13 Best Leadership Team Building Activities for the Workplace

Are you looking for leadership training activities? Our guide features 13 effective leadership team-building activities that promise to drive success in your workplace.

In order to succeed and improve their leadership style, you will need leadership training ideas to cultivate high-performing teams.

Yet, amidst the daily hustle, it is easy for even the most seasoned leaders to overlook the importance of continually honing their craft. That is where we step in.

In this guide, we go beyond the usual, exploring fresh ways to empower leaders and teams. To learn more about how we enhance team building activities for companies of all sizes, book a demo with us.

These fun leadership activities will challenge the creativity, team collaboration, and growth of different teams, all in order to develop outstanding leadership habits.

What are Leadership Team Building Activities?

Teamwork helps ordinary people achieve extraordinary outcomes. It brings together different skills and viewpoints to overcome challenges one might struggle with alone.

In light of this, the best leadership training activities can show how teamwork can transform outcomes.

Leadership activities are organized tasks or events to improve the collaboration among different group members and problem-solving skills. They include activities like hands-on tasks, role-playing, and solving challenges together.

These team-building leadership activities enhance important leadership skills like communication and decision-making while boosting job satisfaction by creating a positive team environment.

These leadership activities include everyone in the team, from leaders to group members. They are often held during events like the following.

• The start of a project
• During organizational changes
• Team meetings
• When new members join

With remote work becoming more common, companies can also do virtual team-building activities. Sometimes, leadership activities take place outdoors for adventure or learning.

These leadership activities show what can be done with teamwork, inspiring us to aim higher and work together toward our goals.

1. Social Connect Starter

Social Connect Starter is the first leadership activity in our lineup. This fun activity aims to unite group members through interactive discussions on general questions.

This activity has two main goals.

1. First, it brings members together for group discussions to foster interaction and strengthen connections.
2. Second, it allows leaders to observe how their teammates engage and show leadership qualities, providing insights into the dynamics of their team and leadership potential.

Team leaders or assigned facilitators alike can lead the activity. It can be adapted to various settings, including virtual team-building activities.

The routine typically involves the following steps.

1. Introduction: The facilitator explains the purpose of the activity to the team. This includes setting expectations for participation, fostering a sense of collaboration, and emphasizing the importance of group communication and sharing.
2. Icebreaker Question: The facilitator initiates the discussion with an icebreaker question designed to encourage members to engage with one another in a relaxed and informal manner. Here are some sample icebreaker questions that the facilitator might ask.
   • “What is something interesting you have done recently?”
   • “If you could travel anywhere in the world right now, where would you go and why?”
   • “What is your favorite book/movie/TV show, and why do you love it?”
   • “If you could have any superpower, what would it be, and how would you use it?”
   • “What is a hobby or activity you enjoy outside of work?”
3. Group Discussion: Once the icebreaker question is posed, team members take turns sharing their thoughts, opinions, and experiences related to the question. This stage fosters active participation, encourages listening and compassion, and helps build rapport among team members.
4. Reflection: After the group discussion, group participants may be allowed to reflect on what they learned from the team-building activity.
5. Conclusion: The facilitator summarizes any key points discussed during the session. This includes highlighting common themes, key insights, or important participant observations.

Social Connect Starter offers several positive aspects like the following.

• Leadership team building
• Fostering collaboration
• Identifying emerging leaders
• Improving communication
• Prompting reflection

More importantly, it is pivotal in nurturing well-rounded leaders with strong communication skills and collaborative abilities.

2. Build the Tallest Tower

In this game, leaders must collaborate with their teammates to achieve success. This game prompts two groups or more to build a tower according to specific rules.

This activity is a leadership race where teams use limited materials to construct the tallest tower within a set time limit. Included in these materials are the following items.

• Wooden or plastic blocks
• Straws or drinking straws
• Paper or cardboard
• Tape or glue
• String or yarn
• Toothpicks or skewers
• Cups or containers
• Balloons or marshmallows (Depending on the challenge)

The goal is to improve teamwork and strategic thinking skills. As the teams compete, participants will collaborate, communicate, and think creatively to overcome challenges.

