How to Plan a Team Building Event: A Step-by-Step Guide
If you’re planning a team-building event, you’re not just booking an activity—you’re shaping your team’s future.
Planning a team-building event is more than just selecting an activity—it’s about creating a powerful, results-driven experience that strengthens leadership, builds relationships, levels up your skillset and enhances workplace success.
The right event should be engaging, purposeful, and strategically designed to drive specific business outcomes while energizing and inspiring your team.
📌Common Team-Building Mistakes to Avoid
🚫 Focusing only on fun, neglecting training and development.
🚫 Picking an activity before defining goals and outcomes.
🚫 Not selecting an expert facilitator—assuming any fun event is “team-building.”
Follow this step-by-step guide to ensure your event maximizes impact and delivers lasting value.
Step 1. Make Sure Your Team Building Event Includes the Essentials
When planning a team building event, it’s important to recognize that the best events include a powerful blend of three essential ingredients.
The Keys to a Successful Team Event: The 3 Essential Elements:
✅ Fun & Entertainment – An engaging activity that energizes and excites your team.
✅ Learning & Growth – Practical training that improves teamwork, leadership, and communication.
✅ Charity & Philanthropy – A meaningful way to give back and create a shared sense of purpose.
A well-balanced event incorporates all three, but the ideal mix depends on your goals and company culture.
What Kind of Event Are You Planning?
Whether your team activity will be a stand alone event, or if it is a part of a full or multi day offsite, you really should invest time and budget to include strong team development of some kind in the event in addition to the bonding and connection.
1️⃣ Some companies focus only on fun – you need to do more.
This is a good starting point, but without expert facilitation, it doesn’t improve teamwork, trust, or motivation in a lasting way. Activities like bowling, mini-golf, or escape rooms may be entertaining, but they don’t develop the skills that drive long-term team success. And they can backfire (See the $100,000 Bowling Game and Common Planning Mistakes).
2️⃣ Some focus only on fun and philanthropy – which is event better.
Giving back is an incredible and deeply fulfilling experience. A Bike Build Event or Wagon Build, a Wheelchair Build or Military Care Package Activity can be a major highlight of your team building event. However, to maximize the impact on your team, you should also include learning and development—even if your offsite already includes other training sessions. A well-designed team-building event should complement and reinforce the key lessons and goals of your broader leadership development initiatives.
3️⃣ Some focus on all three – fun, philanthropy and learning/growth/development – this is ideal.
Events with all three elements drive the highest ROI because in addition to bonding, connection, entrainment and enjoyment, they teach your team skills, tools, and strategies to actually drive results plus they culminate with the heartfelt impact that comes from shared charitable giving of time and effort – seeing the impact you have on the recipients of your philanthropy.
If your event is not part of a larger offsite, it is even more essential to include training and skill-building. A standalone event without team development leaves the long-term benefits up to chance, rather than ensuring real improvement in communication, collaboration, and leadership.
💡 No matter the approach, the most valuable events balance all three components—fun, growth, and impact—creating a memorable experience that strengthens relationships, improves skills, and reinforces company values.
Step 2: Clarify Your Goals & Outcomes
It is critical to start with ‘WHY’.
Most people start with ‘What’ kind of event they want, but your ‘Why’ will defines what kind of event you want. If you must start with ‘What’, don’t ask what kind of event, ask what kind of results are you trying to accomplish.
Your event should solve challenges, unlock potential, and strengthen your team’s ability to drive real world outcomes upon return to work.
In other words, if you know what outcomes you need in the real world, you can more easily figure out what kind of leader, activities, topics and contents will be best to get you what you need. Then with the help of the right event company, you can build themes and fun around the core program that will drive the results.
If you know what the results are worth you can more easily determine the correct amount of time, effort and money to budget in order to get those results.
Below is a list of Common Problems & Challenges plus Key Goals and Positive Outcomes to start you thinking about your “why” for your event – what results do you want?
Here are some questions that will get you started:
“What skills, tools or abilities will help them accomplish those things faster and more efficiently?”
“What does your team need to create better or faster outcomes in the world?”
“What stands in the way and what is needed to overcome those obstacles?”
🔹 Common Team Challenges & Problems
🔴 Leadership Problems – Are leaders struggling to inspire, guide, and develop their teams?
🔴 Communication Breakdowns – Are misunderstandings and misalignment slowing down productivity?
🔴 Resistance to Change – Is your team struggling to innovate and adapt?
🔴 Low Engagement & Burnout – Are employees feeling disconnected or unmotivated?
🔴 Team Dysfunction – Are silos and unresolved conflicts preventing collaboration?
