If you’ve ever wondered what makes a Pinnacle Team Events facilitator tick then you have come to the right place! Each month we will be taking 5 minutes to chat with each of our facilitators about their lives both inside and outside of work.
What I love about being a Pinnacle Facilitator: The excitement and enthusiasm at each event. Our teams camaraderie!
How long I have been working for Pinnacle: 12 years.
My favourite Pinnacle team event to facilitate: Casino Night / Carnivale (a close game gets me so enthralled….)
Most embarrassing moment as a Pinnacle facilitator: Misjudging a storm cell on the radar as moving away from the activity at Magenta….need I say more.
My favourite hobbies are: Swimming, scuba, working on old cars, surfing, kite-surfing, learning french, repairing cigarette lighters, yachting, wine.
Band I’m listening to at the moment/podcast recommendation: Dave Matthews band
What was the last book you read?: Don’t forget to sing in the lifeboats.
Favourite holiday?: Stockton.
Have you ever had a nickname?: Pawso.
I am frightened by _____ : Lightning / bluebottles with long tentacles.
Favourite movie of all time: Dumb and dumber.
First concert I went to: Daryl Braithwaite.
If you could live anywhere, where would it be?: On a boat.
What makes you angry: Irresponsible dog owners/ getting stung by bluebottles with long tentacles
What makes you laugh the most: A good, solid, well placed dad joke.
What song would you sing at karaoke night?: Whitney Houston’s ‘I will always love you’.
Located just 90 minutes west from Sydney, the World-Heritage-listed Blue Mountains has some of the country’s most breathtaking natural attractions.
The temperature during the Winter months is quite cool, averaging at around 50 C. During this time, groups tend to opt for indoor activities or if they do decide to venture outside, do so during the day whilst the sun is high in the sky. Summer days can be quite mild at around 180 C; however, we would still recommend rugging up at night. Outdoor activities work well during this time and regardless of the time of year – with the right attitude and the appropriate clothing (layers!) there’s no reason why groups wouldn’t love an explore around the local sights!
We’ve put a list together of our top team
building ideas for the Blue Mountains for your next conference offsite:
The Explorer is an Amazing Race / Treasure Hunt style of program based around the local area surrounding your conference venue. The event is an action-packed 2 – 4-hour adventure that takes in all the sites of the Blue Mountains (including the Three Sisters) where each team is driven around the area in a minibus undertaking team challenges. Speed is not always the deciding factor with a strong emphasis on route selection, problem-solving skills and team effectiveness at each of the activities.
Teams of delegates will aim to find various ‘roadblocks’ hidden around the local area. Each team has a mini bus and driver who follow clues to find the roadblock activity sites. Awaiting the groups at each station are team-based activities that range from Laser Clay Shooting & Archery to Wine & Chocolate Tasting.
Upon completing each station, teams are given the next clue to their next destination. This event usually starts at the conference venue and finishes either at an off-site dinner location or back at the conference venue.
Scenic World Challenge
The Scenic World Challenge is an event designed specifically for groups conferencing in the beautiful Blue Mountains. The event takes place within Scenic World – a popular tourist destination that is home to the famous: Skyway, Cableway + Railway rides.
Delegates will be divided into teams that compete to outscore their opponents at various challenges spread around Scenic World. Teams will aim to score points at 4 Roadblock Activity sites strategically positioned around Scenic World so that the teams must ride Skyway, Cableway + Railway to reach these destinations.
Delegates will be given a daily pass to use all Scenic World experiences: Skyway, Cableway, Railway and Walkway to transport the teams between the various challenges. The event will be tailored to suit your outcomes, time frame and the venue to ensure the Scenic World Challenge exceeds all expectations. We will work in conjunction with Scenic World to ensure the event is appropriate for the logistics of time and numbers moving through the “rides”.
Roadblock Activities options include: Number Triangle, Nailed it, Eddy the Egg + Shape Shifter
The Mini Olympics is a fun activity that provokes competitiveness and plenty of laughter and doesn’t intimidate participants who may be lacking in sporting or physical prowess.
The event involves teams rotating around various sports such as Volleyball, Frisbee, Catapult Firing, T-Ball, Team Tennis, Dodge Ball, Kick Tennis, Sand Scrabble and many more. The options are endless and only dependent on the venue and the size of the group. Activities will be tailored to suit the location.
