Everyone Can Be a Star
January 2008
Quick Quips
So, you’d like to plan an event that fortifies the bonds at work,
but you’re dealing with a few couch potatoes who might not be keen on the idea of a vigorous team-building afternoon. No sweat—now there’s a solution that involves television. Or, at least the general themes of today’s most popular reality shows.TeamWorx has been the catalyst of camaraderie for more than 25 years. President Wayne Bennett has been in the business since he was 13, assisting his mother while she helped to build the first ropes course at Sacramento State University. But ropes courses are a thing of the ’90s. Today, faithful suspension from a pine tree with your coworkers is less intriguing than the suspension of disbelief you must adopt during a TeamWorx event where groups play out flexible team-building programs in the form of mock TV shows.
“I think the great thing about the popularity of reality shows is that people understand what team-building is and have some idea of what to expect—they get to do things they see people doing on TV,” Bennett says.
What started as a mere scavenger hunt program at TeamWorx turned into an event that clients have dubbed “Amazing Race”—named after the popular show on CBS.
When your group jumps into the Las Vegas Amazing Adventure Race, they’ll inevitably get to know The Strip up close and personal, infiltrating casinos in search of hidden items. (You could even pretend you’re in Oceans 13.)
If you’re more of a problem-solver, get out of the office with your orange glasses and UV flashlight. In TeamWorx’s newest program, CSI: Crime Scene Investigators, groups discover clues, analyze evidence and interrogate suspects (who, Bennett says, are usually played by good-humored CEOs). It’s not often that you're allowed to interrogate your senior vice president—but on TV, anything is possible.
Planners can choose other focuses, such as “interactive speech,” “puzzle-solving” or “high-energy motivational” team-building. The events promise to stimulate team members physically, mentally and emotionally. Plus, the “feel good” aspect isn’t based solely on laughing at ridiculous photos with your coworkers; the company’s charitable themes stretch your dollar even further.
The Dream Builders bicycle-building program, for instance, has a real emotional impact (just like that tearjerker TV show, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, where a brand-new home is bestowed upon a needy family). Last year, an anonymous medical group in San Antonio gave 120 bikes to kids with serious health issues. “Watching our participants give away the bicycles they built to children is really quite moving,” Bennett says. “It is hard not to have a tear in your eye.”
There is no limit to where TeamWorx will operate—the company even has third-party partners in Canada and Mexico to help facilitate the details. The company sends one or two core staff members to every event, as well as a manager or senior facilitator. You pick the venue, they work out the details.
“We have had success staffing our programs with local professionals that we train on-site before each program,” Bennett says. This saves money for the client. “We provide great ROI and insight into team dynamics, and our programs are fast-paced and well-produced,” he says. Just like a good reality show. teamworx.cc