Here are some foolproof tips to help you increase your chances of winning.

• Tip 1. Plan Ahead: Discuss different ideas with your team before you start building. Choose the best strategy to make your tower as tall and stable as possible. Strategic planning ensures everyone is on the same page and reduces the likelihood of conflicts during the building process.
• Tip 2. Use Materials Wisely: Make the most of the materials you have to enhance the tower’s structural integrity. If you have a longer time limit, try different combinations to see what works best.
• Tip 3. Focus on Stability: Stability is crucial for preventing the tower from collapsing. Build a strong base for your tower to keep it from falling over. As you add height, continuously reinforce the structure to keep it stable.
• Tip 4. Communicate: Effective communication is essential for collaboration and coordination among team members. Make sure your teammates are on the same page all throughout the building process. Share ideas and work together efficiently.
• Tip 5. Get Creative: Encourage creativity and innovation by exploring unconventional building techniques or designs. Think of unique ways to build your tower. Try out new techniques or designs that could help your tower stand firm.
• Tip 6. Stay Organized: Keep your space tidy and organized. Assign tasks to team members to make the building process smoother.
• Tip 7. Stay on Track: Focus on building the tallest tower. Use your time wisely and stay committed to your goal. Remain disciplined and maintain a sense of urgency and purpose until the tower is completed.

In this leadership game, leaders improve task delegation, spark creativity, and build a strong team, which is crucial for success.

NOTE: This activity is also called the “Marshmallow challenge” because marshmallows can also be used for the tower.

3. Crocodile River

Crocodile River is a team-based obstacle course designed to mimic a treacherous river, complete with challenges.

Participants must work together to navigate the obstacle course, fostering patience, teamwork, and problem-solving skills.

This leadership activity is particularly popular, even among other summer team-building activities, since it provides an engaging and fun way for teams to bond and develop important skills.

Follow the instructions below to do this game.

• Step 1. Prepare the Materials: Be resourceful. Gather objects like discs, paper, or small pieces of plywood to use as stepping stones. Ensure the stepping stones are sturdy enough to support the weight of the players as they navigate the “river.”
• Step 2. Look for an Open Space: Place the stepping stones in an open space, with the number of stones depending on the players. Choose an open area where the game can be played safely, with enough room for players to move around.
• Step 3. Make Use of Markers: Use markers such as cones, ropes, or chalk to designate the boundaries of the “river.” Mark both the starting and finishing points of the river crossing to provide a clear objective for all players.
• Step 4. Achieve Your Goal: The goal is for players to cross the river with stepping stones without anyone “falling off”. Whenever someone touches the river, the game restarts. Emphasize the importance of balance, coordination, and stepping carefully to avoid losing the game.
• Step 5. Take Turns: Each team takes turns attempting to cross the river, with players alternating or crossing simultaneously, depending on the agreed-upon rules. Large groups can be divided into teams and compete to be the first to cross the river without breaking the rules.

This leadership activity is a fun challenge that requires balance, focus, planning, and teamwork.

4. Human Knot

The Human Knot game is a leadership activity where participants form a tangled knot with their teammates. It requires close cooperation to untangle the knot without letting go of each other’s hands.

This leadership game promotes team bonding by encouraging communication, trust, and participant collaboration. It can also serve as an ice-breaker for newer team members who may be unfamiliar with your current team culture.

Additionally, this game showcases successful leadership within the entire group as individuals can step forward to guide the team toward victory.

As shown in the image, this leadership activity demands significant physical interaction and engagement. Here is how you can perform the Human Knot.