Each team participates in all of the activities and team scores are tallied to provide an overall winner. In a ceremony at the conclusion of the activity the winning team is presented with Olympic style gold medal medallions.
Experience
the thrill and excitement of shooting clay pigeons as they fly through the air.
This
dynamic and interactive activity uses authentic 12-gauge shotguns that have
been converted to fire laser beams. Clays with Omni-directional tape are fired
from the launcher – when the shooter scores a hit the beam is reflected back to
the gun and registers a hit on the electronic scoreboard.
This
activity is very popular and loads of fun for males and females of all ages,
fitness levels and ability.
Can
your team escape? This exciting Escape the Room challenge is the ultimate team
building event that will test the sharpest minds. Each team is “locked” in a
room with a set time frame in which to escape before the world as we know it
ceases to exist. Teams must follow the clues, solve the puzzles and unlock the
secrets to ESCAPE!
For
teams to be successful they must communicate, think outside the box, work
together, admit to their mistakes and believe they can succeed. All this under
extreme time pressure as each team has only 90 minutes to uncover the 8-digit
code that will ultimately allow them to escape the room.
This
event can be tailored to suit any size group by adding more rooms for more
teams. We recommend each team is between 8 – 12 people with each team requiring
1 room. Rooms can be conference rooms, hotel rooms, offices, boardrooms etc. Pinnacle
requires 30 minutes in each room prior to the event to set up.
Discover
the sommelier within! Pinnacle can provide you with your very own Hunter Valley
Winemaker who is willing to divulge the secret ingredients and methods required
to get the perfect wine from “Grape to Glass”. This unique and hands on
activity will have you smelling, swirling and spitting as teams learn to create
their very own winning blend. However, the taste alone won’t make you a
winner…how often have you bought a bottle of wine based on the sexy label?
Teams will also compete to create the greatest label that best reflects their fabulous
drop.
Design
and flavour are of paramount importance if you want to be the days “Grape to
Glass” winning team… But of course, the competition wouldn’t be complete
without the perfect sales pitch to your thirsty audience. A bottle of the
winning blend complete with winning label design will be distributed to every
member of the group to drink as they wish.
Give back to the community in this amazing working bee event. Delegates are given the task of turning a room full of boxed toys, dry goods and gifts into hampers for needy families. Pinnacle provides everything from the contents to the hampers to the wrapping and individualised cards to be written by your delegates to the family receiving that hamper. An overwhelming sense of pride and achievement will fill the room as the charity partner presents a thankyou speech on behalf of the families. Pinnacle will liaise with you to ensure that the event is tailored to your company. We can include your products and we can partner with your preferred charity group to ensure that the event has maximum impact. Often companies like to include the delegates beforehand by holding a charity drive within the workplace to include more toys and alike ….. the options are endless.
For a team to be successful, strong and effective communication is paramount. When employees understand the goals of the company and feel like their opinions matter, they are far more likely to reach their potential which means an increase in productivity.
Communication also refers to more than just
talking. It’s about connecting with people. How can you encourage effective
communication in your workplace?
Have an open-door policy. People need to feel comfortable with approaching management when they have a question or concern.
Encourage questions & curiosity. Employees need to feel safe and comfortable that they can ask questions without feeling any kind of embarrassment or criticism.
Avoid time wasting. No one enjoys attending the weekly work meeting going over a topic that does not relate to their role. Ensure that meetings and one-on-one catchups are utilised efficiently.
Don’t overuse email. Sometimes a question is better answered with a quick face-to-face chat.
Provide opportunities for employees to connect. Pinnacle has a range of Team Activities specially designed to help boost communication in teams. See below for our top picks:
Teams with the best communication will thrive in this challenge! The Amazing Race is an action-packed adventure where teams navigate their way around the conference resort or local area undertaking team-based challenges.
Once teams have collectively decided on their route selection they will make their way to the activity sites, where they will be further challenged in a series of lateral thinking, problem solving tasks including:
Number Triangle – Nine numbered
tiles are laid out in a triangle shape. The team moves the tiles so that the
addition of the numbers is equal on each side
Pyramids – Teams are
racing to rebuild a pyramid that can only be structured from bottom to top.