🔹 Key Goals & Positive Outcomes
🔵 Stronger Leadership & Inspiring Culture – Develop leaders who engage and empower.
🔵 Enhanced Communication & Collaboration – Improve clarity, persuasion, and teamwork.
🔵 Resilience & Thriving Through Change – Help teams stay agile and future-ready.
🔵 Increased Engagement & Motivation – Energize employees and reinforce company culture.
🔵 Innovation & Strategic Thinking – Equip teams to solve complex challenges creatively.
💡 Why This Matters:
Defining goals ensures the event delivers real business impact beyond just a fun or charitable experience. If you know your goals and hit them, the ROI, the return on investment of time, effort and money will be substantial and valuable and pay for itself many times over.
Step 3: Find an Expert Partner to Design & Lead Your Event
The most valuable part of your event is not the venue or the activity—it’s the learning, growth, and impact it delivers.
✔ Choose a partner who specializes in results-driven team development.
✔ Select an expert trainer with decades of experience in leadership, motivation, and teamwork.
✔ Ensure they customize the event based on your team’s unique challenges and goals.
✔ Invest in facilitation that teaches skills, insights, strategies, and tools for lasting impact.
💡 Why This Matters:
A great expert facilitator turns an event into a transformative experience that pays for itself many times over.
Step 4: Define Your Event Parameters
Once you know you ‘why’ and what you want to accomplish you are ready to get into the details of planning. Start with logistics and parameters.
🔹 Team Size & Who to Include
✔ Is this event for a single team, an entire department, or a cross-functional group?
✔ Should this be executive-only, a company-wide all-hands event, or a select leadership group?
✔ Would it be beneficial to mix different departments to break silos and encourage collaboration?
✔ Do you need to break down silos between departments?
✔ Would cross-functional collaboration improve productivity?
✔ Should this event be leadership-only, or should emerging leaders be included?
✔ Is this for a high-performance team needing optimization, or a struggling team needing alignment?
💡 Why This Matters:
Sometimes you have a team with a critical need right now. Sometimes you have an existing event and the team is already fixed. Sometimes you have the flexibility to choose participant at your discretion. Bringing together diverse teams creates new perspectives, stronger interdepartmental collaboration, and cross-functional trust. Choosing the right participants ensures the event achieves your strategic goals.
🔹 Location & Venue – Your Office, Hotel or Other Location
✔ Will the event be on-site at your office, at an offsite venue, or at a corporate retreat center?
✔ Indoor venues provide full control over weather, temperature, noise, and distractions.
✔ Access to A/V equipment, microphones, screens, and sound systems ensures a seamless experience.
✔ Comfortable seating, breakout rooms, and restrooms make the experience more enjoyable.
✔ Indoor locations allow for consistent lighting, better acoustics, and a distraction-free environment.
💡 Why This Matters:
Outdoor venues are unpredictable (weather, temperature, noise disruptions, and logistical concerns). Indoor venues offer the best comfort, accessibility, and efficiency for a highly impactful event. Venue is also a budget consideration as you should put money towards the expertise of the event leader and the program first and then towards venue/food/etc.
Step 4: Select the Right Date & Timing
Once your parameters are set, lock in the date early to avoid scheduling conflicts.
✔ Check Leadership & Employee Schedules – Ensure key decision-makers and stakeholders can attend.
✔ Consider Travel & Commute Logistics – Choose a central location for maximum efficiency.
✔ Book Early – The best facilitators and venues fill up quickly.
💡 Why This Matters:
A well-planned date maximizes attendance and engagement while preventing last-minute conflicts. Planning in advance virtually always saves money and minimizes stress.
Step 5: Budget for Results & Real ROI
Budgeting isn’t just about covering costs—it’s about maximizing investment in your team’s success.
🔹 Key Budget Considerations
✔ Expert Facilitation & Training – The biggest ROI driver of the event.
✔ Team-Building Materials & Equipment – Depending on the activity (e.g., bikes, tools, props, other materials).
✔ Venue Costs – Rental fees, permits, or facility use.
✔ Food & Beverages – Catering, snacks, and refreshments.
✔ Travel & Accommodations – Flights, hotels, ground transport.
✔ A/V & Event Documentation – Sound, lighting, and photography.
✔ Support Staff & Logistics – Event coordinators, setup crew, and safety personnel.
💡 Why This Matters:
Investing in the right expert leader is what makes everything else worthwhile. Without real learning, engagement, and impact, the rest of the budget is wasted (see article with videos about leaving out key ingredient.) Remember the goal is driving your results – so the budget should be invested in the components that drive the results – the event leader, topics, contents and activities.
