18 Work Social Event Ideas for the Office in 2023

You found our list of unique work social event ideas.

Work social event ideas are activities that allow team members to relax and socialize with one another in a setting other than the workplace. Examples include scavenger hunts, cooking showdowns, and escape room games. The purpose of these events is to boost employee morale and create a friendly and respectful atmosphere for interaction.

These ideas are similar to conference entertainment ideas, corporate party entertainment ideas, and fun social committee ideas for work.

This article includes:

• large work social event ideas
• workplace social event ideas
• social event ideas for adults
• office social event ideas
• team social ideas for work

Here we go!

List of unique work social event ideas

The success and smooth operation of every company depend on the cohesiveness of its staff. Therefore, it is important to encourage teamwork and foster a healthy working environment through entertaining social events that promote morale. The following are some workplace social event ideas you can try.

1. Scavenger Hunt

For your next social event, you can plan a citywide scavenger hunt on a nice day. First, divide the group into teams, and send each team in a different direction with a list of prompts and challenges. After spending time in the open air, your team will feel refreshed and ready to take on the day. You should remember to take plenty of photos, including some just ridiculous, so you can show them off in a slideshow when you all get back together after the event.

Some themes to consider include:

• Office scavenger hunt
• Photo hunt
• Nature hunts
• Neighborhood hunt
• Travel hunt

Alternatively, you might go on a “Random Acts of Kindness” quest. This team-building exercise has participants divide into smaller groups and carry out tasks designed to help strangers in the vicinity. Groups score points for every good deed.

Check out this list of scavenger hunt ideas.

2. Group Murder Mystery

Corporate office party games are a necessary addition to every business social event. At now, murder mystery dinners are pretty well-liked as an engaging game. During these roleplaying socials, players must cooperate in uncovering the mystery and apprehending the murderer.

Each guest will have a designated job to do when the party begins. One group member will play the “murderer” role. The rest of the group will have to attempt to figure out who it is and gather evidence to prove it, while the “murderer” may try to foil their efforts.

Check out this list of virtual murder mystery games.

3. Cooking Showdown

Cooking Showdowns are tasty way to bond as a group while giving every team member a chance to flaunt their cooking skills. Developing original recipes together will test the team’s resourcefulness and ability to work together and take the lead.

You should divide the team into subgroups, assign each group a different kind of food, and see what culinary masterpieces they can create. There is a wide range of possible foods, including pizza, salsa, or ice cream. You can also get creative by asking team members in a culturally-diverse team to whip up a local cuisine from another employee’s country.

Another twist is to select a single ingredient, such as maple syrup or Oreos, that all groups must utilize. Or, have them be inventive with their menus, for instance, by making imaginatively-shaped pizzas.

Here is a guide to doing cook-offs at the office.

4. Annual Awards Night

A fun social event idea is to host an awards ceremony for your firm. You can get branded trophies or medals and start with some serious and humorous categories to get the event rolling. Best dressed, most outgoing, office clown, and most friendly are all possible categories for these awards.

The awards ceremony is fantastic because it can be lavish without being too expensive. You can host the event at a cheap restaurant with the whole staff or as part of a company summer barbecue. In addition, award ceremonies can make employees feel appreciated and strengthen team bonds.

An award party requires advanced preparation. You can make the award party the highlight of the year with an amazing venue and a clever and unique theme. The event’s activities and food should align with the theme you create. For a memorable team building experience, consider renting a castle and hosting knightly activities. Alternatively, you may throw a big summer party for all your workers and their family. Combining an award celebration with an activity like geocaching makes for a fun and memorable team building experience.

You can reserve a venue where you may have a private dinner complete with linens, centerpieces, and a delicious three-course meal! In addition, many establishments provide discounted packages that contain all the services you need.

Check out more employee recognition program ideas.

5. Board Game Competition

This in-office activity is perfect for bringing out the competitive spirit of your staff. You can choose a single game and have each team member sign up for specified periods when they can leave their workstations and spend some time playing the game. Boggle, Jenga, and even traditional card games are all fantastic options that players can finish in a fair amount of time. You can also reward first, second, and third-place finishers with gifts.

