Increasing team engagement for Go by Bike Week: Tips and tricks for Team Leaders

COVID-19 has dramatically changed the way we work this past year and one of the main challenges for companies is how they can maintain strong workplace culture. Research shows that employees who cycle to work or on their lunch break are more productive and energized¹. We believe that having your organization participate in HUB Cycling’s Go by Bike Week from May 31 - June 6 is a great way to bring your team closer, keep your staff productive, and keep your workplace culture alive. 

This event’s success relies heavily on our amazing Team Leaders who champion Go by Bike Week at their workplace and inspire their colleagues to get out and ride. 

HUB Cycling sat down (virtually) with Alex Roden, the Team Leader for Grin Technologies, to see how he encouraged his colleagues to cycle more during Fall 2020’s Bike to Work Week. Grin Technologies came in top for their organization size (26-100 employees) during last Fall’s event, with a total of 19 riders, 154 trips logged, and 1893.03 km - that’s the same distance it is to cycle from Vancouver to Regina!

Whether you’re a returning Team Leader or taking on this new role for the first time, we hope that these ideas help with engaging your colleagues during Go by Bike Week! Many of Grin’s staff were still able to work from the office during the pandemic, but the ideas Alex suggests below can be easily implemented in organizations that are only working remotely as well. 

What did Grin Technologies do to get people excited about cycling?
 

1. Encourage competition by creating contests during the event. Here are three contests Grin came up with:

• A prize won through a random draw. Every trip logged = 1 entry. 
• A prize for the person who cycles the most km. The winner was calculated by using this formula: [Amount of trips x 10] + total km. This made it fair for those who may have shorter commutes.
• A photo contest. The only requirement was that any submitted photo was bike-related. This was to include those staff who don’t have the opportunity to cycle. The photos were uploaded and staff voted for their favourites the following week for two days.

2. Incentivize participation with internal prizes

Alex bought gift cards for places that he knew the staff would love - a popular local lunch spot, a popular local cheese shop, and a tinkerer tech website.

3. Effective communication

The prizes definitely got folks excited, but only the ones who were actually aware that prizes were being offered! Alex communicated with his team by using Slack and posting simple posters (made on Word) in the staff room, communal areas, and hallways to explain the contests, prizes, and info about Bike to Work Week. 

4. Reduce barriers to cycling

Make sure staff are aware of your workplace end-of-trip facilities (showers, laundry machines, secure bike parking, etc.) the week before the event so people know where they can leave their bike and gear. It’s important to at least have a plan for where everyone can lock up their bikes if more people than normal are going to participate during the event. Finally, it’s a good idea to give tips about how to make sure your bike is safe when locking it up.

Another challenge Alex noticed during the event is that not all of the staff own bicycles. For future events, Alex plans to prep ahead of time to see who may need help getting access to a bike. HUB Cycling is partnering with Mobi by Shaw Go again this year to offer free 24 hour passes during Go by Bike Week from May 31 - June 6. The code will be released in mid-May.
 

Thank you Alex Roden from Grin Technologies for taking the time to chat with us and share these amazing tips about how Team Leaders can encourage participation at their workplace during Go by Bike Week!

Check out HUB Cycling’s 2019 Team Leader Guide for more tips and case studies to help with your planning (please note that some activities in the guide may not be possible under current Provincial Health Orders).

Register your team for Go by Bike Week today at btww.ca. As always, registration is free and everyone has a chance to win great prizes. 

We’re looking forward to hearing everyone’s success stories for this Spring’s Go by Bike Week!
 

¹ https://www.hrmagazine.co.uk/content/news/workers-who-cycle-are-more-productive

Edits (June 11, 2021)

Daily Bike Challenges (Inspired by the City of Vancouver GBBW team!)

Send out an email to your team with your own set of daily bike challenges to help motivate them to bike!

Monday - Find a friend

Tuesday - Find a body of water

Wednesday - Find a view

Thursday - Find a favourite public space

Friday - Find a treat