John Chen is the CEO for Geoteaming – A Corporate team building and leadership company that uses technology to create “life-changing adventures.” Chen has written a book, “Engaging Virtual Meetings: Openers, Games, and Activities for Communication, Morale, and Trust”, in which he offers concrete strategies and practical tips for bringing teams together across the digital divide. While many struggle to build teams in a virtual environment, Chen has found ways to create team cohesion, promote engagement, and increase virtual participation.

In his interview with Eventible, he speaks about his background in detail, his introduction to the world of team building and virtual meeting, the difference between geo-teaming and team-building companies, his experience at GatherVerse 2023, among other things. So without further ado, let’s get started.

• Can you tell us about your background and how you got into the team building and virtual meeting industry?

I was born & raised in Stockton, CA, I went to the University of California at Santa Barbara, where I was a sponsored amateur skateboarder.  After I injured my ACL, I went into computer science, leading me to 10 years and 2 US Patents at Microsoft.  While at Microsoft, I always said, “I’m supposed to do something, I just don’t know what it is.”  I was taking leadership training, and an executive coach said, “Give me a weekend, and I’ll tell you what it is.”  I wrote the entire business plan in 48 hours, and now I’m in my 26^th year of business.

After a successful career in face-to-face team building, the pandemic hit, and I lost 15 paid programs.  I don’t make vaccines, but I do know how to make virtual meetings better as I’ve been online for 35 years, and I have been experimenting for years with virtual team building.  Over 5,000 took the class, and my publisher asked me to write my 2^nd book.  Now I have produced over 4,000 meetings over the past 3 years.

• How does Geoteaming differ from other team-building companies? 
  
  Geoteaming is unique in that it uses technology and adventure to create human change.  For instance, while this is a scavenger hunt, we run analytics on the team scores and can tell you teams outperformed or lagged other teams. In addition, we run GoPros on every team and do video analysis to tell you why your team won or what coaching the other team needs.

• Can you discuss a successful virtual team building or meeting event that you have facilitated in the past? What made it successful?

One of my favourite stories is about a credit union with a goal of collaboration.  They had 160 employees divided into 20 teams.  Each team competed for a high score while if every team collaborated, they could all earn a company goal. 

The 20 teams collaborated during the event and then brainstormed ideas where the credit union could add value by having 2 or more teams collaborate. The CEO was so impressed that he gave a cash bonus to every employee for collaborating. In the follow-up, the collaboration ideas generated over $1M of value.

• How have virtual meetings and team-building events changed since the pandemic? Do you see these changes as temporary or more permanent?

Virtual meetings have changed forever by the pandemic.  While I have tried for over 35 years to get people to do virtual team building, virtual team building happens every day.  While I predict a big return to in-person, I also predict that virtual and hybrid are here to stay.

• How do you ensure that virtual team-building events are inclusive and engaging for all participants?

Using the same principles we use for in-person events combined with our 35 years of research in virtual, virtual team-building is inclusive when you can create psychological safety and activities where every team member can contribute to the end goal.

• Can you share any unique challenges you have faced while facilitating virtual meetings or team-building events and how you overcame them?

The unique challenge I faced was a Taiwanese company that bought a US company and was asking for a fun team-building event.   In the design meeting, it was discovered that there was animosity between the two companies, and the last thing they needed was a fun team-building event.  I proposed to them that I would design a 3-hour meeting intended to help start the repair process between the two companies. 

Using technology so every person could be seen and heard no matter where they were, we could reconnect the two teams, and the Taiwan CEO realized how damaged the relationship was.  They both complimented me on the design and how much progress they made on virtual.

• How do you measure the success of a team-building event or virtual meeting?
  
  It depends on the client’s goals.  Some measure how much fun they had.  Others reckon how much we got people to think differently.  The savviest clients measure results based on the training.

• How do you stay up-to-date with the latest trends and technology in virtual meetings and team building?
  
  Constant and never-ending education. I’m constantly scanning news, testing new platforms and attending other training to see what is working and what is not.

• How do you think the team building and virtual meeting industry will evolve in the future?

Team building will continue to stand on the pillars of communication and trust and is having a big in-person resurgence. Virtual will continue to evolve rapidly, and many of us are predicting AI to help us meet better technology such as Augmented Reality or Virtual Reality, and maybe one day, a holodeck will further improve virtual meetings.

• Can you share any advice for companies planning a successful virtual team-building event or meeting?
  
  Yes. 1) GOALS – please be clear about your goals, from fun to making change 2) PLAN – make a plan that has high odds of success with your teams, such as testing tech and rehearsing 3) EXECUTE – Execute your team building and have a plan BCDEFGH… in case something doesn’t go your way  4) FLOW – Watch for the magic/special moments in your team building and let them happen as they may what helps you go beyond your goal.
  
• How was your experience speaking at GatherVerse 2023? What was your key takeaway from this conference?

I enjoyed GatherVerse and followed the key principle of connecting by meeting some of my panellists after the conference. The key takeaway is Gather, whether in person or virtual; gathering together, collaborating, and networking are one of the best ways to make this planet a better place.

• Eventible.com is a review platform catering to B2B events. Given how review-driven our lives have become today, will reviews bring transparency to the events industry? Would you rely on event reviews from other speakers if you had to make a speaking decision?
  
  I don’t know if reviews will bring full transparency to the industry, but I believe it will improve it.  Look at interviewers who are now asking for the interviewee’s passenger Uber number.  While I rely on event reviews, my #1 tactic is only to hire speakers that I have seen speak and that I think will meet and exceed the client’s goals.