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10 Engaging Activities for Small Groups in 2025
By BeThere
Nov 16, 2025 • 26 min read

In today's fast-paced work environment, fostering genuine connection and collaboration is more critical than ever. Large-scale events have their place, but the real magic often happens in smaller, more intimate settings. Thoughtfully planned activities for small groups can break down silos, boost psychological safety, and unlock a level of creativity that's difficult to achieve in a crowd.
This guide moves beyond generic icebreakers to provide a comprehensive roundup of 10 actionable, high-impact activities tailored for various team goals. Whether you're looking to run skill-building workshops, facilitate collaborative problem-solving, or organize creative brainstorming sessions, you'll find a structured approach here. We provide everything you need to implement these ideas successfully, including clear how-to steps, ideal group sizes, facilitation tips, and practical examples to get you started immediately.
For companies that live in Slack and Google Calendar, coordinating these events can feel like an extra chore. That’s why we’ll also show you how to streamline the entire planning process. Using a tool like Be There, you can manage everything from creating the event in Slack to sending Google Calendar invites and automated reminders without ever leaving your workspace. This approach simplifies logistics, boosts participation, and lets you focus on what truly matters: building a stronger, more connected team. This list gives you the "what" and the "why," while the right tools provide the "how," making it easier than ever to execute engaging activities for small groups.
1. Small Group Discussions
Small group discussions are foundational activities for small groups where 3-8 participants engage in a focused, facilitated conversation. This classic format moves beyond simple Q&A sessions to foster genuine dialogue, critical thinking, and shared understanding. Unlike a large presentation, this method ensures every voice has a chance to be heard, making it ideal for exploring complex topics, solving problems collaboratively, or building deeper team connections.
The facilitator's role is key. They guide the conversation with open-ended questions, ensure respectful dialogue, and help the group achieve its objectives, whether that's brainstorming a new project or debriefing a recent company-wide change.
✦How to Implement Small Group Discussions
- Define a Clear Purpose: Start with a specific goal. Is the discussion for feedback, ideation, or relationship-building? A clear purpose keeps the conversation on track.
- Set Ground Rules: Establish guidelines for participation, such as "one person speaks at a time," "disagree respectfully," and "all ideas are welcome." This creates psychological safety.
- Use Probing Questions: Prepare open-ended questions that encourage depth. For example, instead of "Did you like the new policy?" ask, "What aspects of the new policy do you think will be most impactful, and why?"
- Facilitate, Don't Dominate: Gently guide the conversation. Encourage quieter members to speak up ("Sarah, what are your thoughts on that point?") and manage those who dominate the discussion. For more detailed facilitation strategies, explore these tips on how to run effective meetings.
Pro Tip: Use a "talking stick" or a virtual equivalent (like a "raise hand" feature) to ensure only one person speaks at a time, promoting active listening.
✦Setup with Be There
For companies that use Slack and Google Calendar, coordinating these sessions is simple. With Be There, you can handle all the logistics without ever leaving your workspace.
- Be There Command: Use
/bethere discuss 'Q3 Project Kickoff Discussion'in your team's Slack channel. - Automatic Scheduling: Be There instantly creates a Google Calendar event with a video link and sends invitations to the channel members.
- Context in Slack: A dedicated Slack thread is created for pre-discussion questions, agenda sharing, and post-session follow-ups, keeping all context in one place.
2. Team Building Games and Icebreakers
Team building games and icebreakers are interactive activities designed to build rapport, reduce tension, and create camaraderie among group members. These exercises move beyond typical workplace interactions, using play and lighthearted competition to strengthen interpersonal connections and foster a positive team environment. This makes them one of the most effective activities for small groups looking to boost morale and collaboration.

From quick five-minute icebreakers like "Two Truths and a Lie" to more involved challenges like a virtual escape room, these activities are versatile enough for any team. The goal is to create shared experiences that help colleagues see each other as people, not just as job titles. This can lead to improved communication, trust, and psychological safety within the team.
