TEAM BUILDING AT ITS BEST

NM.WIJAYANTO Page 1 04/05/2004
F:myprojectt&dtoolsNgameInspiresTEAM BUILDING AT ITS BEST.doc
TEAM BUILDING AT ITS BEST
Wanted: Energetic worker for fast growing firm. Must be a team player.
Gone are the days when all an employer wanted was people who produced great
results. Workers now are expected to perform with good sport practices.
Today’s business
leaders believe in team
work. In strictly business
discussions they use
sport terms to describe
what’s working and what
isn’t at their firms. Often
what isn’t working is
blamed on lack of team
spirit, cooperation, and
organization. Talk turns
to team building, a
diagnosis, and action
based process of
evaluating and improving
teamwork.
But team building is not
called for in every
situation, because team
work is not always
appropriate. For
teamwork a group of
people must have
common job goals, goals
they can reach better by
working together than by
working individually.
These people must be
mutually dependent on
PRE-TEAM BUILDING CHECKLIST
“Team building” sounds good. The names connotes a
positive, constructive, natural approach to curing what all a
work group. But team building is not always appropriate,
sometimes it’s just costly. Before planning a session,
consider these questions to determine whether the
circumstances are right for team building.
• Do members of the work group in question need to work
as a team?
• Does the corporate climate support teamwork?
• What problems and/or objectives does the workgroup
have? Can the problems be solved and the objectives
be met through team building or is some other
intervention more appropriate?
• Do the group manager and members believe team
building is needed? Will they approach the activities
positively and energetically or consider them a waste?
• Will the group manager and members take responsibility
for conflicts identified by the activities? Will the group be
committed to conflict resolution?
• Will the group manager and members be willing to
change work methods and mind-sets; based on what
they learn through team building?
• Is now a good time to do team building? Is the group
under any unusual work pressures? Can the company
affordto let the group membership or leadership
expected in the near future?
• Is there mony in the budget for team building? Are
enough funds available for a consultant if one is
needed? What about for an off-site facility if one is
desired or if there’s simply no room on site-large enough
for team building activities.
I found there are so many “social events” being wrapped as a team building session,
which results only the superficial feelings of being a team.
Real / solid team work will only happened under several pre-requisites such as clear
and shared objectives (of organization/division/department); transparencies of
communications, clear and objectives systems and practices as well as fair practices in
the organizations.
Hopefully, the article below will be beneficial for the HRD practitioners, OD practitioners,
and any parties interest to this subjects.
NM Wijayanto
PDF created with pdfFactory Pro trial version www.pdffactory.com

each other’s experience, abilities, and commitment to work.
Even when teamworks is appropriate, the time may not be right to stop everything and
build the team. The team may be too busy playing catch-up ball because of some
organizational crisis. Or, perhaps the team anticipates major changes in personnel.
When the time is right, team building can be extremely beneficial. A well-designed and
properly conducted process can spark high levels of job commitment, cooperation, and
satisfaction among work group members – and, at the same time, increase efficiency
and substantially boost profits.
Easing the strains of interpersonal friction is only one focus of team building. Depending
on the need, team building can be designed to help a work group clarify its objectives,
improve its operating policies and procedures, and more – anything to do with helping
team members work together more effectively.
This document describes team building focuses, steps, activities, and results. You’ll find
characteristics of productive teams and teams for building them; plus guidelines for
deciding session length and location and who should attend.
CHARACTERISTICS OF PRODUCTIVE WORK TEAMS
How close does the work group in question come to dream team standards?
Check the following characteristics of productive work teams – before and after the team
building process.
• Team members are working toward common goals that everyone knows,
understands, and accepts. The goals not only serve the organization, but also
give team members opportunities to develop professionally.
• Members know what their individual responsibilities and priorities are and how
they relate to those of other members. There is no duplication of effort.
• Work atmosphere is informal, comfortable, and fairly tension-free, though
dynamic.
• Team morale is high. Members are enthusiastic about their work and eager to
celebrate their accomplishment. The celebration strengthen the bonds between
members and smooth the strains of works.
• Team productivity is high. Member’s enthusiasm prompts them to work hard.
They attend to details, follow through on intentions, and performs to the best of
their ability.
• Team leader take pride in the team’s work record.
• Leader shows interest in each team member’s achievement and regularly
provides feedback on performance.
• Members take pride in their achievements and readily accept feedback on
performance.
• Members have a great amount of confidence and trust in one another.
• Members are cooperative rather than competitive. They are eager to help each
other with tasks and with developing to the fullest professionally potential.
• Members encourage one another to achieve at high levels, but do so without
setting unrealistic expectations.

