Resort Rally Team-Building: How IHG Engaged 280 Leaders

When the national team from IHG Hotels & Resorts gathered at Iberostar Waves Paraíso, the goal was bigger than a typical company event.

This was a three-day leadership conference, bringing together general managers from properties across Mexico alongside the corporate leadership team. It was designed to balance professional development, recognition, and something just as important… a genuine connection across a large and diverse group.

Because when you bring together 280 leaders, the challenge isn’t getting them in the same room. It’s getting them to actually engage with each other.

Designing a Team Building Experience That Could Scale

For a group of this size, the approach had to be intentional. It needed to be structured enough to guide the experience, but flexible enough to feel natural. It had to keep energy high without becoming chaotic, and most importantly, it had to involve everyone — not just a handful of participants.

Grupo Events delivered a custom Resort Rally, powered by an interactive app that allowed the entire experience to scale seamlessly across the resort.

Teams were formed across departments and properties, creating new combinations of people who wouldn’t typically work together. From there, the Rally unfolded across multiple locations, with teams completing a wide range of challenges while submitting photo and video proof through the app.

Everything fed into a live leaderboard, giving the group something to react to in real time.

Resort Rally Building Teams Through Chaos!

Once the Rally began, the structure did exactly what it was designed to do — it got people involved quickly.

Teams moved across the resort, tackling a mix of challenges that required different types of thinking, different types of energy, and different personalities to step forward.

One moment, they were squeezing into oversized clown pants, trying to catch flying balls, laughing at how quickly coordination broke down under pressure. Next, they were lying on the ground, twisting themselves into shapes to spell out words with their bodies, capturing the moment through the app before rushing to the next challenge.

Somewhere in the middle of it all, a team burst out laughing as one voice cut through the chaos — “We are absolutely not winning this one.” And yet, moments later, they were regrouping, recalibrating, and trying again.

Elsewhere, teams leaned into the more creative side of the experience — working together to colour in sections of a large collaborative artwork, or staging an over-the-top fake proposal that drew reactions from everyone around them.

There were lighter moments too. Stopping for ice cream became part of the strategy rather than a break, as teams weighed up whether to collect easy points or push ahead to gain ground on the leaderboard.

And then there were the unexpected challenges. Teams froze in place posing as mannequins inside resort shops, or set off in search of hidden alebrijes — mythical Mexican spirit animals — scattered across the property, adding a cultural twist to the experience before inevitably ending up cooling off in the fountains along the way.

It wasn’t repetitive, and it wasn’t predictable. The constant variation kept people engaged, and the format made it almost impossible not to participate.

Where the Energy Really Built

What elevated the experience wasn’t just the challenges themselves — it was how everything connected back to the wider group.

As teams submitted their photos and videos, a live slideshow streamed back in the main conference room. Throughout the activity, and as teams returned, participants could see moments from across the Rally unfolding in real time.

That created something bigger than individual team experiences.

It gave the entire group shared reference points. Shared laughter. Shared moments.

At the same time, the live leaderboard kept a steady level of competition running throughout. Not overwhelming, but always present enough to keep teams invested in how they were performing.

That balance — between competition and shared experience — is where the energy really built.

What Actually Changed

At the start of the conference, like many large leadership groups, people naturally stayed within familiar circles. Conversations were there, but they were contained. As the Rally unfolded, that dynamic shifted.

People interacted with colleagues they wouldn’t normally spend time with. Conversations became easier, more natural, less guarded. Teams found a rhythm quickly, not because they were told how to work together, but because the structure required it.

By the time the activity wrapped up, there was a noticeable difference in how the group engaged — not just within teams, but across the wider retreat agenda.

More Than an Activity — A Catalyst for the Conference

The Resort Rally wasn’t designed to be the highlight of the event. It was designed to set the tone.

By combining movement, creativity, problem-solving, and just enough competition, it created the kind of shared experience that large groups rarely achieve on their own. It broke down initial barriers, introduced new connections, and gave the entire group something to build on for the rest of the conference.

For a leadership team, that matters, because stronger connections don’t just improve the event — they impact how people collaborate back at the office long after it’s over.

Planning a Large-Scale Team Experience in Mexico?

When you’re working with a group of this size, the details matter. The right format can turn a room full of individuals into a connected group. The wrong one can leave people disengaged.

At Grupo Events, we design experiences that scale without losing impact — combining structure, creativity, and technology to make sure every participant is part of the experience.

If you’re planning a conference or retreat in Mexico, we’ll help you build something your team will actually remember.