• Step 1. Split Into Teams: Manage the crowd by dividing them into teams of five to twelve members. If there are four or fewer players, the knot will be solved too quickly, while more than twelve players will make the knot overly complex and unwieldy. Experts suggest aiming for eight to ten participants for an optimal challenge.
• Step 2. Assemble in a Circle: Gather the team or teams in a circle. Each team member should stand shoulder to shoulder, ensuring everyone can reach the center. If the circle is too large, consider splitting the players into multiple small groups.
• Step 3. Put Your Left Hand In: Players extend their left hands toward the circle’s center, grabbing a teammate’s hand across from them. They should avoid grabbing the hand of their direct neighbor. If necessary, players may need to release their initial partners to rearrange.
• Step 4. Put Your Right Hand Out: Players reach their right hands across the circle and grab a different teammate’s hand. It is important to choose a different partner per hand.
• Step 5. Begin to Untangle: Now, it is time to untangle! Players need to work together to unravel the knot without letting go of each other’s hands. They may need to duck, squeeze over and under gaps, and communicate to succeed. The game ends when no hands are left in the middle, and everyone forms a single ring.

The Human Knot game is vital for leadership as it mirrors real-life challenges. It prompts the development of essential skills like communication, teamwork, adaptability, and observation, which are crucial for effective leadership.

5. Your Favorite Manager

“Your Favorite Manager” is a leadership activity where participants identify admirable qualities in fictional manager personas.

This role-playing exercise aims to help individuals understand their preferred leadership styles and traits by reflecting on the characteristics they admire in fictional managers.

If you are new to this leadership activity, here is a breakdown of how to do it.

• Step 1. Create Three Characters: Assume three different employee personas. These personas could encompass different experience levels, job functions, and personality traits. For example, personas might include a junior employee eager to learn and grow, a mid-level manager striving for advancement, and a seasoned veteran seeking work-life balance.
• Step 2. Note the Behaviors: List the behaviors of a positive and negative team leader or manager from the perspective of each persona, respectively. Encourage employees to think deeply about the impact of leadership behaviors on their respective personas and how they might influence job satisfaction, productivity, and overall morale.
• Step 3. Reflection: Reflect individually on the lists. Encourage members to contemplate their own experiences with leadership and management. This can help them identify whether they prefer or dislike the different leadership styles mentioned. Ask them to identify instances where positive or negative behaviors influenced their work environment and professional growth.
• Step 4. Contrast and Compare: Next, compare the lists in pairs. Afterward, bring the pairs together into larger groups to step forward and share their findings in a broader discussion. Encourage members to explore common themes and patterns using the various collected perspectives.
• Step 5. Gather the Responses: Compile the ultimate do’s and don’ts for managers and leaders. Emphasize the importance of incorporating diverse perspectives and experiences to create a well-rounded set of guidelines.
• Step 6. Drawing Inspiration: After the comparison, find inspiration in past bosses’ troubleshooting approaches while being a team member under their leadership. Invite team members to reflect on their past bosses’ troubleshooting approaches and leadership attributes, identifying valuable lessons and insights to inform their leadership journey.

Through this leadership activity, participants can gain insights into their core values, informing their own approach and leadership philosophy.

6. Moments Capsule

Next on our list of the best leadership development activities is a sharing session.

The Moments Capsule activity reminds us of the power of sharing experiences. This team-building activity can help your teammates cultivate a sense of self-awareness.

Each team member can express personal experiences, achievements, or memories with special meanings. Give everyone a time limit to share their stories.

Here are some initial ideas that can inspire meaningful conversations among your team.

• Significant milestones or achievements
• Memorable travel experiences
• Stories of challenges you have overcome
• Humorous or heartwarming anecdotes
• Stories about cherished family traditions
• Stories about hobbies, interests, or passions outside of work
• Surprises or serendipitous moments
• Acts of kindness you have experienced
• Valuable lessons you have learned

This activity cultivates essential leadership skills such as empathy, communication, and relationship-building, making it a valuable tool for leadership development.

7. What If? Scenario Solution

Asking hypothetical questions is necessary as it lets people explore different scenarios, leverage their critical thinking skills, and practice troubleshooting in a safe setting.

Next on our list of leadership exercises is a problem-solving activity to recognize diverse leadership approaches within a team.

Participants address hypothetical scenarios or challenges, brainstorming various solutions or responses.

The goal is to gain insight into the different problem-solving styles of each team member. The activity fosters a deeper understanding of individual perspectives.

The following scenarios can serve as prompts for discussion.