Shape Shifter – Using memory
and instinct teams must recreate a series of original shapes
Skyscraper – Teams must work
together to build a lofty skyscraper using all seven building blocks without
the structure toppling over.
Eddy the Egg – Teams construct
a space capsule device out of straws and tape to catch a raw egg dropped from 2
metres.
A great activity for seeing how your team communicates under pressure! This fun and competitive team event is based on the hit TV show Survivor. To begin, delegates will be separated into their teams known as tribes. Then the competition begins! The tribes will compete against each other at a series of “Survivor Style” team challenges. These challenges focus more on lateral thinking/problem solving/teamwork than strength.
Points are awarded for the winning tribe at each challenge with the tribe with the highest score at the conclusion of the event heading to tribal council in the best position. Unlike the TV Show, tribes will not vote members out of their team, instead, teams will vote to determine the overall winner! This is a fun and engaging team event that ensures collaboration, communication, problem solving and teamwork. Example challenges include:
Cubes – Can your team
solve this 3D Rubix Cube?
Wonder Word – Using 9 letters
teams must make as many words as possible with bonus points of the 9 letter
word.
Nailed It – It appears
impossible however if you think outside the square you can balance 12 nails on
just one nail head.
Zoom – Teams must
arrange the order of the famous picture story Zoom.
Bamboo Towers – Teams build a
free standing tower using bamboo sticks and display their team number at the
top. The winners are the team with the highest tower
Water Pipeline – A challenge whereby teams are issued with equipment to construct a pipeline that must transport 2 litres of water from A to B. The team that successfully manages to transport the most water in the time frame will win!
Are you looking for an event that will get your WHOLE TEAM WORKING AS ONE? Project Pipeline is a team challenge that requires participants to consider their own goals, the goals of their work team and the goals of the entire company.
This is a challenging construction task that divides the company into working teams. Each team will be assigned a country and the task of building a pipeline to deliver a precious resource from one side to the other. On top of managing time, resources and personnel to build their Country’s, pipeline teams will also need to negotiate and innovate to connect their pipeline to their neighbouring Country’s creating one continuous pipeline. Teams will need to work against time and conflicting objectives to achieve the whole company goal.
Delegates will have great fun, planning, negotiating, inventing and competing against the other Country’s to create their Pipeline. By the completion of the project, the whole group will have built a long and winding pipeline that is put to the test when the precious resources are sent down the line.
Can
your team escape? This exciting Escape the Room challenge is the ultimate team
building event that will test the sharpest minds. Each team is “locked” in a
room with a set time frame in which to escape before the world as we know it
ceases to exist. Teams must follow the clues, solve the puzzles and unlock the
secrets to ESCAPE!
For
teams to be successful they must communicate, think outside the box, work
together, admit to their mistakes and believe they can succeed. All this under
extreme time pressure as each team has only 90 minutes to uncover the 8-digit
code that will ultimately allow them to escape the room.
This
event can be tailored to suit any size group by adding more rooms for more
teams. We recommend each team is between 8 – 12 people with each team requiring
1 room. Rooms can be conference rooms, hotel rooms, offices, boardrooms etc. Pinnacle
requires 30 minutes in each room prior to the event to set up.
An
exciting collaborative construction project with teams working in unison to
design and construct an impressive bridge. Each team builds the bridge to their
customer expectations while overcoming limited resources, communication
barriers and strict timelines. The exciting final sees each team’s individual
bridge being installed to create the huge, extended Company Bridge. The final
construction is tested with a remote controlled car. A fun, engaging, hands on
event with very powerful metaphors – where all departments of an organisation
strive towards their own goals, but also play a vital role in the bigger
picture.
Option One: 60 – 90 minutes
Teams
are given equal equipment to build their section of the bridge and complete the
finale activity joining all sections of the bridge. The remote controlled cars
are driven by the delegates around the bridge to test the overall success of
the task.
Option Two: 2 – 3 hours
Teams
must earn the pieces of their bridge by successfully completing a series of
team based tasks.
Good communication starts with LISTENING. And along with making quite a lot of noise, corporate drumming will get your team doing just that. This whole activity is facilitated without our host actually speaking a word, it is all done via gestures and non-verbal communication.