✦How to Implement Team Building Games and Icebreakers
- Know Your Audience: Select games that align with your team's culture and energy levels. A high-energy, competitive game might be great for one group but uncomfortable for another.
- Explain Rules Clearly: Ensure everyone understands the objective and rules before starting. A quick demonstration can prevent confusion and keep the activity flowing smoothly.
- Prioritize Inclusivity: Choose activities where everyone can participate comfortably. Avoid games that could single someone out or make them feel embarrassed, and always provide a graceful way to opt out.
- Keep it Brief and Engaging: The best icebreakers are short and sweet. Aim for 10-20 minutes to maintain high engagement without disrupting the workflow.
Pro Tip: Have a backup activity ready. If the chosen game isn't landing well with the group, you can quickly pivot to something else without losing momentum.
✦Setup with Be There
Organizing a recurring game session is effortless. Be There is especially handy for companies that rely on Slack for communication and Google Calendar for scheduling.
- Be There Command: Use
/bethere schedule 'Weekly Team Icebreaker' every friday at 3pm for 15 minutesin your Slack channel. - Automatic Scheduling: Be There will automatically create a recurring Google Calendar event with a video link and invite everyone in the channel, putting team bonding on autopilot.
- Context in Slack: A dedicated thread for the recurring event series allows team members to suggest new games, share funny moments, and keep the fun going between sessions.
3. Workshops and Skill-Building Sessions
Workshops and skill-building sessions are focused, hands-on learning experiences designed for 5-20 participants to develop a specific skill. This format goes beyond passive learning by combining expert instruction with practical application, ensuring participants leave with new, tangible abilities. Unlike a standard presentation, a workshop is interactive and designed for doing, making it one of the most effective activities for small groups looking for professional or personal growth.
A skilled facilitator or subject matter expert leads the session, guiding participants through new concepts and providing real-time feedback. The goal is to create an environment where learning is active and collaborative, such as a leadership training seminar, a coding bootcamp, or a creative writing class.
✦How to Implement Workshops and Skill-Building Sessions
- Define Clear Learning Objectives: What specific skill should participants have by the end of the session? Start with the end goal in mind to structure the content effectively.
- Balance Theory and Practice: Introduce a concept, demonstrate it, and then immediately provide time for hands-on practice. This "I do, we do, you do" model reinforces learning.
- Provide Resources for Continued Growth: Equip attendees with take-home materials, cheat sheets, or a list of resources to continue their development after the workshop concludes.
- Encourage Peer-to-Peer Learning: Structure activities that allow participants to learn from each other. Group projects or peer feedback rounds can enhance the experience and build team cohesion. For more ideas on structuring these events, explore our guide to running a successful team-building workshop.
Pro Tip: Match the workshop's difficulty to the attendees' current skill level. A quick pre-session survey can help you gauge their experience and tailor the content accordingly.
✦Setup with Be There
Organizing a multi-part workshop or a one-off training is effortless. For companies that use Slack and Google Calendar, Be There bridges the gap between communication and scheduling.
- Be There Command: Use
/bethere workshop 'Advanced Excel Skills Workshop' on next Thursday at 2pmin your designated Slack channel. - Automatic Scheduling: Be There immediately creates the Google Calendar event, adds a video conferencing link, and invites all channel members.
- Centralized Resources: A dedicated Slack thread is created for the event. Use it to share pre-workshop materials, the agenda, and follow-up resources, ensuring all communication and context stay organized in one place.
4. Collaborative Problem-Solving and Case Studies
Collaborative problem-solving puts small groups in the driver's seat, tasking them with analyzing a complex, real-world scenario to develop a viable solution. This activity moves beyond theory by immersing participants in authentic challenges, such as business case studies, engineering design problems, or medical diagnostic puzzles. It’s a powerful method for developing critical thinking, teamwork, and decision-making skills in a practical, hands-on environment.
Popularized by institutions like Harvard Business School, this approach is highly effective because it forces participants to gather information, debate different approaches, and align on a final recommendation. The focus is less on finding a single "right" answer and more on the process of analysis, collaboration, and justification.