• Policies that govern team interaction are fair, consistently applied, and subject to
change. Obsolete policies are replaced with ones appropriate to the team’s
current circumstances. Leader consults members before making changes
affected the team.
• Leader does not dominate the team, nor do the members defer unduly to the
leader. Actual leadership shifts from time to time depending on work
circumstances and member competencies. When work circumstances do not
call for participative leadership, members are comfortable with the leader
assuming control. The team operates without power struggles, the issues is not
who controls, but what’s the best way to do the job.
• Work discussions are numerous and always pertinent to the tasks of the team. If
a discussion sways off the subject, someone quickly bring it back on track.
• Communication lines are open. During discussions, all members feel free to
express their ideas, and opinions no matter how unusual or extreme. Everybody
knows where everybody else stands on issues. Members not only speak their
minds and relay information about team assignments and procedures, but also
listen intently to each other.
• Members feel comfortable asking questions about things they do not understand,
no one pretends to know it all.
• Criticism is acceptable. It is delivered frequently, frankly, and constructively,
never a personal attack.
• The team is comfortable with conflict. Members recognize disagreement and
work fairly and intelligently toward resolving them.
• Most decisions for the team stem from general agreement among members.
Individuals voice any opposition to proposals, but respect the final decision of the
team.
• When team actions are decided, individual assignments are understood and
accepted.
• Members always know how the team is progressing toward its goals. The team
frequently evaluates how well it’s operating, openly discussing problems until
finding a solution.
• Members do not feel threatened by change; they are eager to try new change;
they are eager to try new creative work approaches.
CONDITIONS FOR TEAM BUILDING
Certain conditions must exist for team building to be necessary and effective. The
following guidelines will help you decide whether team building will be worthwile.
Use Team Building If …
• Team members have varied perceptions of overall team goals.
• There’s confusion about the roles, responsibilities, and authority of each team
members.
• The team tacks effective procedures for planning, problem solving, and decision
making.
• Members frequently feel tense or bored, members lack of commitment to the
team, team morale usually low.
• Members have poor interpersonal relationship and conflict is unmanageable,
members compete instead of cooperate with each other.
• Communication is poor, criticism is abusive.

• Members feel overly dependent on or rebellious toward the team leader.
Members do not feel equal in importance to the team.
• Members believe financial or other rewards are distributed unfairly.
• Evaluation of team progress is missing, members do not know how their
individual assignments are contributing to team goals.
• Evaluation of team procedures is missing, members are doing things in old
known way without considering new, perhaps better methods.
DO NOT USE TEAM BUILDING IF …
• Teamwork is not necessary to achieve the work group’s goals.
• A preliminary needs analysis points toward other interventions, not team building.
• The team leader does not understand the purpose and requirements of team
building or is not committed to the process. Team building success requireds the
leader’s full understanding and support.
• Top management does not support team building. Look below the surface: If
management attitude or actions are likely to prevent the changes team building
treasults will call for, the activities will be a waste of time. Do not use team
building the team has no authority to influence its future.
• The company is going through extensive organization change.
• Membership or leadership of the team is about to change. Wait until the new
people are in place, then reevaluate the need for team building. Perhaps the
new interpersonal dynamics and/or operations of the team will solve previous
team problems.
• The company as a whole or the particular team is working under an unusually
great amount of pressure. Wait until the crisis passes unless you are convinced
(and top management is convinced) the crisis stems from problems team building
can solve.
FOCUSES OF TEAM BUILDING
Depending on the particular needs of the work group, team building can concentrate on
one or cover all of the following issues:
Goal and priority setting
Focus is on team goals and priorities. Questions explored include:
• What are the overall work objectives of the team? Are they understood by all
team members? Are the objectives current? Are they realistic? Are any
objective missing?
• Why is teamwork necessary to fulfill these objectives?
• Which objectives are the most important? Which are the least important? Which
are the most difficult to fulfill? Which are the easiest?
Roles and relationship
Focus is on each team member’s job responsibilities and how they relate to the
responsibilities of other members. Questions explored include:
• What are the job functions and responsibilities of individual members?
• Do all members understand who is responsible for and who has authority over
what?
• How do the different jobs relate to one another?