Delegates will enter the conference room and will be greeted by the sounds of drumming from our team. They are invited to take a seat, pick up a drum (or another instrument) and join in. Our host facilitator will orchestrate the individual contributions of your group into one unified rhythm, through the use of layering and sound dynamics. Demonstrating although different teams may be working within their own separate groups, they can still be cohesively working together towards a larger, common goal.
The award-winning, 4-star Estate Tuscany, set on 26 acres in the heart of Hunter Valley Wine County; focused on planning every detail ensuring a memorable and successful meeting, celebration or conference.
With 2 function/conference spaces; The Fountain View Room which can be divided into 2 rooms and The Conservatory overlooking the swimming pool; a unique meeting or private dining room. Breakout rooms are also available.
38 boutique rooms, 26 Olive Grove; decorated in a guest house style with wooden sleigh beds, overlooking a bush land setting where you can be greeted by grazing kangaroos or 12 Vineyard View rooms with a contemporary style, undercover parking with arguably the most true “Hunter Valley View” of the vineyards.
Estate
wide high-speed wireless Internet access providing
Estate
Tuscany offers a variety in dining options in The Mill Complex recognised by
the Yellowtail windmill, situated atop a ridge offering a Hunter view second to
none; the Mill Restaurant for a fusion rustic a la carte meal, Brokenback BBQ
& Tapas Bar for a casual affair and The Conservatory, for private dinners
or cooking schools. Estate Tuscany is home to Andrew Thomas Wines cellar door
and Binnorie Dairy cheese factory.
There is
always a Conference Coordinator available for your needs; providing itemised
programs containing all the finer details; let Tuscany take the administration
out of your schedule. We will meet you on arrival and our conference host will
attend to any of your needs throughout the stay; working with Estate Tuscany
will ensure a seamless and successful event.
If you’ve ever wondered what makes a Pinnacle Team Events facilitator tick then you have come to the right place! Each month we will be taking 5 minutes to chat with each of our facilitators about their lives both inside and outside of work.
What I love about being a Pinnacle Facilitator: It truly is a fun Environment, the clients have fun, the staff are fun, it’s all positive and not overly serious or stressful. Everyone’s a winner … except team 7😦.
How long I have been working for Pinnacle: My first assignment was … Spring of 2014.
My favourite Pinnacle team event to facilitate: Trivia Night
Most embarrassing moment as a Pinnacle facilitator: So running a “checkpoint activity” for 2hrs+ in the heart of Kings Cross can be ….interesting. I gave away a few eggs to my new friends 😬
My favourite hobbies are: Well anything in the sea, then a good book , and I enjoy cooking..sometimes.
Band I’m listening to at the moment/podcast recommendation: My son keeps me current on the latest music, so a bit of “Vance Joy”. I love so many podcasts, my go-to is ABC conversations with Fiedler. Amazing stories.
What was the last book you read?: I’m reading up on Antarctica now, I’m heading there in Feb 2020.
Favourite holiday?: I travel a lot overseas, So anywhere in nature with the family now.
Have you ever had a nickname?: Not really, Eamon is weird enough. One mate called me Lama, or was it Llama?
I am frightened by _____ : Enormous waves when I’m in the wrong spot. They look like they will swallow you.
Favourite movie of all time: Too many options. “O’ Brother where art though” gets a mention, as does “Fantastic Mr Fox” and other wacky Wes Anderson films.
First concert I went to: Hoodoo Gurus , 1989 maybe ?
If you could live anywhere, where would it be?: I love where I live… Sth Coast NSW. Dream location though has, running rapid rivers into jagged coastline, with awesome surfing in spots. Also backed by great climbing cliff lines and canyons and topped by snowy mountains just asking to be climbed and skied. Oh and a quiet but culturally active town with loads of multicultural influences and good people, that’s all.
What makes you angry: Nnot much, ..aggressive drivers maybe? My computer.
What makes you laugh the most: Busy humans mostly.
What song would you sing at karaoke night?: Maybe the Spanish National Anthem… ( no words) or “La Bamba”.