True team development requires an investment and it will pay for itself many times over when done right. Learn more about budgeting here.
Step 6: Select the Right Team Building Activity & Theme
Once your goals are set, choose an activity that reinforces learning and builds deeper connections.
🔹 Charity-Based Team Building Activities
✔ Bicycle Factory™ – Assemble bikes for children in need.
✔ Tricycle Factory™ – Provide trikes for younger kids.
✔ Team Wagon Brigade™ – Build wagons for charities like the Special Olympics
✔ Team Military Giving™ – Assemble care packages for Military to show you care.
✔ Wheelchairs for Warriors™ – Assemble Wheelchairs to donate to Veterans
✔ Team Pinata Project™ – Pinatas for kids with cancer
✔ Together We Can™ – Build sculptures or a mini golf course with canned food to donate to local food banks
🔹 Popular Team Building Activities the Drive Results
✔ Board Break Experience™ – Break through barriers and unlock confidence.
✔ Team Titanic Challenge™ – Learn to Solve “impossible” challenges
✔ Team Adventure Challenge™ – A dynamic mix of problem-solving & physical teamwork.
✔ Team Masterpiece Painting™ – A dynamic mix of problem-solving and team building culminating in a painting challenge
🔹 Critical Skills & Learning Topics
✔ 5 Keys to Communication™ – Master persuasion, clarity, and influence.
✔ The Power of Focus™ – Drive results by commanding your teams focus
✔ 3 Keys to Human Function™ – Understand team motivation and behavior.
✔ Eliminate Disengagement, Burnout & Turnover – Prevent burnout and inspire teams to be on mission
✔ 2 Keys to Emotional Muscle™ – Understand how emotions work and take command of your emotional “buttons”
✔ 7 Steps to Solve Any Problem & Overcome Any Obstacle – Learn a proven system to ensure success no matter what the challenge.
✔ Unleash the Hero™ – Learn to become an unstoppable hero and an unstoppable team.
✔ Thriving & Leading Through Change™ – Become unstoppable in world of constant change
✔ Resilience, Grit & Adaptability – Learn to flex and remain strong in the face of any challenge.
💡 Why This Matters:
A strategic activity choice as well as the right learning topics ensure deeper learning, higher engagement, and unforgettable impact.
Step 7: Build a Powerful Event Agenda
If it’s a stand-alone team building event, your training provider should design the agenda based on your goals and event flow.
If you are doing a multi day offsite or have other internal training or important components to includes, you can place your Teambuilding in three spots – 1) as the opening to create energy and engagement and prepare the team to get the most out of the entire offsite, 2) as an energy boost in the middle of your event, or 3) as the culmination on the final day to sent the team home feeling inspired, engaged and unstoppable.
🔹 Sample Team Building Event Agenda
✅ Exciting Opening Ceremony – Set the tone & energize the team.
✅ Icebreaker & Challenge Activities – Build connection & collaboration.
✅ Learning & Development Session – Leadership, communication, or resilience focus. This is where all of the skills, tools, insights, abilities and strategies will be included to drive your results.
✅ Highlight Activity – Bike Building Charity, Trike Building Charity, Wagon Building Charity, Military Charity (Wheelchairs or Care Packages), Team Titanic™, Team Break Through (board breaking)
✅Closing Celebration – Recap of learning and final celebration to end the day on a high note, reinforcing what you have learned and sharing the joy of making a difference together.
🔹 Sample Bike Build Event Agenda
✅ Exciting Opening Ceremony – Set the tone & energize the team.
✅ Icebreaker & Challenge Activities – Build connection & collaboration.
✅ Learning & Development Session – Leadership, communication, or resilience focus. This is where all of the skills, tools, insights, abilities and strategies will be included to drive your results.
✅ Bike Build Challenge™ – Hands-on teamwork with real impact.
✅ The Big Reveal – Bike Donation– Bikes are donated creating an amazing moment of joy, gratitude and connection. & reinforce key takeaways.
✅Closing Celebration – Recap of learning and final celebration to end the day on a high note, reinforcing what you have learned and sharing the joy of making a difference together.
💡 Why This Matters:
A well designed agenda ensures maximum participation, learning, and engagement.
Final Thoughts: Plan Step by Step for Maximum Impact
By following this comprehensive step-by-step approach, your team-building event will be seamless, engaging, and highly impactful.
The right team building event transforms your team, strengthens relationships, builds real world skills and tools, and delivers massive ROI.
📞 Call us today: 1-800-446-4742
📧 Email us: info@professionalteambuilding.com
🌐 Visit us online: www.professionalteambuilding.com