• What are new members’ major satisfactions and dissatisfactions with their jobs?
What can be done about the dissatisfactions?
• How is job performance evaluated? How do individuals know they’re performing
well? Are they given specific, constructive feedback about ways to improve
performance?
Individual competencies
Focus is on each member’s strengths. Questions explored include:
• What knowledge areas and skills is each member strongest in?
• How can members benefit from each other’s areas of expertise?
Operating processes
Focus is on team procedures for communicating decision making, problem solving, etc.
Questions explored include?
• Has the team established guidelines for making team decisions? For resolving
team conflicts? For relaying and receiving information and feedback – including
criticism? Does everyone on the team understand and follow this guidelines?
• What operating policies and procedures are working well? What policies and
procedures are inhibiting individual or team performance? What policy and
procedure changes can be made?
• How effective are team meetings? How can they be improved?
• Interpersonal relationships
• Focus is on dynamics between team members, how well members work
together. Questions explored include:
• Do members feel they are all on the same wavelength? Do they feel comfortable
talking frankly to one another? Do they feel understood by one another?
• Do member respect and like the team leader? Can they speak frankly to the
leader without worry about repercussions?
• Do individual work habits or personal biases interfere with teamwork?
Systems influences
Focus is on organization forces that affect the team. Questions explored include:
• How does the corporate climate promote teamwork? How can the climate be
made more supportive?
• Do workplace facilities inhibit teamwork? If so, what changes can be made?
• Do team members believe the compensation system is fail? Does it motivate
them to perform well?
• Do members have opportunities for professional development and
advancement? Are these opportunities motivating? Does any lack of opportunity
affect current performance?
PROCESS STEPS
The process of developing a high performance team differs from situation to situation.
Variables that affect team building include the type of work the group does and how long
the group has been together. In spite of these variables, certain steps are basic to most
team building processes. Here are guidelines for these steps.
Before the Team Building Session

A few steps must be taken at least a few days (most likely more) before the team
building session begins.
Step1: Introduce team to team building.
Team building at its best has the commitment of everyone involved. Team members
will participate most actively if they know the reasons for and the goals of the process.
To gain commitment and ensure participation, do the following:
• Call a team meeting. Explain why team building was proposed, then state its
goals:
o To evaluate the effectiveness of the team
o To help solve team problems and strengthen team weaknesses
o To build a more cohesive, supportive, productive team that can more
easily meet the organization’s goals, and the personal goals of its
members.
• Ask for team member’s commitment to team building. As you do so, list some
potential results members can benefit from if they commit fully to team building.
o Better understanding of the team’s overall objectives and purpose in the
organization.
o Better understanding of each team member’s role and responsibilities.
o Strengthened feeling of attachment to the team
o Greater support from others on the team
o Improved communication with others on the team.
o Improved team policies and procedures, more effective ways of working
through team problems – at both task and interpersonal level.
o Improved ability to use conflict in positive rather than a destructive way.
o More cooperation from others on the team and a reduction of unhealthy
destructive competition.
o Improved ability to work with other teams in the organization.
End your list of results with the one most attractive:
Improved ability to meet personal professional goals.
Step 2: Gather preliminary data from team
Once you have the team’s commitment to team building, you must determine exactly
what’s wrong with the team or what’s okay but could stand improvement. To collect
data, do the following:
• Meet with the team manager for his or her views on the condition of the team.
Discuss any general ideas the manager has for making the team more effective.
o Ask for whatever records the manager can provide that show productivity
levels. Records may show, for example that work output is down, quality
of work is suffering, grievances are up, or number of people requesting
transfer or quitting is increasing.
• Survey team members individually for their opinions on how well they work
together and what problems they have. Team building experts recommend
conducting informal face-to-face interviews, but you can use written
questionnaires if you find these more suitable to your situation.
o Find out what essential team characteristics are missing or weak, what
condition the team is in, and what issue or issues members want to work
on. ( You can develop questions from the previous lists, “Charteristics of