Located just 90 minutes from Sydney and only 20 minutes north of Terrigal, Pullman Magenta Shores Resort is an exceptional conference & event, golf, and spa resort offering a stunning beachfront setting.
Nestled
between the Pacific Ocean and Tuggerah Lake, this magnificent resort is set on
52 acres and offers beautifully appointed studio accommodation and one-, two-
and three-bedroom villas.
Set
amongst landscaped gardens and just a short stroll from all resort facilities
and the beach, all villas include open plan living areas, fully equipped
kitchens with European appliances, laundry facilities and private furnished
courtyards or balconies. Every room enjoys views of the golf course , lagoon,
rock pools or landscaped gardens.
Pullman
Magenta Shores Resort features six modern conference and event venues along
with customised planning and catering services to ensure a successful event for
you and your guests.
The
Resort has excellent leisure facilities including the private Ross Watson
designed 18 hole championship Golf Course, 3 swimming areas, including a 20
metre indoor heated lap pool, Rock Pools or the Lagoon Pool with seasonal pool
bar.
Vie Spa consists
of luxuriously treatment rooms, including a tranquil spa garden designed to
deliver the ultimate relaxation.
Dining facilities include Barrett’s
Restaurant offering fine food and the stunning vistas of
Magenta lake, and Shallows bar, with an extensive cocktail menu, Tapestry menu
designed by the Famous chef Justin North as well as Wood Fired Pizza oven and
Al Fresco Dining and wood fire option.
Conference Capacity: Up to 300 guests
Accommodation: Studios, 1,2 & 3 bedroom villas – 55 in total + beach houses and golf villas
Unique features: Beachfront location with extensive grounds perfect for team building and outdoor dinners, cocktail parties and events.
Specials:Click here to view their 2019 Early Bird Booking Offer
The average person will spend just under 80 years on this
earth. From those years, 26 of them will be spent sleeping and just over 13 of
them will be spent working. Given the time and dedication we give to work each
year, is it unreasonable to expect the majority of this time to be a positive,
happy experience?
A 2017 report on how satisfied are Australians at work by Curtin University & MWAH found that although salary matters, there are many other factors that contribute to an employee’s overall happiness that are equally (if not more) important.
“It’s what you do, how you are able to go about your work
and who is alongside you that matters the most when it comes to job
satisfaction.”
The authors of the report recommend that both employers and
employees should dedicate resources into creating ways to make work a better
place for everyone. To make sure everyone fits and that above all else, put
people and their wellbeing first.
What are the benefits of happy workers?
It is well known that happy employees equal engaged
employees. And engaged employees have a significant positive affect on your organisation’s
bottom line. Employees that feel greater satisfaction and happiness at work tend
to be more productive and have lower levels of sick leave and staff turnover.
In the words of Richard Branson, founder of the Virgin Group
renowned for his “employees first” mantra:
“By putting the employee first, the customer effectively
comes first by default, and in the end, the shareholder comes first by default
as well.”
Likewise, Harvey Norman’s Gerry Harvey and Katie Page dedicate
a lot of their time to mentoring staff as, “happy workers mean happy customer. People
spend so much time at work … it’s crazy if they aren’t feeling happy.”
Put simply, happy people are better workers.
In her article, “Being Happy at Work
Matters”, through her research Annie McKee suggests that people essentially
want three things:
A meaningful vision of the future: People want to be able to see the future and know how they fit in.
A sense of purpose: People want to feel as if their work matters, and that their contributions help to achieve something really important. They want to know that they — and their organizations — are doing something big that matters to other people.
Great relationships: Leaders, managers, and employees have all told us that close, trusting and supportive relationships are hugely important to their state of mind — and their willingness contribute to a team.
So how might you encourage your team members to have great relationships with one another? Most the time this doesn’t just happen naturally, which means employers need to create opportunities for their team to interact, bond and get to know each other better. By engaging Pinnacle Team Events we can facilitate this for you and tailor a team building program to suit the specific needs and characteristics of your team. Contact us to find out more.
The Hunter Valley is one of Australia’s oldest & best-known wine regions with over 120 wineries, award-winning restaurants and an abundance of distinguished hotels & resorts. Located only 2 hours from Sydney and 45 mins from Newcastle airport, the Hunter Valley is the ideal location for your next conference getaway.
