Bolstering camaraderie and a shared sense of accomplishment within a company sounds difficult and abstract—particularly if your company is completely remote. Leadership should be looking at as many creative ways as possible to engage and connect their employees. Company-wide challenges are a great cultural initiative to introduce in order to gain much-needed traction.
Company-wide challenges typically bring to mind some kind of walking or step-related goal that everyone completes on their own. While company-wide challenges can certainly be wellness-focused, there are other exciting, beneficial ideas that organizations can start: nutrition, habit-building, financial, sustainability, mindfulness, charity, etc.! If you’re looking for inspiration or help implementing a company-wide initiative, Intuition offers company-wide challenges and programs tailored to your company’s size, needs, and most importantly—what your employees are actually interested in.
Whatever direction or theme you choose for your challenge, the most important thing to remember is to make the program engaging. Simply sending a mass email won’t get anyone motivated. To get creative, come up with a company-wide goal that your team can visualize. Instead of “walk 400 miles” frame your goal as “walk from San Francisco to LA in one month.” Details, creativity, and visualization encourage people to get involved—especially when remote.
Health is wealth
Regardless of whether you chose a fitness-focused challenge or not, company-wide goals of all varieties provide tangible benefits: a stronger sense of financial security, resources and tactics for mental health practices, or a sense of purpose from volunteering in the community. Research shows employees who feel happy and healthy are more productive, creative, and more eager to problem-solve.
Options boosts inclusivity
Company-wide challenges don’t have to necessarily be chosen by leadership. In fact, approaching this kind of project by giving all employees a chance to give their input gives you a far better chance of participation and a successful program. Intuition allows you to poll your team, creating customizable challenges with topics that are relevant to your coworkers’ interests. So many creative possibilities exist for engaging company-wide challenges that keep everyone in mind!
Shared experiences build bonds
Most organizations have some kind of cadenced, company-wide goals. Those goals help keep the business on track and provide guidance for teams to reach their own goals. Company-wide challenges give employees something similar—a shared bond. Coworkers from across functions will have a chance to get to know each other through a shared, personal goal. Cultural experiences in the workplace, especially ones with a goal, allow people within an organization to get to know each other in a more holistic way.
Small initiatives kickoff larger initiatives
Whether your organization is starting its first company-wide challenge or looking to revitalize its current culture programs, all-inclusive initiatives provide tons of positive momentum. A successful challenge sets expectations for more fun, engaging cultural experiences, gives your team a chance to focus on something together other than work, and leaves everyone with a sense of shared accomplishment. This deep level of engagement will positively impact the health of your coworkers and, by extension, your business.
