blondelle seamanship: A Basic Guide To Team Building

Back when I first entered the workforce our employer had a very basic approach to team building: wait until 5.30 and then send us all down the pub. It was simple, brutal and discriminated against non alcoholics, but it worked in its own ways. Now though techniques have evolved greatly and it has spawned an entire new business. Whether you welcome it or not depends greatly on your experiences.

For example, some businesses have failed to grasp the notion effectively and have embarked on complex drawn out projects which do nothing except confound the workforce beyond imagination. That doesn?t mean the idea itself is flawed, simply the execution.

Team building is an art form. There are different ways to improve the atmosphere in a work place but they all depend on the particular working environment. It therefore pays to take time out to find out what approach would work best in your case.

For example, one effective approach is to find activities which bring together individuals from disparate parts of the company. Some firms by their nature are split into different departments. They work independently, but as part of the whole. Often, although communications between different parts of the company would be desirable, it simply doesn?t happen. As a result the left hand often doesn?t know what the right hand is doing.

This can take the form of a regular event. A golf day can work well, but that tends to exclude the majority of people who do not understand the game. You could organize a football event ? that not only helps bring people together but it can also help them get fit. One company I worked in had an eagerly anticipated regular poker game. On the face of it this came fraught with danger ? was it a good idea to have a regular team building exercise in which colleagues fought to take their hard earned wages off one another?

Surprisingly, though, it worked. Even people who lost and were out of the running at an early stage enjoyed the event. It helped spark social interaction and greatly improved the atmosphere within the company. Suddenly people were no longer working with strangers, they were standing side by side with friends and that makes all the difference.

There are all sorts of different team building providers and activities out there. To find one that works for you get in touch with a few and see how they can apply their skills to your particular company.