A trip to the Hunter Valley will naturally conjure the desire to
immerse yourself in a little tasting of the local delicacies (including wine,
cheese & chocolate) as well as simply wanting to be outside in the
beautiful lush, green surroundings. It is sacrilegious to go to the Hunter Valley
for your conference offsite & spend the whole time indoors going through PowerPoint
presentations. That is why Pinnacle Team Events have designed a series of bespoke,
Hunter Valley themed team building experiences that can be easily incorporated
into your conference agenda AND can be justified to management for their team
building benefits. See below for our list of the top team building ideas for
the Hunter Valley:
For teams wanting to get outside & have some fun together whilst
competing in a series of novelty, wine-themed events.
Rather than running, jumping and swimming your way to victory,
teams will tackle a very different series of events – an array of winery
related activities that will guarantee a good time.
Grape
Stomping – Teams race against each other to stomp enough grapes to fill a
wine bottle.
Waiter
Relay – Teams race against each other whilst carrying a tray of wine
glasses
Cork Toss – Each
team receives a box of corks which they must throw into a barrel with the aim
of outscoring opponents.
Wine
Spitting – Delegates are taught the art of spitting wine and compete
against the other teams to see how much they can land in their spittoon.
Grape
Catapults – Teams fire bunches of grapes via replicated catapults towards a
landing zone where strategically positioned team members await ready to catch
Stole it
from the Grape Vine – Once teams have built their own grape vine
the competition begins! Players steal bunches of grapes from another teams
grape vine and attach to their own. The team with the most bunches of grapes at
the end wins!
Discover the sommelier within! Pinnacle can provide you with your
very own Hunter Valley Winemaker who is willing to divulge the secret
ingredients and methods required to get the perfect wine from “Grape to Glass”.
This unique and hands on activity will have you smelling, swirling and spitting
as teams learn to create their very own winning blend. However, the taste alone
won’t make you a winner…how often have you bought a bottle of wine based on the
sexy label? Teams will also compete to create the greatest label that best
reflects their fabulous drop.
Design and flavour are of paramount importance if you want to be
the days “Grape to Glass” winning team… But of course, the competition wouldn’t
be complete without the perfect sales pitch to your thirsty audience. A bottle
of the winning blend complete with winning label design will be distributed to
every member of the group to drink as they wish.
Location: Indoors, 1 x table per team Duration: 2 Hours Outcomes: Creativity, Experiential, Sales
Ask us about combining the Wine Olympics & Grape to Glass activities & receive a special ‘combo’ price!
For the group wanting to get a taste of all the Hunter Valley has
to offer whilst achieving some team bonding at the same time.
The Hunter Valley Explorer is an Amazing Race / Treasure Hunt
style of program based around the Pokolbin area. The event is an action packed
3 – 4 hour adventure where each team is driven around the area in a mini bus
undertaking team challenges – speed is not always the deciding factor with a
strong emphasis on route selection, problem solving skills and team effectiveness
at each of the activities.
Teams of delegates will aim to find various ‘road blocks’ hidden
around the Pokolbin area. Each team has a mini bus and driver who follow clues
to find the road block activity sites. Awaiting the groups at each station are
team based activities that range from Laser Clay Shooting to landing the Aqua
Golf to Archery to Cheese Tasting Quiz to Blind Wine Tasting. Upon completing
each station, teams receive a clue to their next destination.
Location: Both Indoors & Outdoors Duration: 2 – 4 Hours Outcomes: Fun, Experiential, Collaboration, Friendly Competition, Problem Solving
Wanting to treat your team after a hard day conferencing &
only have a short amount of time between your conference & dinner? Check
out our Wine Events below:
Wine Tasting:
Treat your team to a wine tasting to cap off a hard days conferencing. Hosted by Tulloch Wines from the Hunter Valley the Wine Tasting session allows your team to relax, unwind, connect with each other and learn a little about some of the region’s best wine. We can either host the wine tasting onsite at your conference venue or offsite at Tulloch Wines.