• What if a massive solar storm knocks out all electronic communication globally?
• What if an advanced alien civilization makes contact with Earth?
• What if a cure for all forms of cancer is discovered overnight?
• What if all forms of renewable energy suddenly become more efficient and cheaper than fossil fuels?
• What if a global pandemic wipes out 90% of the human population?
• What if artificial intelligence becomes self-aware and demands equal rights?
• What if a permanent solution for climate change is found but requires significant sacrifices from every individual?
• What if a superintelligent being offers humanity the chance to live forever, but at the cost of giving up free will?
• What if a parallel universe is discovered and accessible through a newly invented portal?
• What if time travel becomes a reality, but a powerful government agency strictly regulates it?

Working through various scenarios helps aspiring leaders build important skills like decision-making, adaptability, and critical thinking by considering hypothetical situations vital for real-world leadership.

8. Reliance Link

Reliance Link is an activity that helps teams build trust and collaboration by recognizing their dependence on each other in daily work interactions.

Regardless of leadership style, teams are mutually reliant on each other. This activity can also help kindle a sense of team spirit in all participants.

Through exercises and discussions, team members learn the importance of trust in achieving shared goals and work together to strengthen their bonds.

Reliance Link aims to create a more united team, leading to better performance and success. Performing this activity involves the following steps.

1. Introduction: Start by explaining why trust and teamwork matter. Highlight examples of how trust fosters collaboration, innovation, and communication skills, ultimately leading to improved performance and success.
2. Forming Groups: Divide participants into small groups, ensuring diversity in roles, departments, or skill sets. Mixing people from different backgrounds can encourage broader perspectives and insights.
3. Identifying Trust Factors: Within their groups, participants engage in open discussions about what factors contribute to building trust among individual team members in their work environment. Encourage them to reflect on personal experiences and observations.
4. Creating Visuals: Each group will be tasked with creating a visual representation (such as a poster, collage, or diagram) of the trust factors they identified. This visual aid should be creative and meaningful to convey the essence of their discussions.
5. Sharing and Discussion: After completing their visuals, each group presents their work to the other members of the team. They explain their chosen visuals and discuss common themes or patterns that emerged across different groups.
6. Reflecting on Mutual Reliance: Facilitate a guided discussion about mutual reliance within teams. Encourage participants to reflect on how their roles and contributions depend on the trust and support of their teammates.
7. Developing Action Plans: Participants will then brainstorm actionable strategies and initiatives in their groups to enhance trust and teamwork within their respective teams or departments. Encourage them to be specific and focus on practical steps to implement.
8. Closure: Conclude by summarizing the key insights and takeaways from the different leadership exercises. Emphasize the importance of ongoing efforts to build and maintain trust within teams and encourage participants to commit to implementing the action plans they developed.

Reliance Link is good for leadership training because it encourages trust and teamwork among team members, which are crucial leadership traits for aspiring leaders.

9. Plane Crash Survival

Imagine the adrenaline rush of being stranded on a deserted island with your team after a plane crash, where your survival hinges on working together, using your skills, and being resourceful.

As the team faces this daunting challenge, each team member must showcase their unique abilities and contribute to collective efforts to navigate the obstacles ahead and secure their survival.

The Plane Crash Survival activity aims to bring teammates together to overcome challenges and survive. This encourages teamwork, communication, and sharing responsibilities.

You can add the following concepts to make this activity more engaging.

Scavenger Hunt

A scavenger hunt will see teams searching for essential survival items like water bottles, first aid kits, or food supplies scattered across a designated area.

This activity encourages teamwork, communication, and resourcefulness as teams strategize and collaborate to find the necessary items.

Shelter Building

Teams are tasked with constructing shelters using only natural materials in the surrounding environment.

This activity promotes teamwork and problem-solving and teaches participants valuable survival skills such as shelter construction and resource utilization.

Fire Starting

Participants learn and practice techniques for starting fires without using matches or lighters.

This skill is crucial for survival in outdoor environments and teaches individuals how to utilize natural resources and concepts like tinder, kindling, and friction to create fire.

Water Procurement

Teams search for and identify water sources in the wilderness, then learn methods for purifying water to make it safe for consumption.