✦How to Implement Collaborative Problem-Solving
- Select a Relevant Case: Choose a scenario that mirrors challenges your team might face. It should be complex enough to require discussion but not so difficult that it becomes discouraging.
- Provide Background Materials: Equip each group with all necessary data, context, and resources. This ensures everyone starts with the same information base.
- Define a Clear Objective: State the desired outcome. Are groups supposed to create a marketing plan, propose a budget, or diagnose an organizational issue? A clear goal focuses their efforts.
- Facilitate Group Presentations: Have each group present their analysis and proposed solution. This allows for cross-pollination of ideas and a deeper discussion of different decision-making processes. For more insight on fostering this kind of analytical thinking, consider principles from Harvard Business School's case method.
Pro Tip: Encourage groups to document their reasoning, not just their final solution. After presentations, facilitate a meta-discussion about how each team arrived at its conclusion to reveal valuable insights into their collaborative processes.
✦Setup with Be There
For companies that rely on Slack and Google Calendar, Be There is a handy tool that streamlines the organization of multi-faceted sessions like this.
- Be There Command: Use
/bethere solve 'Case Study: The Apex Corp. Challenge'in your channel. - Automatic Scheduling: Be There immediately generates a Google Calendar invite with all necessary video links and sends it to the group.
- Centralized Resources: The dedicated Slack thread becomes the hub for distributing the case study documents, sharing background reading, and posting follow-up questions, keeping all context organized and accessible.
5. Creative Brainstorming Sessions
Creative brainstorming sessions are structured ideation meetings where 4-12 participants generate, develop, and evaluate ideas for projects, products, or solutions. Going beyond simply "thinking of ideas," this activity uses specific techniques to tap into collective intelligence and diverse thinking styles. The core principle is separating idea generation from evaluation, which allows for more innovative and out-of-the-box thinking.

This method is highly effective for everything from advertising campaign development to community problem-solving. By creating a psychologically safe environment, teams can unlock creativity that is often stifled by premature criticism or self-censorship, making it one of the most productive activities for small groups focused on innovation.
✦How to Implement Creative Brainstorming Sessions
- Establish a "No Criticism" Rule: During the idea generation phase, all judgment is suspended. The goal is quantity over quality. This single rule is the most critical for encouraging wild and unusual ideas.
- Use Visual Tools: Capture every idea on a physical or digital whiteboard (like Miro or Mural). Visualizing the flow of ideas helps participants make connections and build on each other's contributions.
- Build on Others' Ideas: Encourage a "Yes, and..." mindset. Instead of critiquing an idea, participants should look for ways to expand, combine, or adapt it.
- Separate Ideation from Evaluation: Schedule idea generation and idea evaluation as distinct phases. After generating a large volume of ideas without judgment, the group can then shift its mindset to critically assess and refine the most promising concepts. For more on structuring creative work, check out these insights on design thinking.
Pro Tip: Use constraints or specific prompts to focus creativity. For example, instead of asking "How can we improve our product?" ask, "How could we improve our product if we had no budget?" or "What would our biggest competitor do?"
✦Setup with Be There
Be There is an incredibly useful tool for organizing a brainstorming session, especially for companies that operate within Slack and Google Calendar.
- Be There Command: In a relevant Slack channel, type
/bethere brainstorm 'New Marketing Campaign Ideas'to get started. - Automatic Scheduling: Be There immediately creates a Google Calendar event, adds a video conferencing link, and invites all channel members.
- Centralized Context: A dedicated Slack thread is generated for the event. Use it to share the brainstorming prompt ahead of time, post links to digital whiteboards, and gather refined ideas afterward.
6. Peer Learning and Teaching Circles
Peer Learning and Teaching Circles are powerful activities for small groups where members take turns teaching each other topics they know well or learn together through shared exploration. This format positions everyone as both a learner and an expert, leveraging the collective knowledge within the group to foster professional development and skill-sharing. Instead of relying on a single instructor, this method empowers individuals to share their expertise, from coding languages to project management techniques, building a culture of continuous learning.