Location: Indoors or outdoors Duration: 45 – 60 mins
Wine & Chocolate Tasting:
Experience
the decadence of Australian made chocolate as you partner each one with the
mouth-watering flavours of Tulloch Wines. This guided tasting session will take
your taste buds on an amazing journey as you discover how pairing wine with
chocolate can enhance two of life’s great indulgences. This sit down event will
see participants experience 5 different wines that have been specifically
paired with 5 delicious chocolates. Participants will take home knowledge of
the rules of pairing so they can complement their favourite wines at home with
the most appropriate chocolate.
Location: Indoors set with tables & chairs Duration: 1 hour
Wine Options Game:
The Wine Options Game is a fun, entertaining and competitive way to share a wine with the team. This event is hosted by Tulloch Wines during pre-dinner drinks inside your private dining room. The “game” sees each delegate receive a “mystery” glass of wine. The host from Tulloch will ask questions, general at first, about the wine in everyone’s glass.
• ‘Is this wine from the northern or
southern hemisphere’?
• ‘Does this wine taste oaked or
unoaked’?
• ‘Is the alcohol content in this wine low or high’?
Those giving the wrong answer in each round must sit down and are eliminated from the game until the year and grape variety has been correctly discovered. The winner will receive a bottle of that wine and the game moves onto the next wine. There are 3 wines in total with each game taking approximately 10 minutes so allow 30 minutes overall.
Location: Indoors in a private dining room before dinner Duration: 30 – 40 mins
This ancient form of medieval weaponry is a great event to get
your team on target! In this engaging activity a structured lesson involving
technique and safety are outlined and enforced. The delegates are then divided
into teams that compete aiming to outscore their opponents. All delegates will
have plenty of firing time and be kept entertained as teams are involved in
various competitions and games that all involve shooting arrows at the target.
The event can finish with a sharpest individual shooter if you like.
As this event involves delegates firing real arrows the space
available to host this activity must allow for a large firing range. We are
permitted to hold the event on private land such as conference venues however
most councils do not allow this event on public land.
The majority of Hunter Valley hotels & resorts have an
abundance of space perfect for our Amazing Race program!
The Amazing Race On Site is an action-packed adventure where teams navigate their way around the conference resort undertaking team-based challenges. Speed is not always the deciding factor with an emphasis on teamwork, planning, problem-solving and of course having fun.
Teams will be issued with a map of the resort and cryptic clues to various locations hidden around the grounds. Awaiting the groups at each location are team-based activities known as “roadblocks” that will be tailored to suit your outcomes and the venue. All teams converge at the finale location at the same time for a final all-in team challenge before prizes are awarded to the victors! Some example challenges include:
Number Triangle – Nine numbered tiles are laid out in a triangle shape. The team moves the tiles so that the addition of the numbers is equal on each side.
Catapults – Teams fire tennis balls via replicated catapults towards a landing zone where strategically positioned team members await ready to catch.
Shape Shifter – Using memory and instinct teams must recreate a series of original shapes
Wonder Word – Using 9 letters teams must make as many words as possible with bonus points of the 9 letter word.
Pyramids – Teams are racing to rebuild a pyramid that can only be structured from bottom to top.
Archery – Participants have the opportunity to channel Robin Hood in this mediaeval form of weaponry.
Laser Clay Shooting – Experience the thrill and excitement of shooting clay pigeons as they fly through the air!
Location: Outdoors Duration: 1.5 – 3.5 Hours Outcomes: Fun, Collaboration, Problem Solving, Team Work, Friendly Competition
Team building is one of the most important investments you can make for your team, and yet when we’re busy or if budget is an issue it is often the item that gets pushed to the bottom of the priority list.
“[Team Building] builds trust, mitigates conflict, encourages communication, and increases collaboration. Effective team building means more engaged employees, which is good for company culture and boosting the bottom line,” founder and CEO of O2E Brands, Brian Scudamore.
With one month of 2019 already down, it can take us all by surprise how quickly time flies! Particularly at this time of year, taking the team out of the office for a day may be completely unfathomable, the cost of the activity itself along with the missed work time may seem like a lavish expense. In reality, employees who don’t work well together or who aren’t engaged could end up costing you just as much, if not more business.
We’ve put a list together of our top activities to get your
team excited and energised for the year ahead.
