How IT Employee Contests Boost Morale
Posted October 7th, 2015
Would you like your IT team to be more productive, efficient, cooperative, and innovative? And would you like to accomplish these feats with minimum investment of time and money? Of course you would. That’s why you should consider starting IT employee contests. This simple strategy has been show to have a direct impact on morale, which in turn leads to more accomplished and cohesive teams. Here are a few fun, simple, and cost-effective contests worth your consideration.
- Work Race – Time management is key in IT. Hold a contest to see who can accomplish the most of a certain task within a day/week/month. Make sure that everyone’s tasks are equal or equivalent so that you can accurately judge who is most productive and efficient.
- Cleanest Work Space – Clutter can be a sign of an active mind, but more often it’s just a mess. Judge who has the cleanest office and make the evaluation ongoing to encourage everyone to tidy up their work space.
- Best Communicator – Communication skills are an essential but often underrated part of IT. Find some way to determine who is the best communicator in the office – essay contest, employee survey, public speaking event, etc. – and honor that person publicly. When you do, be sure to highlight how their communication skills benefited the team and company more broadly.
- Best Dressed – Sometimes the best contests for raising employee morale have nothing at all to do with work. A best dressed contest is a fun and casual way to relieve stress and bring team members closer together.
- Longest Serving – A long tenure with a single company is becoming more and more rare. Single out the individuals who have been with your company the longest, and offer up a meaningful reward for their loyalty. Appreciating the people who have given you the most service helps to improve employee engagement overall.
- Sports Contests – Your IT team might not look like the most athletic bunch, but that doesn’t mean some time away from a computer screen would not be appreciated. Pick a sport that everyone can participate in, divide up the teams, and create a fun incentive for the winners.
- IT Contests – IT professionals can be a competitive bunch. Why not create a contest that measures how fast they can troubleshoot a problem or write a piece of code? This type of contest has a broad appeal that can quickly get everyone on your team engaged. Plus, who doesn’t like having bragging rights?
Another great thing about holding employee contests is that they reveal things about your team dynamic you may not have noticed, and can be a valuable tool for identifying top talent. Even on a small scale, employee contests are a valuable part of your broader workforce management strategy. Discover other ways to improve this strategy by consulting with Bayside Solutions.
