7 Breakout Session Ideas to Keep Your Employees Engaged

The day-to-day of any business can lead to monotony, no matter where you work. The nature of a static environment, whether in an office or remotely, and a repetitive working pattern can mean that employees might not be feeling or performing their best. 

Employers need to find ways to create new experiences and break away from the standard day-to-day cycle. The answer? Virtual breakout sessions. 

These hybrid events champion active participation, deep dives on topics, team building, and the creation of meaningful connections in a focused environment. Best handled in virtual breakout rooms or spaces, these sessions can include a range of activities that test your team's soft skills, problem-solving skills, and critical thinking. 

Keep reading for the best breakout session ideas and more information on how to get started with your next event.

‍

What are breakout sessions designed for?

Breakout sessions are designed to put your team in new situations, fostering creativity and collaboration. Most rely on bringing employees together in a novel or unique setting and having a specific goal or idea for the session in mind. 

The hallmarks of the most effective event breakout sessions will include the following:

• Small number of employees: These sessions work best when you keep numbers to a minimum. While the specific number of invited team members will change based on your company’s structure, we recommend between 5-10 for the best results. This ensures everyone can engage and have their voice heard. 
• Specific focus for the session: Make sure that everybody attending knows the session’s focus and the activities within. This could be as simple as a question or prompt to tackle in the session, or information about the activity itself. This allows employees to prepare beforehand and bring more to the table during the session. Integrating professional development activities into these sessions can provide targeted learning opportunities and directly contribute to enhancing the skills relevant to your team's needs.
• Flexible in nature: As we’re essentially asking our teams to enter into unfamiliar territory, be ready to follow conversations and changes as they come. These sessions are designed to go outside people’s comfort zones and will often yield new ideas and discussions you don’t expect during brainstorming sessions.
• Short in duration: As stimulating as breakout sessions can be, they can also be quite draining for your employees. The requirement for mindful engagement and an intimate setting will lead to fatigue after a certain period of time. Ensure that your breakout session has a set time limit – 5, 15, or 30 minutes will often suffice – and that you stick to it. If your team wants to explore further when time is up, simply put another session on the calendar. 

‍

7 team breakout session ideas to keep employees engaged

Always be mindful of your team member’s individual preferences when putting these together and ensure everyone is comfortable throughout. Keep any remote team members in mind when designing sessions too, and use video conferencing platforms or VoIP numbers (read this if you’re wondering: what are VoIP numbers?) to ensure a good experience for all. 

1. Roundtable discussions

Roundtables are a staple approach to breakout meetings that most businesses will have used at some point in time, perhaps even unwittingly. There’s definitely a right way to approach these, as they shouldn’t just feel like another scheduled meeting, and it might take a few shots at tweaking the format to get it right. 

A roundtable needs a few things to succeed. Firstly, a topic. Let’s say your social media team needs to debate changing social media trends to update their strategy for a client. They could book in a roundtable to generate social media post ideas and keep content vibrant and engaging. 

Secondly, you should have a moderator. These expert individuals can quietly monitor and support team members in expressing themselves, helping the session flow and move forward smoothly. 

Finally, promote a flat hierarchy during the session. Make it clear that all experience levels are welcome and nobody has priority or seniority over another. All voices need to be heard, and no idea will be dismissed. 

‍

2. Lunch and Learn

Lunch and learn sessions are one of the breakout session ideas that suit a larger number of attendees – even scaling to entire departments. These sessions focus on giving one employee or a small team the spotlight to educate other employees. 

The specific nature of the session should be determined by the assigned employees and should elevate other attendees and provide value for all involved. In these sessions, exploring performance management techniques is invaluable. It allows employees to learn about various strategies to enhance their work performance and align better with the company's goals.

Sessions don’t have to focus on delivery skills either. They can be about self-care, work/life balance, remote working best practices, and all kinds of work-adjacent topics. It is a valuable tool in tackling difficult subject matters and should be part of your employee development strategy.

They can also be about having fun and building better relationships with your employees. Consider incorporating interactive elements like an online photo booth where event attendees can take themed snapshots relating to the session’s topic. This will encourage participants to get to know each other and help break the ice. 

How to get started 👉 Here are 5 great ideas for your office’s next Lunch and Learn! 

‍

3. Mobile meetings

Mobile meetings are all about breaking away from the office and taking the discussion elsewhere. Mobile meetings tend to work best with a small number of employees – up to four – and will preferably take place at an outdoor location. 

We recommend picking somewhere that is near your workplace but offers a fresh environment, such as a green space or coffee shop, and then including the travel time as part of the session itself. The fresh air, exercise, and possible sweet treats from a coffee shop are all the hallmarks of a successful mobile meeting. 

‍

4. Ask me anything (AMA)

Ask Me Anything (AMA) sessions are used across the world in the entertainment and corporate industries as part of panel discussions and educational sessions. Essentially, they offer employees a chance to have candid discussions with a senior or expert individual and lead the conversation. 

Due to the unpredictability of virtual events, we recommend having team members submit questions in advance. You can enable this in a range of ways, including by using tools such as email, a cloud-based collaboration platform, or even a virtual phone system for small businesses. This will not only ensure a quality stream of discussion throughout the session but also allow the expert to provide better and more considered responses. 

Don’t be afraid to allow questions on the day itself, however, and enable the team member who asked the question to follow up the discussion if they choose to. The questions chosen should be diverse and inclusive of all team members and help provide tangible value for all attending.

‍

5. Meditation and mindfulness 

A meditation session is specifically designed not to be work-related in nature. Employee well-being is incredibly important, especially as the pace of a workday continues to accelerate. Unfortunately, many of your team will lack the tools or knowledge to look after themselves over lengthy periods. 

Either use the knowledge of a trusted employee or bring in an external expert to run the meditation session and focus on creating a supportive and quiet space for everyone to practice mindfulness and meditation without fear. These sessions can help reduce stress, improve engagement, and let your team disconnect from the otherwise always-on nature of the modern workplace. 

‍

6. Skill-sharing workshops

Skill-sharing workshops are a fantastic way to tap into the diverse talents within your team. These sessions allow employees to teach each other new skills, whether related to their work or personal interests.

For instance, a graphic designer could run a session on basic design principles, or someone with a passion for organizing could teach others how to get more proficient at streamlining their online workspace. This not only enhances the team's skill set but also fosters a culture of continuous learning and collaboration. Plus, it gives employees a chance to shine in areas outside their usual job roles.

‍

7. Creative brainstorming sessions

Creative brainstorming sessions are designed to unlock the innovative potential within your team. In these sessions, employees are encouraged to think outside the box and generate new ideas on a specific topic or challenge.

You can use techniques like mind mapping, reverse brainstorming, or even "crazy eights" (where participants sketch out eight ideas in eight minutes) to stimulate creative thinking. These sessions can be particularly effective for problem-solving, product development, or marketing campaigns. The key is to create an open and judgment-free environment where all ideas are welcomed and explored.

‍

The next steps

Interactive conference breakout sessions are spectacular tools in your employee management arsenal. They let you bring different team members together, create unique and novel situations, and foster collaboration in fresh ways. 

Try some of these conference breakout session ideas across your company and find what resonates with departments. Once you’ve learned what creates breakout session success, make them a regular occurrence for your employees to look forward to. 

For more ideas on how to boost creativity, collaboration, and problem-solving, explore Confetti’s virtual team building activities! 

{{contact-us="/blog/design"}}