This activity emphasizes the importance of water safety and teaches participants essential skills for survival in situations where clean water may not be readily available.

Food Foraging

Teams explore their surroundings to identify and gather edible plants, fruits, and other wild food sources.

This activity teaches participants about local flora and fauna, sustainable foraging, and wilderness survival principles.

Signal Creation

In this activity, team members work to create distress signals, such as smoke signals or signal fires, to attract attention and communicate their location to potential rescuers.

This activity will help team members practice resourcefulness and creativity in emergencies.

Survival Skills Workshops

These workshops are not meant to teach leadership skills, but rather survival skills.

There are various survival skills, such as knot tying, first aid, basic wilderness medicine, and other essential techniques for surviving the great outdoors.

Emergency Response Simulation

Participants are put through simulated emergency scenarios, such as treating injuries or encountering dangerous wildlife, to test their readiness and ability to respond effectively in high-pressure situations.

This activity helps build confidence in your teammates and prepares participants to handle real-life emergencies in the wilderness.

Plane Crash Survival helps identify leaders in the group who will guide and motivate other team members. Overall, it is a chance for participants to improve teamwork, trust, and leadership skills.

10. Minefield Challenge

The Minefield Challenge is an activity where participants navigate through an obstacle course or “minefield” while blindfolded, guided only by verbal instructions from their teammates.

This activity tests teamwork and leadership skills by highlighting the importance of clear communication, trust, and reliance on each other.

Participants will learn to work together effectively and observe leadership dynamics within their teams.

To start the challenge, follow these simple steps.

• Step 1. Organizing Pairs: Before beginning, pair off all team members. Pairs can be formed based on various criteria, like familiarity, skill sets, or random selection, depending on the activity’s objectives.
• Step 2. Blindfold and Guide Allocation: Once pairs are formed, designate roles within each pair. One team member wears a blindfold, while the other will take on leadership roles, guiding their partner through the minefield. The blindfolded participant relies entirely on the guidance and instructions provided by their partner to navigate through the minefield safely.
• Step 3. Communication Protocol: Establish a clear communication protocol by defining specific commands for the duration of the challenge. Commands like “forward,” “backward,” “left,” “right,” and “stop” should be agreed upon by both partners beforehand to ensure effective communication and minimize confusion during the activity.
• Step 4. Setting Up the Minefield: Now, designate an area as the minefield and mark clear start and finish lines to indicate the boundaries of the course. Scatter various small items, such as cones, flags, or markers, across the floor within the defined area to simulate the minefield. Note that these objects must be small enough to walk around.
• Step 5. Rule Enforcement: Emphasize the importance of adhering to the rules throughout the challenge. Any pair that violates the rules will restart from the beginning. Consistent enforcement of the rules ensures fairness throughout the activity, encouraging participants to stay focused and attentive throughout the challenge.

The Minefield Challenge highlights the importance of relying on and trusting your teammates when you encounter challenges while working on the same project.

11. Active Listening Challenge

Paying attention to your teammates is crucial as it promotes understanding, empathy, and connection while aiding communication and problem-solving.

In this challenge, participants read stories aloud while other team members listen. It promotes active listening within teams, which is essential for communication and collaboration.

This challenge can help different team members practice actively listening, but it is also suitable for other groups already acquainted with this approach.

Participants collaborate in trios, rotating roles as “Subject,” who reads the story; the “Listener,” who attentively focuses on the subject; and the “Observer,” who observes the interaction between the other two.

In this challenge, participants can practice listening by engaging with these different types of stories.

• Personal Stories: Sharing personal experiences helps participants practice understanding and empathy.
• Fiction: Reading short stories or parts of novels improves listening skills by following plots and characters.
• TED Talks or Podcasts: Listening to clips challenges participants to extract the main ideas and themes.
• News: Reading news articles aloud helps practice listening to facts and different viewpoints.
• Motivational Speeches: Hearing speeches from leaders or motivators inspires while improving listening skills.
• Problem Scenarios: Presenting hypothetical situations encourages reflective listening for solutions.
• Poetry: Reading poems aloud enhances an appreciation for language and tone.
• Interviews: Listening to interview excerpts improves understanding of questions and responses.

