Why Does Water Works Matter?
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July 15, 2024
Offering corporate team-building activities that support your people’s development while also contributing to society IS possible, thanks to CSR programmes like Water Works.
At Lightbulb Teams, our mission is centred around team building experiences that create meaningful impact for not only the teams involved, but for individuals and communities in need across the globe. And our Water Works programme is a great example of this. But ‘what is Water Works?’ and ‘Why does Water Works matter?’. Well, let us explain.
Why Water Works Matters?
According to the World Health Organisation, contaminated water consumption causes approximately 485,000 deaths a year. And, as individuals continue to bathe in unsanitary water, they expose themselves to sickness and parasites.
The Water Works programme was born from a desire to combat this – helping to protect sight and lives in developing countries from water-related illnesses and death. Within this CSR programme, team will build and donate water filtration systems for communities in need.
Each filter built can provide two years worth of clean water, for up to 300 people.
What does the WaterWorks programme involve?
The Water Works sessions begin with a keynote presentation that is entirely relevant to your organisation – your current strategy, future goals and the needs of your team. Following this, each team will be provided with the kits required to create the water filtration systems.
Each team will receive comprehensive instructions, along with all the equipment and materials needed to build a filter in their groups. The session allows for 30-45 minutes of team building, in which your teams will create and donate two life-changing water systems for needful communities in developing countries across the globe.
How does the Water Works programme benefit your team?
The Water Works team building programme is an impactful session, which contributes to the relationship between your colleagues and their attitude towards purpose-driven work. In addition to this, there are several benefits for your team who take part.
1. Team Collaboration
Building rapport between colleagues can be difficult in stressful workplace settings. To encourage team collaboration, our team building programmes are the perfect opportunity to take time out and reconnect with each other – improving collaboration between team members.
The importance of powerful collaboration should not be underestimated. Taking this crucial time out of the busy day to reinvest in your team’s working relationship has been proven to improve productivity in the workplace and provide employees with a sense of purpose.
2. Problem-Solving Skills
The ability to brainstorm as a team and come up with actionable solutions to complex, real-world problems is a skill that requires practice over time. Research has proven that problem-solving is much more effective in group situations, rather than working alone as an individual. Therefore, the Water Works team building programme aims to provide your team with the skills required to overcome a problem – in this case, to create life-saving water filtration systems for developing countries.
3. Strengthened Relationships & Networking
Strong relationships in the workplace do not happen overnight, particularly in larger organisations which involve hundreds of employees across a range of departments. Oftentimes, professional relationships are seen as being relevant only to those within the same department or team. However, there is a powerful advantage for those who work well with others across a variety of departments and teams, as there may be unforeseen circumstances which require your team to work together closely.
Within the Water Works team building programme, you are invited to divide your teams up however you see fit. For example, you may choose to select those from different departments to work together. This is highly beneficial, allowing your employees to familiarise themselves and build a rapport with their colleagues, in turn leading to greater productivity in the workplace.
4. Company Culture
In the UK, 45% of employees and business leaders claim that company culture is an important factor to consider when searching for a new role. The maintenance of a positive company culture is not only important to attract new employees but also to retain existing members of the workforce.
By investing in impactful team building activities, your employees will begin to trust and understand each other more, contributing to a much more positive working environment.
How else can the Water Works programme help employees?
Of course, the Water Works programme has a direct impact on workplace environments for your teams. However, there are several additional employee benefits when it comes to taking part in CSR team building activities:
- Personal satisfaction: having directly contributed to a wider team project can offer job satisfaction
- Helping others: the ‘feel good’ factor for contributing to society outside of your day-to-day
- Health benefits: gratitude for providing others with access to clean, safe water
Getting started with your next team building activity
To find out more about the Water Works programme, get in touch with a member of our team today. We’d be happy to help and talk you through all our CSR programmes to find the right fit for your team needs.