This approach is highly effective for cross-functional knowledge sharing, upskilling team members, and building mutual respect. It transforms passive listening into an active, engaging experience where team members invest in each other's growth. Examples range from tech "lunch-and-learns" to professional journal clubs in medical fields.
✦How to Implement Peer Learning and Teaching Circles
- Identify Topics and Teachers: Survey the group to find out what skills they want to learn and what expertise they are willing to share. Create a schedule that rotates who teaches and what is taught.
- Provide a Simple Structure: Even informal sessions benefit from structure. Ask the presenter to prepare a brief outline, key takeaways, and a few discussion questions to guide the conversation.
- Encourage Active Participation: The goal is dialogue, not a lecture. The facilitator should encourage questions, share related experiences, and ensure the conversation is inclusive and supportive.
- Document and Share Learnings: Capture key insights from each session. This can be done in a shared document, a dedicated Slack channel, or a short video recording. This creates a valuable knowledge base for the entire team.
Pro Tip: Start with low-stakes topics. A team member could teach a 15-minute session on a useful spreadsheet formula or a productivity app they love. This builds confidence for more complex topics later.
✦Setup with Be There
Be There is a handy tool for organizing a recurring learning circle, particularly for companies that use Slack and Google Calendar to manage their workflow.
- Be There Command: Use
/bethere learn 'Monthly Skill-Share: Excel Tips with Sarah'in your team’s Slack channel. - Automatic Scheduling: Be There instantly sends a Google Calendar invitation with a video link to everyone in the channel, making coordination seamless.
- Centralized Resources: The event’s dedicated Slack thread becomes the hub for sharing presentation slides, asking pre-session questions, and posting follow-up resources.
7. Outdoor Adventure and Experiential Learning
Outdoor Adventure and Experiential Learning involves taking small groups into natural settings to participate in physical challenges like hiking, kayaking, or high ropes courses. This approach moves beyond the office walls to build trust, resilience, and communication skills through shared, memorable experiences. The core idea, popularized by organizations like Outward Bound, is that overcoming tangible obstacles as a team translates directly into improved problem-solving and collaboration in the workplace.

These activities for small groups are powerful because they put everyone on a level playing field, breaking down hierarchical barriers and encouraging authentic connection. The facilitator or guide’s role is to ensure safety while encouraging the group to push their comfort zones, reflect on their experiences, and draw parallels to their professional lives. The lessons learned during a challenging climb or a team rafting trip often stick with participants far longer than a standard workshop.
✦How to Implement Outdoor Adventure and Experiential Learning
- Match Activity to Your Group: Assess the team's fitness levels, comfort with the outdoors, and desired outcomes. Choose an activity that is challenging but accessible, such as a guided hike, a team kayaking tour, or a low-ropes course.
- Prioritize Safety Above All: Partner with certified, reputable guides or organizations. Ensure all safety protocols, equipment checks, and risk management plans are clearly communicated and strictly followed.
- Facilitate Reflection: The learning happens in the debrief. After the activity, guide a discussion with questions like, "When did we feel most challenged as a team?" or "How did we communicate when things got difficult, and what can we apply from that?"
- Plan Inclusive Options: Ensure there are modifications or alternative roles for individuals with different physical abilities. Beyond typical corporate outings, you can draw inspiration from diverse island activities that often cater to various participation levels. For more inspiration, explore these company outing ideas.
Pro Tip: Clearly communicate the physical requirements and what to expect well in advance. This helps participants prepare mentally and physically, ensuring a positive and inclusive experience for everyone.
✦Setup with Be There
For companies that use Slack and Google Calendar, Be There is a useful tool to simplify the logistics for an off-site adventure.
- Be There Command: Use
/bethere adventure 'Team Kayaking Trip at Lakeview'in your designated Slack channel. - Automatic Scheduling: Be There will create a Google Calendar event with all the details, like meeting point, duration, and what to bring, and send it to all channel members.
- Context in Slack: A Slack thread is automatically created to manage all communications. Use it to share packing lists, coordinate carpools, and send last-minute weather updates, keeping everything organized and accessible.