Ignite the mood & energy of your team with an
interactive performance using drums, musical tubes and percussion instruments. Your
group will feel entirely exhilarated after creating a musical masterpiece under
the guidance of our Professional Drummer, who doesn’t speak throughout the
entire tuition! The session begins with members of your team playing their own
individual contributions. Our facilitator then moulds these into one piece of
unified music. The drumming session will leave your team laughing and unified,
ready for the year ahead.
If you haven’t heard of an Escape Room please crawl out from the rock you’ve been hiding under! Escape Rooms are currently all the rage and we know why; they are great for team building! Essentially, players are “locked” inside a room and given the task of solving a series of clues within a set time frame to escape. There are many reasons that Escape rooms make great team building activities, with the top being:
Your team members set a common goal & work together to achieve it – just like you’d like them to do in the office!
Everyone is engaged & onboard – problem solving under
the pressure of a time limit forces teams to tackle problems swiftly and efficiently.
Team members also have to delegate various tasks & have trust in their team
members.
Escape rooms can help teams to better understand individual
strengths and weaknesses revealing communication, thinking styles and team dynamics.
We all know the old saying ‘there is no I in team’, and when
individual employees work toward their own objectives it can become impossible for
the team to be productive. On the other hand, working toward common goals is
one of the defining characteristics of a successful team. If you would like to
kick off the new year by bringing your team together & get them collaborating
& working together towards a common goal our Bridge to Unity program is
ideal.
Bridge to Unity is an exciting collaborative construction
project with teams working in unison to design and construct an impressive
bridge. Each team builds the bridge to their customer expectations while
overcoming limited resources, communication barriers and strict timelines. The
exciting final sees each team’s individual bridge being installed to create the
huge, extended Company Bridge. The final construction is tested with a remote
controlled car. A fun, engaging, hands on event with very powerful metaphors –
where all departments of an organisation strive towards their own goals, but
also play a vital role in the bigger picture.
Giving Back Events
You may or may not have heard the term Corporate Social Responsibility
(CSR) before. CSR is a term that refers to the responsibility of an
organisation for the impacts of its decisions and activities on society and the
environment, through transparent and ethical behaviour. As we’ve already
mentioned, team building activities help to unify and motivate your team. CSR
team building activities do all that our usual team building programs can do
with the added bonus of making a positive difference in the lives of people who
need it most. Unite your team, boost morale and strengthen bonds by
giving back to those less fortunate with your team.
The Pitch is an exciting innovation challenge that
replicates the famous TV show Shark Tank & requires lots of teamwork,
creativity, forward-thinking and great presentation skills. The challenge will
see teams creating a product or service they will pitch to a judge (Shark). The
aim of the teams is to convince the judge that their business is a sound
investment and for the judge to buy to their start up business. This event
allows team full creative licence to develop their business idea and present it
in any way they choose. The judge(s) will have $1 million to distribute amongst
the teams….. the team that receives the most money wins.
Each
accommodation room is beautifully appointed and opens out to a private balcony
or courtyard. Guests can avail themselves of our tennis courts, resort-style
swimming pool, sauna, spa, the Lodge library and many other facilities
including the Hunter Valley Gardens shopping village and the spectacular
display gardens.
Our
Conference and Function Centre provides comprehensive, first-class facilities
and a venue which suits any occasion- gala dinners, special events, sales
presentations, training seminars and product launches. Whether it’s for two or
300 people, we will tailor your conference to your needs.
In
keeping with our commitment to excellence, we offer business facilities and
extensive opportunities for team building activities. All functions are catered
by our award-winning Chef, Jean Marc Pollet, and a dedicated conference
management team is always on hand to ensure all your arrangements run smoothly
leaving you (and your delegates) to enjoy the Mercure Resort Hunter Valley
Gardens conference experience.
Conference Capacity: 300
Number of Accommodation Rooms: 72
Unique Features:
Meeting rooms with natural light
Indoor & outdoor space for onsite team building activities
Complimentary WIFI & parking
Located within walking distance to 5 cellar doors & Hunter Valley Gardens
Testimonials:
“Just a quick note to say thank you so much for last week. Our experience at the Mercure was just wonderful. Please pass on our thanks to all the staff that helped make the couple of days such a success. Everyone was so efficient and friendly. We look forward to coming up again”
