Future of work

Virtual Coffee Break - all about the virtual coffee break

Oct 15, 2024
11:00 am
Reading time:
5 minutes

You can relax at work with a cup of coffee in your hand and chat to colleagues - all from the comfort of your own home. That's the idea behind the virtual coffee break! It brings people together, creates space for informal conversations and allows everyday working life to fade into the background for a moment.

A virtual coffee break offers the perfect opportunity to get to know other employees better - even outside of the usual work topics. Conversations are held in a virtual space that strengthen team cohesion and promote togetherness. But how can this concept be successfully implemented and why is it so valuable, especially in times of remote working? Crewting, app for building better teams, explains.

What is a virtual coffee break?

A "virtual coffee" is an uncomplicated, digital meeting that serves to get into conversation with colleagues away from work tasks. Usually organised via platforms such as Zoom, Teams or other video conferencing tools, the coffee break offers a space for informal discussions - similar to a coffee break in the office.

The focus here is not on agenda items or deadlines, but on personal dialogue. To get to know new team members, discover similarities or simply have a quick chat about everyday matters - the virtual coffee break brings people together, regardless of where they work. Especially when working remotely, the virtual coffee break can help to strengthen the sense of community and bridge the distance that often comes with working from home.

These targeted coffee breaks ultimately allow employees to get to know each other better - even those who rarely work together. This promotes the exchange of ideas, collaboration across departmental boundaries and hierarchies and helps to create a stronger sense of community within the company. Even shortly after onboarding!

Advantages & reasons for virtual coffee

The virtual coffee break has many benefits that go beyond a quick chat. One important aspect is maintaining social contacts. In a digital working world where face-to-face meetings are often lacking, the virtual coffee break offers the opportunity to stay in touch with colleagues and strengthen team spirit. These regular informal conversations can also support mental well-being by creating space for dialogue and relaxation - a welcome change in the often stressful working day.

Virtual coffee can also serve as a source of new motivation and inspiration. Casual conversations often generate fresh ideas that can later be utilised at work. Sharing ideas outside of traditional meetings also promotes team building. As employees get to know each other better and build personal relationships, collaboration is strengthened overall. This in turn leads to improved communication and a smoother flow of information within the team, which can have a positive impact on efficiency and the working atmosphere.

Tips on how to make the virtual coffee break a success

To make the virtual coffee break a real success, there are a few simple rules that will make the experience more enjoyable for everyone. Here are a few helpful tips to make the most of the break:

  • Schedule regular fixed times to integrate the coffee break into the working day: for example, once a week for 15 minutes.
  • Choose an accessible and user-friendly platform.
  • Offer discussion prompts or topic suggestions to encourage dialogue: the topic can already be decided beforehand.
  • Not too large a group - so that everyone can have their say and contribute better.
  • Switch on the camera to strengthen the personal connection.
  • Plan a shared experience, such as making a coffee, a short quiz or a virtual game.
  • Repeat the coffee break regularly to create a rhythm.
  • Rule: Do not talk about work to keep it informal.

Ideas for the virtual coffee break: activities, games, questions & co.

To make the virtual coffee break even more interesting, various activities can be incorporated in addition to suggested topics. These lighten the mood and add variety to the conversation. Here are some creative ideas:

  • Icebreaker questions: Start the digital coffee break with funny or thought-provoking questions, such as ‘If you could have a superpower, what would it be?’
  • Joint quiz: Small, quick quiz rounds on general or team-related topics can bring the team together and create a good atmosphere - for example, a ‘quiz coffee’ with questions about the other employees!
  • Virtual games: Games such as ‘Two Truths and a Lie’ or small quizzes make the coffee break interactive - and usually provide a few funny insights.
  • Show & Tell: Each person shows an object from their desk or everyday life and tells the story behind it.
  • Shared hobbies: Share your hobbies or interests, perhaps there are shared preferences that can be explored in more depth.
  • Topic talk:Talk about the given topic or one of your own choice. Perhaps the meeting platform even offers predefined questions or a guideline for this.

For a virtual coffee - with the Crewting coffee break app

With the Coffee Break app from Crewting, the virtual coffee break is not only uncomplicated, but also perfectly organised. The app takes care of all the planning: colleagues are automatically invited to virtual breaks based on their personal calendars and schedules - without the need for tedious arrangements. Thanks to the smart algorithms, Crewting ensures that team members are connected with each other randomly and according to their interests . This regularly creates new discussion groups and encourages people to get to know each other within the company.

Whether science fiction fans or sports enthusiasts - Crewting brings people with shared hobbies and topics of conversation together. Thanks to its ease of use and automated reminders, the app ensures that nobody misses their coffee break. In addition, the break can be enriched with various activities such as a quiz or a guided ‘Icebreaker Coffee’, turning it into a real virtual team event.

Crewting integrates seamlessly into MS Teams and Slack and blends harmoniously into familiar workflows. The platform therefore makes it easy to integrate regular and spontaneous breaks into the working day and thus strengthen the team spirit in a relaxed and informal atmosphere. Crewting stands for virtual team development!