8. Simulation and Role-Playing Exercises
Simulation and role-playing exercises are immersive activities for small groups where participants act out specific scenarios. By assuming defined roles, members can practice new skills, explore complex situations, or understand different viewpoints in a controlled environment. These activities range from simple customer service role-plays to complex crisis management drills, offering a powerful way to bridge the gap between theory and practical application.
The core value lies in experiential learning. Instead of just talking about how to handle a difficult negotiation or a medical emergency, participants live it. This hands-on approach builds muscle memory, confidence, and empathy, making it one of the most effective methods for skill development and perspective-building.
✦How to Implement Simulation and Role-Playing Exercises
- Define Clear Objectives: Start by identifying what you want participants to learn or practice. Is it conflict resolution, a sales technique, or a specific safety protocol? The scenario should directly support this goal.
- Create a Safe Environment: Emphasize that the exercise is a learning tool, not a performance evaluation. Set ground rules to ensure participants feel safe to experiment and make mistakes without judgment.
- Provide Context and Roles: Give each participant a clear role and a brief with their objectives, motivations, and necessary background information. Keep initial scenarios simple to avoid overwhelming the group.
- Debrief Extensively: This is the most critical step. After the role-play, facilitate a discussion about what happened, what participants felt, what they learned, and how they can apply these insights to their real-world jobs.
Pro Tip: Use an "observer" role. Assign one or two group members to watch the simulation without participating and then share their feedback during the debrief. Rotate this role to give everyone a chance to develop their observational skills.
✦Setup with Be There
Be There is a very handy tool for organizing role-playing sessions, especially for companies with remote or hybrid teams that use Slack and Google Calendar.
- Be There Command: Use
/bethere role-play 'Conflict Resolution Practice'in your Slack channel. - Automatic Scheduling: Be There will schedule the session in Google Calendar, invite the channel, and include a video link for the exercise and debrief.
- Context in Slack: A dedicated Slack thread is created where you can share role descriptions, scenario briefs, and ground rules beforehand. This keeps all materials organized and accessible.
9. Book Clubs and Literature Discussion Groups
Book clubs and literature discussion groups are recurring activities for small groups where 6-12 participants read and discuss a shared text. This format transforms solitary reading into a communal experience, fostering critical thinking, empathy, and strong interpersonal connections. By exploring themes, characters, and ideas together, team members share perspectives and build a richer, more nuanced understanding of both the material and each other.
This activity is perfect for building a continuous and low-pressure engagement rhythm within a team or company. It offers a structured way to encourage learning and personal development, whether the focus is on industry-relevant non-fiction, leadership literature, or fiction that sparks creativity and conversation.
✦How to Implement Book Clubs and Literature Discussion Groups
- Select Diverse Material: Choose a book or article with input from the group. Poll members on genres or specific titles to ensure collective interest and engagement from the start.
- Create a Discussion Guide: Prepare a short list of open-ended questions to guide the conversation. Focus on themes, surprising moments, and personal takeaways rather than simple plot points. For example, "How does the main character's journey relate to a challenge we've faced as a team?"
- Set a Realistic Pace: Agree on a reading schedule that respects everyone's workload. Breaking a book into sections for bi-weekly or monthly meetings makes participation manageable.
- Rotate Facilitators: Encourage different members to lead each session. This distributes ownership, develops leadership skills, and brings fresh perspectives to the facilitation role.
Pro Tip: Connect the book's themes to real-world business challenges or current events. This makes the discussion more relevant and immediately applicable, turning a literary chat into a valuable professional development exercise.
✦Setup with Be There
For companies that use Slack and Google Calendar, Be There is a very useful tool for organizing a recurring book club effortlessly.
- Be There Command: Use
/bethere recurring 'Monthly Book Club: Atomic Habits Ch 1-4' every month on the last Friday at 3pmin your designated channel. - Automatic Scheduling: Be There sets up the entire series in Google Calendar, sending invites with video links to all channel members automatically.
- Context in Slack: A dedicated thread for each meeting is created, perfect for sharing discussion questions, favorite quotes, and follow-up thoughts, keeping the conversation alive between sessions.