The Active Listening Challenge is also ideal for remote teams since it can be done virtually. Participants engage in these sessions to enhance their listening skills, a valuable activity for building trust in virtual teams.

Active listening is vital for leaders because it helps instill the following leadership concepts in them.

• How to show empathy
• Builds confidence
• Encourages open communication
• Helps leaders understand the perspectives, concerns, and needs of their team members

12. Collective Ship Boarding

In the Collective Ship Boarding activity, teams will use office materials like cardboard and tape to build a boat capable of holding team members.

The goal is to encourage communication, creativity, and adaptability as teams construct the boat. All teams should prioritize stability and aesthetics.

To get started, you will need the following materials.

• Cardboard sheets or boxes
• Paper
• Tape (duct tape or masking tape)
• Markers or pens
• Scissors
• (Optional) Additional decorative materials like colored paper, stickers, or paint

After gathering all the necessary materials, here is how to conduct the game.

• Step 1. Team Formation: Divide participants into teams of 3-5 members per team. Ensure each team has a mix of skills and strengths.
• Step 2. Introduction and Distribution: Explain the objective of the activity, which is to construct a makeshift boat using office materials. Afterward, distribute the materials to each team.
• Step 3. Brainstorming and Design: Allow teams time to brainstorm ideas and design their boats. Encourage team members to be creative while also considering stability, buoyancy, and aesthetics.
• Step 5. Construction: Once teams have finalized their designs, they can construct their boats. Participants should collaborate closely, adapting their designs as needed.
• Step 6. Testing: After construction, teams can test their boats by placing them in an imaginary “water” (a designated testing area). Each team member should take turns boarding the boat to ensure it can support their weight.
• Step 7. Reflection and Discussion: Facilitate a discussion with the teams after testing. Encourage them to reflect on the construction process, what worked well, and what challenges they faced. Discuss how communication, creativity, and adaptability contributed to their success or areas for improvement.
• Step 8. Optional Showcase: If agreed upon beforehand, teams can showcase their boats to the rest of the group, highlighting unique features and design elements.
• Step 9. Cleanup: Ensure all materials are collected and tidy the workspace.

The activity helps participants practice problem-solving skills and fosters creativity by exploring different design ideas. It also promotes adaptability as teams adjust their strategies to overcome challenges during boat-building.

13. Influential Leaders Recognition

Wrapping up our series of team-building leadership exercises is the Influential Leaders Recognition activity.

In this activity, participants will list leaders they admire and discuss what makes them effective.

Here are some tips for facilitating this activity.

• Encourage Diversity: Invite participants to nominate leaders from different fields and backgrounds for diverse perspectives.
• Foster Open Discussion: Create a safe space where everyone feels comfortable sharing their thoughts on nominated leaders and their positive traits.
• Focus on Positive Traits: Highlight the strengths and effective leadership qualities of nominated leaders instead of dwelling on their weaknesses.
• Promote Active Listening: Encourage attentive listening during discussions, allowing each group member to share without interruption.
• Facilitate Reflection: Give time for individual reflection after discussions to relate identified leadership traits to personal experiences.

This leadership activity encourages group discussion and reflection on leadership qualities, helping participants gain insights into different leadership styles and their strengths.

Recognizing influential leaders also inspires participants to embody similar qualities. This emulation helps create a positive workplace culture where leadership skills are appreciated, leading to ongoing personal and professional development.

Key Takeaways on Leadership Team Building Activities

Leadership team-building activities are invaluable tools for enhancing leadership skills and fostering positive group dynamics.

By engaging in fun leadership activities that emphasize communication, collaboration, and problem-solving, teams can strengthen their ability to lead effectively and work cohesively towards common goals.

Committing to continuous improvement individually and as a team is key to long-term success.

For tailored team-building experiences, consider Escapely’s services, offering virtual and in-person activities. To learn more and book your event, visit our website at www.escapely.com or contact us at 702 747 3009.