The awkward toasts. The French press and cocktail shaker close-ups. Even the cats who scamper in from off-screen.
If you’re like many people who used to work in an office and are now stuck at home, you’ve likely gotten a bit tired of the tropes and rituals of Zoom coffee breaks and happy hours. While Zoom (or any other videoconferencing tool) might seem less demanding than in-person events, since there’s no need to leave your home or even put on pants, researchers have found video sessions can be their own source of stress. That’s in part due to factors such as the need to focus on facial cues from tiny pictures and fears of technical failures or other surprises, such as pets, kids, or spouses entering the frame, that apply to work social events as much as more formal meetings.
But even if you’ve come to dread Zoom happy hour, many of us still crave the social side of work and want to connect with our colleagues. Companies also have a vested interest in helping their employees communicate and work well together—which can be more difficult to achieve remotely. Remote teams often have to make special efforts to ensure workers are engaged and collaborating well, says Gibb Dyer, a professor at Brigham Young University’s Marriott School of Business who has written extensively about team building.
“Virtual teams have to check their process or critique their process more often, I think, than do the colocated teams,” he says. “It’s very easy to get off track and to lose a team member on a virtual team so they’re not engaged.”
Joyce WeissI have to use the word boredom, because we are all Zoomed or [Microsoft] Teamsed out.”
That’s why some companies are going beyond Zoom happy hour and turning to a host of virtual activities, from trivia to icebreaker games to in-home scavenger hunts. Their goal? To help keep workers entertained and connected while the pandemic makes it impossible to go down to the corner bar, a rustic cabin, or the local escape room. Using a variety of activities such as these can help stave off fatigue, says Joyce Weiss, a Michigan-based communication strategist and career coach. “I have to use the word boredom, because we are all Zoomed or [Microsoft] Teamsed out,” she says. “We have to make it exciting.”
Trivia by email
As companies look for ways to keep people motivated and talking to coworkers even informally, some are turning to games such as those from Water Cooler Trivia. The company builds online trivia games that are text-focused and accessible by email or Slack, meaning it’s possible to play with coworkers without triggering that Zoom fatigue. It can also adapt questions to company needs, says CEO and cofounder Collin Waldoch. “We have companies in the insurance industry who get an insurance question each week,” he says.