There is no magic formula that
one can apply to all situations
and automatically produce a
high-performing team. Trying to
build a team out of a group of
enthusiastic volunteers who are
meeting for the first time to put on
a fund-raising rummage sale .. is
one thing. Trying to build a team
out of a group of people who
have worked together in the
same office for some time, who
have low morale, who are not
very productive, and who have
developed some strong positive
as well as negative attitudes
toward one another is quite a
different thing. The diagnostic
work that must be done, the
amount of effort that must go into
resolving interpersonal conflicts
of long standing, and the amount
of time that must be spent in
developing enthusiasm for the
task at hand.
Earl J. Ends and Curtis W. Page,
Organizational Team Building.
Productive Works Teams”, “ Conditions for Team Building”, and “Focuses
of Team Building”.)
o Guarantee survey respondents anonymity but not confidentiality. You will
need to discuss data openly during the team building sessions, but you
will not need to attach data to contributors. Tell respondents that
information sharing is crucial in team building and assure them that no
one in the group will know who considered specific comments and
opinition.
Step 3: Analyze team data and form a preliminary diagnosis:
After you collect the data, you must organize and analyze them for the team. You
later will involve team members in diagnosing team problems and deciding what
issues to focus on during team building, but it helps to bring preliminary thoughts to
the session. To gather your thoughts, do the following:
• Group like data on lists
• Review the lists. The bulk of the data may point to one huge problem area,
or the data may be spread among several issues.
• Carefully consider which problems or weaknesses team building time then
form a preliminary team diagnosis.
Step 4: Plan team building Session,
agenda, place, and times.
• Using your preliminary diagnosis,
develop session plans. Keep
plans flexible. Remember, during
the session team members will
have input about the priority
issues.
o Discuss your data analysis,
team diagnosis, and
session content plans with
the team manager. Make
revisions as necessary.
• With the team manager, plan the
place and times for team building.
Step 5: Prepare materials for session.
• Copy the following on flip chart
paper for presentation at the
session
• Purposes and goals of the team
building
• Potential results (benefits) of team
building
• Lists of preliminary data analysis
and team diagnosis
• Session content, plans, including
list of issues for coverage.
• Plan a variety of team building
activities – one or two for each

focus of team building, through you may not cover every focus at the session.
You will make your final activity choices at the session. Bring to the session
whatever materials you need for the positive activities.
• Bring the flipchart lists to the session for hanging. Bring more paper and
markers for creating additional lists.
AT THE TEAM BUILDING SESSION.
Step 1: Build session climate.
By doing the following at the start of the session, you will give team members a chance
to settle in and get mentally comfortable with team building. You also will revitalize the
interest and commitment they expressed at the introductory team building meeting.
• Review the purposes, goals, and potential results (benefits) of team building.
• Give an overview of the session. List the team building process steps, describing
each one briefly.
• Establish ground rules for the session participants will:
o Be as honest as possible when talking about themselves.
o Pay attention when others are talking
o Try to understand what others are feeling when they talk about
themselves.
• Gain agreement on the ground rules from all team members.
• Assure team members that you are there to guide and help them, not to “change”
them. Let members express any anxieties they have about team building soothe
them as best you can (You probably won’t be able to eliminate anxieties, but
you’ll have a better chance of reducing them as the session progress if you know
about them early on). Common anxieties expressed include:
o What is the real reason we are spending all this time together?
o Is this really going to do any good?
o Will this jeopardize my relationship with my boss and my co workers, and
create more problems than results?
o Is it safe to get really involved in the session?
o Will the other people open up about things I know they have complained
about in private?
o What will happen if we bring up issues nobody can handle?
• To get team members back on a positive track, ask them to brainstorm the
strengths of their team, things the members feel good about and are proud of.
Record these and hang up the list.
Step 2: Present data and finalize diagnosis.
• Present your lists of preliminary data and your preliminary data analysis and
team diagnosis. Ask team members for input:
o Do they agree with your diagnosis of team problems and weaknesses?
o Do they agree with you on the issues team building should cover?
o Get agreement on a team diagnosis and on which one(s) of the following
issues to focus on during team building:
o Goal and priority setting
o Roles and relationship
o Individual competencies
o Operating processes
o Interpersonal relationships

o Systems influences
• Categorize the specific problems and weaknesses for each issues as follows:
o Category A – items open to change, plus items the team must learn to
live with and must develop coping mechanisms for.
o Category B – items that people outside the team must work on (identify
who those people are).
Step 3: Finalize session agenda.
• Revise your preliminary content plans based on your discussion with team
members.
o Make Category A items the top agenda issues for the rest of the team
building session.
o Place Category B items second in importance. They are issues for which
team members must develop strategies for involving people outside the
team.
• Choose team building activities, based on your final agenda.
Step 4: Conduct problem-solving activities and discussions.
You know what problems team members want to solve, what weaknesses they want to
strengthen, and what their priorities are. As you move into the problem-solving phase of
team building, you will either
• Lead the problem-solving process yourself, or
• Have the team manager lead the process, while you observe the team, coach the
manager, process problem-solving data, and offer feedback to the team on their
problems-solving technique and results.
The decision about who will lead the problem-solving process depends on the team’s
preference for leader and the manager’s experience in leading this type of process. This
decision cannot be made on the spot. If the team manager is to lead, he or she needs a
lot of preparation before the team building session.
No matter who leads, you have an active role to play during problem solving. Even as
an “observer” you must interject during activities whenever necessary to make sure they
are done correctly, and you must verbalize your thoughts, during and after team
discussions.
The leader of the problem-solving process guides the team through the following steps,
working on one problem or weakness on the agenda at a time.
• Discuss possible solutions to the problem (Leader can use an activity to prompt
discussion or can use an activity between opening and follow up discussions).
o Brainstorm all possible solutions
o Eliminate possibilities that are not feasible.
o Work on the possibilities that are feasible
o Identify short- and long-range goals
• Select the solution to be implemented
• Work out an action plan for the solution
o Assign tasks
o Set target dates for completion of tasks
• Determine how and when the results of actions taken will be evaluated.

