Xpert teambuilding, the innovative Munich-based team building and events company, and Perfect Word Language Services joined forces in December to provide a combined emailing skills and team building event for one of Germany’s largest companies.
One of Germany’s most renowned global companies approached us to improve the communication and build team cohesion within and between departments. They were intrigued by the unique blend of game-based training and team collaboration offered by our English Email Challenge.
After discussing their needs with the departmental heads, we decided to adapt our standard emailing skills event to meet their specific interdepartmental requirements. Prior to the event, each of the thirty participants received our tailored Emailing Guide, which is a list of the phrases they will often need in their role at the company. This e-booklet is customized in close collaboration with the company to ensure that the resulting communication not only uses the correct terminology, but also reflects the professional image and customer-orientation they would like their employees to project. All the participants need for the email challenge is a smartphone and a laptop / desktop PC. The participants download the Xpert Events app to the smartphone and receive a link to join the event.
We met online in our dedicated online conferencing area, where the event kicked off with a tailored presentation about communicating in English via email, which included communication basics, politeness, formal/informal communication and business email conventions, etc. This set the tone for the game, in which teams of 4-6 employees competed against each other by collaborating to complete a range of tasks in the event app. The game itself was also customized to support the objectives of the client. The collaboration on solving tasks also provided a strong team building effect.
The participants scored points through participation and correct answers. At the end, the team with the most points was crowned as the winners. However, all participants benefited greatly from the event and the feedback was positive.
This combination of team building and learning is intensive, but fun. It provides a real push for the emailing skills of the participants through the presentation and the emailing guide, promotes the use of correct phrases and brings confidence into their email communication.
The event provides the skills the employees need to optimize their emails and then gives them the opportunity to use the phrases in a setting which is fun, collaborative and competitive. It also builds team cohesion and improves cooperation through active collaboration during the game.
Communication, cohesion, cooperation – as organizations struggle with new working models and distributed teams, companies are looking for ways to improve collaboration.
With our English Email Challenge, we have found a way to cover these aspects in a single, fun event which brings immediate benefits in the daily work.