10. Project-Based Learning and Collaborative Work Teams
Project-based learning and collaborative work teams are long-term activities for small groups where participants unite to achieve a significant, tangible goal. Spanning weeks or even months, this approach moves beyond theoretical exercises to tackle real-world challenges, such as developing a new product feature, planning a community service event, or overhauling an internal process. It fosters deep collaboration, accountability, and practical skill development.
Unlike short-term tasks, this method builds powerful team dynamics and produces measurable outcomes. It is a cornerstone of methodologies like Agile and design thinking, ideal for groups that need to innovate, solve complex problems, and deliver concrete results.
✦How to Implement Project-Based Learning
- Develop a Clear Project Charter: Start with a document outlining the project's purpose, scope, objectives, stakeholders, and key deliverables. This serves as the team's north star.
- Define Roles and Responsibilities: Clearly assign roles (e.g., project lead, researcher, designer) and establish decision-making authority to avoid confusion and empower team members.
- Establish a Regular Cadence: Schedule consistent check-in meetings (daily stand-ups or weekly reviews) to track progress, identify roadblocks, and maintain momentum. Use project management tools like Asana or Monday.com to keep tasks organized.
- Celebrate Milestones: Acknowledge and celebrate small wins and major milestones along the way. This keeps morale high and reinforces the value of the team's collective effort.
Pro Tip: At the project's conclusion, conduct a retrospective or "lessons learned" session. Document what went well, what didn't, and what could be improved for future projects to foster a culture of continuous improvement.
✦Setup with Be There
For companies whose workflow is centered on Slack and Google Calendar, Be There is an extremely handy tool for coordinating the recurring meetings essential for a successful project.
- Be There Command: Use
/bethere create-recurring 'Weekly Project Sync' every week on Wednesday at 10am for 45 minutesin the dedicated project channel. - Automatic Scheduling: Be There instantly schedules the entire series in Google Calendar, inviting all channel members and including a video link.
- Centralized Communication: A dedicated Slack thread for each meeting is created, perfect for sharing agendas, progress updates, and action items, ensuring all project context stays organized and accessible.
10 Small-Group Activities Comparison
| Activity | 🔄 Implementation Complexity | ⚡ Resource Requirements | 📊 Expected Outcomes | 💡 Ideal Use Cases | ⭐ Key Advantages |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Small Group Discussions | Moderate — needs skilled facilitation and scheduling | Low — meeting space or virtual platform, facilitator time | Deeper understanding, increased engagement and retention | Seminars, team meetings, study/support groups | Encourages participation, cost-effective, scalable |
| Team Building Games and Icebreakers | Low–Moderate — choose/adapt activities to group dynamics | Low–Moderate — space, simple props, facilitator | Rapid rapport and energy; short-term cohesion boosts | Onboarding, retreats, remote cohesion sessions | Fast trust-building, energizes groups, low-cost options |
| Workshops and Skill-Building Sessions | Moderate–High — curriculum and expert facilitation required | Moderate — instructor, materials, venue/time | Direct skill transfer, measurable learning outcomes | Professional development, technical training, certifications | High learning transfer; structured and practical |
| Collaborative Problem-Solving & Case Studies | High — realistic case design and guided facilitation | Moderate–High — background materials, time for analysis | Improved critical thinking, consensus-building, decision skills | Strategy sessions, graduate education, scenario planning | Prepares for real-world challenges; highly engaging |
| Creative Brainstorming Sessions | Low–Moderate — needs rules/structure to stay productive | Low — whiteboards/digital boards, timeboxed sessions | High volume of ideas, early-concept generation | Product dev, marketing campaigns, innovation sprints | Rapid ideation; democratizes contribution and creativity |
| Peer Learning & Teaching Circles | Low — informal structure with role rotation | Low — participants' time, minimal materials | Knowledge sharing, leadership and communication growth | Continuous PD, journal clubs, lunch-and-learns | Leverages internal expertise; low cost; builds ownership |
| Outdoor Adventure & Experiential Learning | High — complex logistics, safety planning, trained leaders | High — equipment, instructors, transport, insurance | Strong bonding, resilience, leadership under pressure | Leadership retreats, resilience training, trust-building | Memorable impact; accelerates team cohesion and confidence |
