Team Building - what is this?

I'm sure that we would like all of our teams to function more effectively and efficiently. The question is, how do we make this happen? There is great debate about the so called effectiveness of a team building day. However, if you have clearly defined objectives at the outset, this will go a great way in deciding if your money has been well spent or not.

At the start of our workshops, we get our delegates to think of a high performing team that are in the public eye - so that the other groups can associate with it - and to then look at the characteristics they display. Some examples of the teams choosen have been as interesting and diverse as:

Manchester United Footbal Club

The England Cricket Team

An Orchestra

The A-Team!

Despite their obvious differences, there are a number of characteristics they share which makes them stand out from the crowd - things such as a strong identity, good leadership, clearly defined individual roles and a common shared goal are a few of many that are regularly cited. The question can then be asked - how many of these attributes can be applied to your team?

Once this is explored, it often opens a doorway for discussion into making the team function more effectively - and this is where a team building day can be so effective. It's easy to talk about what we should do, it's putting it into practice that will reinforce the learning points and this is where experiencial team building activities can be so important. If the learning is backed up by, for example, a Krypton Maze activity, All For One or Leonardo's Legacy, the learning points can be practiced in a safe and controlled environment. Here, lessons can be learned and mistakes made before the return to work and inflicting the mistakes onto work colleagues.

For an example itinerary, please click the teambuilding workshop link.

For more information on the following team building related topics, please click on the links:

Differences in Teams

Team Working

Effective Communication

Change Management