Didim

Everyone recognises that businesses should do what they can to raise staff morale. After all, it is well known that a happy team communicates better, works well together and is more productive.

Everyone recognises that businesses should do what they can to raise staff morale. After all, it is well known that a happy team communicates better, works well together and is more productive.

If this is the case, why don't all businesses send their staff to occasional team building days? It may be because they would rather have the staff working when in the office. However, another reason is that team building events are often used as comic foil on sitcoms.

However, indoor team building games can be of great benefit, both to individuals and the business as a whole, unless the manager sees David Brent from The Office as a figure of inspiration, rather than a figure of fun.

And it is unlikely the manager would see Brent as a business guru. Remember this is the character who summarises his thinking about working in a team by saying: "There may be no 'I' in team, but there's a 'ME' if you look hard enough".

Despite Brent's 'thoughts', The Office did focus team building. In one episode a team development expert visited the Wernham Hogg offices. Within moments, Brent had taken over, changing what was supposed to be a open staff meeting into a celebration of himself. A rendition of his 1980s pop ballad "Free Love on the Freelove Freeway" was one of Brent's tricks.

Fortunately, the reality of team building is very different from this sort of cringeworthy, soul-destroying, embarrassing mess.

Nowadays, there are many different companies across the country that will offer your business the opportunity to take your staff out of the normal working environment so they learn to work together effectively. If you would prefer, an expert could come to the office to take you through team building.

These days allow staff to learn and develop the skills required to enhance your business potential, encourage growth and ensure that improvements are sustained.

Many businesses may have been hit badly by the recession, but that does not mean they should cut down on the amount of money invested in training, development and team building. Indeed, there has never been a more important time to promote development.

You will want your business to be ready to take advantages of new opportunities when the economy recovers - and team building can help you do this.

There are numerous different indoor team building events, designed to test your staff's mental abilities, team working and communication skills. By breaking down barriers and promoting interaction between team members, these exercise help your team succeed.

These events will get your team working together towards the common aims of the business. Not only will this help ensure your business grows in the future, it will also help maintain levels of staff satisfaction - reducing turnaround.

By choosing the right company to work with, you can help your staff and your business as a whole succeed through indoor team building. All you need to do is ensure that you choose a different team building company from the one chosen by Wernham Hogg.

But then, would you really want to take hiring advice from David Brent? Remember one of his policies is: "Avoid employing unlucky people - throw half of the pile of CVs in the bin without reading them".