Build a Little Camaraderie with March Madness

The first game of the 2008 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship (The Tournament) tips off on Thursday, March 20th. That might not mean something to everyone, but if they all had a chance to participate vicariously in the tournament, it might.

Sometimes it’s the little things that make someone enjoy their job. Mostly it’s the pay, the work satisfaction, the coworkers, et cetera. But the general culture of the company can be a part of that, as well.

In these days when workers can job–hop with much less negative stigma than in years past and, often, employees decide in the first six months whether they’re going to stay more than a year or two, building a culture where people want to be is more important than ever.

Enter March Madness.

It might seem like a little thing, but let’s say you ask everyone to pick a school to root for, and then share it with the rest of the company. It doesn’t matter if they’re alumni or from that school’s state or just like the uniforms. They don’t even have to like basketball.

Everyone can have a team. And everyone else will know it. Your employees will probably discover some things they didn’t know about each other, like where they went to college or where they grew up. Pretty soon you could have some friendly rivalry and new–found camaraderie.

Everyone will have a common topic to talk about, something they share. The company will feel like a single unit instead of individual departments. All of a sudden your employees might see the company as a little bit cooler and a little bit better place to work.