Here is a list of the best team building board games.

6. Office Trivia Night

Trivia at the workplace is a great way to get team members together and test their knowledge in areas that are not directly related to their professions. You can divide the office into groups of four or more and hold a trivia competition, rewarding the top teams with tokens of appreciation for their efforts. Typically, there are four or five questions per category in a trivia game, with additional questions available at the end if desired.

Each question may have its own point value, or you can offer each side a fixed number of points to wager across all categories. Each team may then wager as many points per question as they want until they exhaust all of their points in that category.

Check out these lists of trivia topics and trivia night ideas.

7. Team Wellness Event

An employee wellness event is a great perk to include in your benefits package. Multiple studies have shown that employee reward programs can increase employee satisfaction and positively affect retention rates. A Glassdoor study shows that more than 80 percent of workers in the age bracket of 18 to 44 would choose an increase in benefits over a pay raise.

At its best, wellness events may include various practices to improve one’s state of mind and body. With this event, you can provide the groundwork for a supportive work environment where workers are encouraged to take care of their mental and physical well-being and to ask for assistance if they need it.

Check out this list of employee wellness ideas.

8. Sports Day

A sports day at the office is a fun way to promote healthy habits and collaboration. This low-cost solution encourages healthy competition and open communication between smaller firms, making it a terrific choice. Workers in a traditional workplace may spend eight or more hours behind a desk daily. Therefore, spending a whole workday outdoors, even if your employees dislike sports, is sure to excite them.

You can visit the local park and play a few fast games. Activities like five-a-side football, wheelbarrow races, and the good old egg-and-spoon relay fall under this category. You can divide the group into two and order new t-shirts for each team. The victorious group might get rewards like a half-day vacation or a free meal at a nice restaurant.

Here is a guide to doing team field days.

9. Gala Ball

A Gala ball is an expensive office party for a special occasion, such as the holidays or the end-of-the-year bash. Gala balls held at event spaces are a fantastic opportunity to show appreciation to staff. You can make the gala ball a themed event, like black-and-white bow ties, murder mystery, and roaring ’20s Gatsby.

You can rent a banquet hall with linens, centerpieces, and draperies. You can also have a dance floor and a DJ. Your workers will appreciate the chance to unwind from the daily grind with a three-course dinner and beverages. You may make the event an awards ceremony by recognizing the office ham, top earner, and chattiest staff members.

10. Sales Practice

Sale practice is one of the team social ideas for work that lets your colleagues hone their selling skills and have fun. Even if your team is not in marketing, every participant may benefit from this exercise in creative problem-solving. Each team gets an item, ranging from the commonplace to the outlandish to participate in this building activity. Then, each group has five minutes to devise an innovative advertisement to sell the item. The team with the most original advert wins in each round.

11. Movie Day

Hosting a movie day is an ideal way to unwind and have fun at work, making the activity ideal for a work social event. You can rent a projector screen, clear out a space, and bring in refreshments, bean bags, and the staff’s favorite movies. As an extra gesture, order pizza delivery.

This event is a fantastic opportunity for your staff to relax and take a mental health day. Giving your workers a break from their routine every once in a while is crucial, and rewarding them with team-building days out or relaxing movie days is a great way to do both.

Here is a list of team building movies.

12. Escape Room Games

Escape rooms are a fun way to bring your group closer together by testing players’ leadership, collaboration, reasoning, and patience. Groups worldwide are turning to room escape games to foster cooperation and communication among members.

A group of individuals is “locked” in a room together for one hour. Within that time constraint, the players must search for clues and solve riddles to unlock the door that will help them ‘escape.’ The game is challenging, and only 20 percent of players make it out before the hour is over.

You may always hire a business to turn your workplace into an escape room if you do not know how to do it yourself. Some companies provide business escape rooms to encourage collaboration and build teamwork. An escape room is a terrific way to bring happiness, fond memories to the place where you and your colleagues spend so much time every day. Of course, you can also take a trip to a physical escape room near you.