| Simulation & Role-Playing Exercises | High — scenario design and expert debriefing needed | Moderate — props/tech, observers, possible recording | Safe rehearsal, immediate feedback, improved empathy | Medical/crisis training, negotiations, leadership practice | Realistic practice; reveals blind spots; repeatable learning |
| Book Clubs & Literature Discussion Groups | Low — recurring schedule and discussion guides | Low — reading materials, meeting space or virtual room | Enhanced critical thinking, cultural awareness, empathy | Community engagement, intellectual enrichment, staff groups | Low cost, sustained engagement, accessible to many |
| Project-Based Learning & Collaborative Work Teams | High — sustained coordination and scope management | Moderate–High — PM tools, time, roles, possible budget | Tangible deliverables, deep skill development, measurable impact | Product development, capstone projects, organizational change | Produces real outcomes; builds accountability and process skills |
Streamline Your Planning and Maximize Participation
Having explored a diverse collection of activities for small groups, from collaborative problem-solving to creative brainstorming sessions, it's clear that the right engagement can transform team dynamics. But a great idea is only as powerful as its execution. The real challenge, and where most initiatives falter, lies in the administrative overhead: aligning schedules, managing invitations, sending reminders, and tracking who will actually show up. This logistical friction can quickly turn a well-intentioned plan into a time-consuming chore, discouraging even the most enthusiastic managers.
The key to unlocking consistent engagement isn't just what you plan, but how you plan it. For modern teams operating within integrated digital ecosystems, leveraging the right tools is a non-negotiable part of the strategy. If your company lives in Slack and runs on Google Calendar, the last thing you need is another disconnected platform or a messy web of email threads and direct messages to organize a simple team-building game.
✦Bridging the Gap Between Idea and Execution
This is precisely where dedicated event planning tools designed for your existing workflow become invaluable. Imagine wanting to launch a recurring "Peer Learning Circle" or a one-off "Book Club" discussion. Instead of manually creating a calendar event, exporting a guest list, and then pasting links into a Slack channel, you can centralize the entire process. A tool like Be There allows you to create, manage, and launch your event directly from the Slack channel where your team already communicates.
With just a few clicks, you can:
- Create an Event in Seconds: Build the event right inside Slack, specifying the date, time, and details.
- Simplify RSVPs: Team members can RSVP with a single click on a button, eliminating the need to switch apps or reply to long email chains.
- Automate Calendar Syncing: The event is automatically added to each attendee's Google Calendar, ensuring it becomes a part of their official schedule.
- Ensure High Turnout: Automated reminders are sent through Slack, gently nudging participants and dramatically increasing attendance rates for your chosen small group activities.
By removing these administrative barriers, you empower everyone from HR managers to team leads to focus on what truly matters: facilitating a high-quality experience. The goal shifts from wrestling with logistics to fostering genuine connection, collaboration, and growth.
✦Creating a Sustainable Cycle of Engagement
To make these activities a lasting part of your company culture, it's vital to gather feedback and continuously improve. After a workshop or a brainstorming session, you need to understand what worked and what didn't. This feedback loop is crucial for refining future events and demonstrating that you value your team's input. To truly streamline your planning and maximize participation in small group activities, gathering insightful feedback from participants is essential. Learn more about formulating effective feedback questions to ensure your post-event surveys yield actionable insights.
Ultimately, the most successful activities for small groups are the ones that happen consistently and seamlessly. By integrating your planning process into the tools your team uses every day, you transform event organization from a complex project into a simple, repeatable action. This approach not only saves time but also builds momentum, making engaging group activities a natural and anticipated part of your workplace rhythm, whether your team is in-person, remote, or hybrid.
Ready to eliminate the friction in planning your next team event? See how Be There integrates directly into Slack and Google Calendar to make organizing activities for small groups effortless. Stop juggling tabs and start building connections with Be There today.

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