A Competitive Office

Office competition can be a great source of innovation, motivation, and more. It can take your employees to new levels of achievement, too. However, there’s also the darker side of a competitive office. For some employees, constantly comparing themselves with colleagues can lead to frustration and depression.

So, is competition really good for the workplace? It all depends on employee personality and preference. A competitive office can be highly motivating for employees who love to be recognised and receive rewards. However, there are others who thrive on community and collaboration.

So, which is best? Let’s take a look at the pros and cons of a competitive office.

Pros of Competition in the Office

Competition can drive innovation, increase productivity, and more. It can also be a method used to help some employees find the drive they need to succeed. After all, employees who thrive on competition want the recognition and rewards that come with success.

What’s another pro for competition in the office? It aids in reducing complacency by pushing employees past their comfort zone. In this environment, employees either have to work hard or get left behind. If they’re lazy, an employee definitely won’t find much success. In addition, a competitive office may relieve the boredom some employees feel in their work.

There’s no doubt that competition drives innovation and quality. When employees are urged to perform in new ways, they may find it easier to come up with new ideas and develop them. Organised competitions can also encourage some to succeed over fellow employees. Finally, competition can encourage employees to work harder and better to find success.

Cons of Competition in the Office

We must also consider some of the cons of a competitive office to have a balanced perspective. For instance, some employees may find competition defeating. It can be defeating and depressing when they must constantly compare themselves and their abilities to other colleagues. It can remove all joy from their work. This could lead the work environment to becoming hostile and quelling innovation and productivity.

Another possible con is that competition may also make collaboration more challenging. This problem may arise if each employee feels they are in it for themselves and the success they can earn. Collaboration falls to last place, and everyone strives to win their own success. If this happens, the company’s goals are also left behind. Working together is the real way for the business to succeed.

Healthy Competition

There’s no question that competition is necessary in the workplace; however, healthy competition must bring the team together. The goal is not to tear the team apart, with each person working for their own goals. Instead, the aim of competition should be to create a stronger team that finds success together and brings more success to the business.

Healthy competitions are friendly and can include some of the following:

Incentivised goals: can be created for daily, weekly, or monthly contests to see who can reach the best metrics. For instance, a marketing team may see how many calls they can do daily or weekly. This is easy, and the winning team can be rewarded with lunch out, gift cards, or other similar rewards.

Team games: this may sound silly for work, but playing team games can work wonders on increasing creativity and productivity. You can try games such as Scrabble or Pictionary, for instance. For a Scrabble game, you might use words related to your work. These can even include jargon! What fun this can be! Each person on the team can take turns posting a word and drawing new letters. The team with the most points wins a free lunch or another great reward.

There are numerous possibilities for creating healthy competition in the office. In the following section, we’ve put together a list of ideas to help you start healthy, fun competition at the office.

Ideas for Creating Healthy, Friendly Competition in the Office

There are several ways to create healthy, friendly competitions in the office. Here are some of the ideas we’ve put together:

Trivia games: you can consider creating a trivia game based on the company’s information, products & services, and industry. Use fun facts about the company, current values, mission statements, branding, and more. The goal is to reinforce company culture and award fun prizes to those who win. The games can be done with individual employees or teams.

Decoration contests may involve employees decorating their department or individuals decorating their cubicles/desks. This is a fun way to encourage creativity and collaboration!

Costume contests: can be done around Halloween or any time. Costume contests are always fun and a great way to de-stress and bring employees together. The office costume contest may coincide with a holiday or a day that’s important for the company, such as the founding date.

Sales & quota competitions: are competitions that can work to drive collaboration. These competitions can work with sales or other departments that depend on various data for success. They can run for a specific amount of time, such as a day, week, or month. What’s more, these competitions can help teams and individuals develop new ways to achieve their goals.

Talent contests: these may seem a little hokey, but talent contests can be a great way to encourage individuality and help employees see one another in a new way. All participants are allowed to choose a talent (that’s appropriate for the office!). The employees who watch the contest then vote for the winner. What a great way to bring office employees together!

Summing It Up

Healthy competition is a great way to increase morale and increase productivity. So you might want to develop a mix of contests, with some for teams and others for individuals.

This is the best way to create unity and bring everyone together in the office. It’s also an excellent way to help your company succeed. What’s better than everyone working together for a common goal and having fun along the way?

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