Here is a list of DIY escape room ideas.

13. Pet Party

Some companies will go to your location to provide a private petting zoo with adorable animals. A petting party is a great fun choice if you can spare a few hundred dollars from your budget. Some of your employees will enjoy cuddling a baby rabbit or hedgehog. If the animals are not around for the whole event, let your team know the duration.

Alternatively, you can invite your employees’ favorite furry, feathery, or scaly companion to the company event. You could get to know each other’s pets and share fun stories. Before bringing your pet to work, you should verify the policy about pets.

For more fun with animals, check out this list of the best office pets.

14. Laser Tag

Laser tag is one of the social event ideas for adults that gets your blood pounding fast. The event is a lot of fun and gives workers a chance to practice their abilities to work together and use logic and strategy to win. Having players dress up and form teams in advance is a fun bonus. In addition to being a great way to get the competitive juices flowing and let off steam, laser tag is also great for bringing the team together. When playing laser tag, players don special vests and carry laser guns into a playing field. Once ready to play, you will want to ensure you do not get shot while trying to take out the other squad.

15. Adventure Thrill

Creating an event that will get the blood pumping and the hearts racing is a terrific idea for a company social event. Your employees will enjoy a nice theme park and a thrilling rollercoaster. If you are an adventure-loving crew, offering your staff the chance to skydive or bungee jump as a perk will go down very well. In addition to being exciting and entertaining, this event may double as a charitable outing for a good cause. When you are through, you may toast your courage over a meal or beverages and talk about your incredible feat.

16. Mask Party

Masquerade balls are one-of-a-kind large work social event ideas that are both enchanting and mysterious. The first step in event preparation is to choose a theme around which guests may choose their attire, with masks included. You can decorate the venue using candles, feathers, string lights, curtains, glitter, and sequins. Guests will dress to impress at masquerade balls. Even the tiniest decorative elements should be appealing. An optional but very effective way to set the atmosphere is with a string quartet or a solo instrumentalist if your budget allows it.

17. Runway Show

One of the most exciting office social event ideas is to host a runway show. Your employees will walk along as models on the runway to show off their carefully chosen outfits. You should create an area for costumes, props, and makeup. Manicures, pedicures, new dos, cosmetics, and temporary tats may all be part of the makeovers. Clothes and accessories may be as fancy, cool, or freewheeling as the participant desires. You should encourage your team members to go wild with the concept. Guests will feel more at ease participating in and enjoying the festivities if the theme differs from the stiff, formal fashion display. You can give awards for the most ridiculous, authentic, or creative outfit.

18. Themed Office Parties

The holiday season is a great time for a themed workplace party to let employees relax and bond with one another. Ugly Christmas sweater parties are a great way to get employees in the holiday spirit, chatting and laughing with one another. Having a conversation topic before a business meeting may help ease nerves, divert attention, and encourage networking. Some theme ideas to consider include:

• A full-on 1970s basement
• Medieval
• Hawaiian
• Retro

For your themed party, the following ideas can spice up your event.

• Ask your employees to curate an oldies playlist and bring in some of their fun or embarrassing family vacation photos.
• Use disposable cameras or an Instax to snap memorable group photographs.
• Create a hygge atmosphere with tea lights, gingerbread men, hot chocolate, and plenty of aquavit.

If you have wine connoisseurs on your team, a wine-tasting party or a pub crawl could be one of the highlights.

Conclusion

Having fun corporate team-building activities and social events is crucial to the health of any organization, but coming up with ideas may be challenging. If you want your workers to be engaged and productive, then giving them a break from the workplace and encouraging them to socialize with one another in a lighthearted setting is essential. To succeed, your company needs a solid employee engagement plan since research reveals that highly engaged teams are more profitable. The activities highlighted can help your staff members get to know one another and build camaraderie.

Next, check out these lists of event planning books and corporate event management companies.