• Schedule follow-u[ meetings for reporting on evaluations and planning any further
actions necessary.
It is important to document all decisions made during the problem-solving process.
Write down goals, action plans, task assignments, target completion dates, and make
sure every session participants gets copies.
Step 5: Get commitment to follow through.
The positive attitudes and enthusiasm generated by team building can quickly subside if
team members do not follow through with actions planned. Here is whre the
documentation done during problem solving helps, it serves as a good reminders to
members. Still, you should formally ask for members’ commitment to following through
with assignments and agreements made during team building.
Step 6: Evaluate team building session.
The final step is to evaluate the team building. Ask team members for feedback on the
session content and process, and document the feedback for use in follow-up meeting.
• Do they feel better now about team problems and weaknesses than they did
when they walked into the session?
• What did the session accomplish for them? What did it not accomplish?
• Do they think the session will have a positive long-range affect on the team, or
are they skeptical of the session’s long range value?
• Do they have suggestions for future team building efforts?
FACILITATOR INTERVENTIONS
Following are specific ways in which you should intervene during the problem solving
process.
• Help the team translate issues into problem statements that are related directly to
team goals
• Remind the team to develop action plans related to problem solutions
• Suggest that the team summarize what has been covered within a given problem
solving period
• Point out behaviors that are destructive to the problem solving process, those
that disrupt the cohesive climate the team established at the beginning of team
building.
• Verbally reinforce effective behaviors, those that support the climate and the
process
• Encourage team members to express feelings about decisions the team makes
• Suggest appropriate group arrangements for the phrases of problem solving. For
example:
o Have team members work privately, making notes to themselves, before
they discuss a topic jointly as a team.
o Have members pair off to question each other about a problem
o Form task groups to discuss problems and then share feelings with the
entire team.
WHO SHOULD ATTEND?
Should every member of a work team attend team building?

Before deciding on what seems like the ideal – attendance by everyone attached to the
team – consider each person’s role on the team. Some people may be attached to the
team manager how involved each person is in team work. If the manager recognize a
person as one whose absence would affect the results of a team effort, include that
person in team building.
A word about team size. If the number of potential team building participants seems too
large, consider designing the session around task group discussions and activities.
A general rule about which and how many people to have at team building when in
doubt about people, include them.
It’s better to have a few more in the session than to leave out people who think they
should be included.
FIVE ESSENTIAL GUIDELINES
The following guidelines will help you execute team building as its best
1. Establish from the start good communications with participants as both team
members and individuals.
2. Emphasizes to participants that team building should be an ongoing process- not
a one time activity. The team is not just solving present problems: it is learning
how to engage in its own review, analysis, decision making, action planning, and
action taking for the future.
3. Make sure you know the organization’s overall goals and norms, that you keep
them in mind throughout team building. Do not encourage participants proposals
for problem solutions that require changes the organization won’t or can’t allow.
Doing so will only raise false expectations and be destructive in the long run.
4. Ensure that you have the agreement of participants before proceeding from one
segment of the session to another. Before moving on, make sure you’ve covered
the steps or issue to participants’ satisfaction, they understand what’s involved in
the next step, and they understand how each step relates to the entire process.
5. Remember that you cannot force participants to have a positive attitude and to
be open and honest during the session. You may be able to make them pretend
to be positive, open, and honest, but doing so has no real benefit.
ARE YOU THE TYPE TO BUILD A TEAM?
An effective facilitator has these characteristics:
1. Communicates Well
2. Is flexible
3. Accept the goals and values of others
4. Is sensitive to and understanding of others’ feeling
5. Encourages others to express their feelings
6. Is aware of his or her own feelings, and expresses them openly
How many of these characteristics describe you?
Bandung, 4 May 2004.
NM Wijayanto

TEAM BUILDING AT ITS BEST

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