Employees that struggle with physical movement may find activities like obstacle courses and timed challenges too demanding. For businesses with limited or hazardous floor space, a problem-solving activity may be a wiser use of your location. Here are some fun and accessible office scavenger hunt ideas that don’t require much movement:
Focus On Riddles and Concepts
The fun of an office scavenger hunt is in your employees’ ability to work together and solve problems. Instead of worrying about physically moving from place to place, create a hunt that takes them on an intellectual journey. Have your team search through their own knowledge instead of the world around them. You can use entertaining wordplay and riddles in your clues and reference everyday office items. Your clues might say something like:
- “I make bones hard and tough but cookies nice and soft. What am I?” — milk
- “You cut me on a table, but you never eat me.” — a deck of cards
- “I have a board, but I’m not boring. It’s all in the pieces.” — a board game
Feel free to create a theme to tie your riddles together to help with more challenging concepts.
Use Common Pop Culture Trivia
Whether your team is remote or together in an office, pop culture trivia is often a great icebreaker for brand-new employees or teams. Employees may have a favorite movie, TV show, music artist, or video game. Take advantage of their interests by incorporating those themes into your scavenger hunt. You could ask questions like:
- “What are the names of the brothers who fought supernatural threats in the show Supernatural?” — Sam and Dean Winchester
- “Name the band from Liverpool that took the United States by storm in 1964.” — the Beatles
- “Name the fantasy book series with both an animated and a live-action movie series.” — can include Lord of the Rings or others
Pop culture and historical references can start entertaining discussions among team members. It is best to keep things light-hearted during team-building exercises. Avoid sensitive topics and include subjects that will allow for productive fun.
Take Advantage of Smart Technology
Many members of your corporate or employee team own a smartphone. Take advantage of your team’s access to technology by including elements such as:
- Hiding or displaying QR codes during the hunt
- Taking pictures of riddle solutions and comparing answers
- Using a professional scavenger hunt app
Part of the fun of a scavenger hunt is using problem-solving skills to come up with clever solutions. Technology is a great way you can foster that creativity. A scavenger hunt built around technology may also help limit the amount of movement that is necessary.
Break the Ice With Open-ended Questions
It can be difficult for a brand-new team of employees to converse about out-of-office topics. Get-to-know-you questions can help bring a team closer together during a scavenger hunt.
When space or physical activity is limited, ask questions about your employees’ skills that are unrelated to your line of work:
- “What’s the most complicated thing you know how to do in five minutes?”
- “Name your single greatest accomplishment before you turned 18.”
- “Tell me a story using an item on your desk.”
Sticking with themes can help you come up with some fun open-ended questions that can help your team feel more relaxed and engaged. Such questions are especially useful if your scavenger hunt happens remotely. These can be part of the scavenger hunt tasks or an introduction to the game. A time to connect before the game starts may help each team work better together and have more fun.
Work With a Professional Office Scavenger Hunt Designer
If you’re looking for an unforgettable team-building exercise, there are companies that specialize in creating scavenger hunts based on specific requirements and locations. No matter the size of your corporate group, professional relationship-builders can design the right office scavenger hunt activity for your team. They can come to your office and build an activity tailored to your space, taking into account any off-limits areas.
With a team of scavenger hunt designers on your side, you can save time and money on corporate team development. A well-designed scavenger hunt can help a team come closer together through problem-solving, time management, and creativity.
