Ask your team building provider whether this program was designed for a group your size and whether they have successfully operated it for a group similar to yours.
4. Is the team building service provider you are considering the best choice to fulfill your goals, budget, timeframe, and group type or size? Never hire a recreational entertainment company to provide intensive corporate training or to spearhead dramatic organizational change. Recreational entertainment can be a useful tool in a larger project, but it won’t by itself create a transformation of your company’s culture or processes. Conversely, never hire a Training and Development consultant for a highly interactive, fun, bonding event with a large group.

Item #4 leads us to what makes AOA a unique value for our clients. We are proud to admit that we straddle the line between recreational entertainment and effective corporate training. We may not be the best provider for a goofy Chili Cook Off or the best consultant to guide your employees through the upheaval of a merger. However, we are one of the few companies that can provide entertaining programs with tangible results.

We pledge to always be honest with you and to deliver a program that exceeds your expectations. 7 of the top 10 companies on the Fortune 500 have used our services 6 times or more. Companies would not keep returning to us, or fly us to India to repeat programs if we were not delivering as promised.

Each group with which we work is comprised of diverse demographics and has differing goals for their event. We want to ensure that you select a program that best fits your group’s particular requirements. The very best way to accomplish this is through a short interview with our staff (Toll-Free: 866-455-1601). To help you begin the process, we have prepared the following guide to help you narrow down your choices.

What is your REAL goal?

1. If your answer includes any of the words: Fun, networking, bonding, good time, get them out of meetings, get them excited, active, ice breaker, etc, then you should begin selecting from the “FUN BONDING EVENTS” below.
2. If your answer includes: Change, culture, create a new team, send a message, business process training, communicate more effectively, solve ____ issue, buy-in, leadership development, training, etc, then you should begin selecting from the Business Simulation events below.
3. If your answer includes: I just read option 1 and 2 above and my REAL goal includes elements of both options. No problem! See our LEARNING events below.