How to improve Team Building Skills

Teams are essential to the success of any company.  A successful team is not just about having the right people in place, but also getting the individuals to work together successfully. “It’s easy to get the players; it’s getting them to play together that’s the tough part.” (Cornelius & Associates)  This is why team building skills are vital.  A company with proficient team building skills can set themselves apart from their competition because a team that can communicate and work effectively vastly out performs a dysfunctional team.  A team may have great individuals but without the ability to effectively work together they are not as effective as a team that works well together.

There are businesses whose goal is to make teams more effective, and are trained in enhancing team building skills within a company.  One place for corporate training in Chicago is the Corporate Learning Institute.  The Corporate Learning Institute is highly experienced in coaching team building skills and can customize the learning experience to the specific needs of any company.  “We want to design the best possible experience for your team. We use a needs assessment, plus an interview approach to get a sense of the leadership vision, take the pulse of the team members, and design the best possible way forward.”  (Corporate Learning Institute, 2013)

“In simple words, team building is a process which inculcates the importance of participation, collaboration, unity and other such team building skills in the team members to enhance the performance of the group or organization as a whole.” (Abhijit Naik, Buzzle.com 2013)  In order for any company to get the most out of their teams, that company must be trained in team building skills.  Corporate training is available in Chicago, as well as the rest of North America by the Corporate Learning Institute.

Companies can learn team building skills on their own, and make adjustments in order for their teams to produce better work.  Despite this, receiving corporate training is the better option.  Companies can receive training from team building experts and be more productive immediately.  Companies who receive training are ensuring themselves an immediate advantage over their competitor who forgoes corporate training.  Companies are always looking for an edge over their competition and receiving corporate training to increase their team building skills is a simple, effective, and long lasting advantage.  

Immediately after receiving corporate training a company’s teams will start to work, and communicate more effectively.  A company may have the right people in place for their success; however, if the employees cannot successfully work together they are not maximizing their resources.

Team Building Strategies That Work for Your Organization

Many strategies exist to build effective teams. This article will outline just a few ideas for strategies to build on for your organization. There are two main approaches to managing your own team building strategies; formal and informal approaches. Author Jon Katzenbach, author of "Leading outside the Lines," writes that both must be present in an organization. Formal structures include organizational charts, vision, mission, and operating guidelines. These formal mechanisms provide a framework for the informal processes that complement them. Informal processes include the way that people interact, the leaders they informally chose to follow, the relationships they forge to get their work done. An effective team building strategy can include both to ensure that gains are made on both fronts.

Formal Team Building strategies include training workshops, agenda-driven meetings, and written processes and procedures. Effective team building strategies here can include a high-level look at how you want your organization to team. For example, many corporations have developed a "matrix" driven approach to work-expecting individuals to link across departments and other boundaries. A matrix organization allows more work to flow.  This results in increased focus on the products development and services that clients or end users need. This collaborative structure should include formal team building strategies and training for increasing collaboration, communication, problem solving and innovation across the organization. Project management skills and work flow charts are also helpful formal team building strategies to help people function in this way.

Informal team building strategies include things like workspace redesigns that allow people to connect more directly. Small break-out rooms, co-located desks, coffee break rooms, and fewer walls can bring people together more often in a casual way. Research supports that casual contact has a significant impact on teaming and collaboration. Other informal processes include shared lunches, off-site get-togethers, and other meetings of an informal nature.

Creating a team building strategy for your organization is imperative for future success, and can include things that you are already doing.  Combining both formal and informal team building strategies allows you to take advantage of both options.  For more information click here

Why Team Building Pays Off

Chicago, Illinois; Team building skills allow people to work together better, saving time, money and your most important asset-knowledge. The Corporate Learning Institute helps individuals and teams develop optimal collaboration skills. How do they do it? Recently, Dr. Susan Cain worked with a high profile client in Santa Barbara, California. The team, from a start-up company in famed Silicon Valley, California, was struggling. Bolstered by an impressive start, with sufficient investor funding and a great go-to-market service, sales flattened, the inevitable lay-offs occurred, and the team splintered into predicate factions. 

CLI partners Dr. Susan Cain and Dr. Tim Buividas were asked to help the team regroup.

"We worked within the CLI span of capabilities, which includes strategy development, cultural assessment, innovation and project management and team capability development," commented Dr. Tim Buividas.

Together, market position was assessed. Then, short, mid-and longer-range goals were revisited. A redeveloped strategy began to emerge with an action plan to generate early wins. "We had to combine team building activities with discussion to break through to deeper conversation," Dr. Buividas noted. The team made progress in developing open conversations in a more casual environment; they began to see how missed conversations led to silos and fed the fear factor rampant within the culture. 

"The team members stopped hiding out from each other and could now see themselves as one team. This only occurred after we introduced team building activities that required trust and communication to complete," Dr. Buividas concluded. 

CLI partner Dr. Susan Cain agreed. "We have developed a select grouping of portable team building activities that serve to engage clients directly in conversations about trust, collaboration, problem solving and innovative thinking. They can spark very deep conversations about the state of the organization’s health, about grudges that have been built between people, and about how to move ahead to solve even the organization’s biggest challenges."

Team building activities, combined with an organization’s business context needs can pay off in big ways. Today, the start-up that CLI worked with is back on track with their progress and clear on their common goals. Their road ahead is not easy, but is optimized by the new agreements and skills that they now have in place. "Combining team building with a strategic change agenda is a great way to improve the odds for future success," Dr. Buividas stated.

Why Team Building Pays Off - Corporate Learning Institute

Team building skills allow people to work together better, saving time, money and your most important asset-knowledge. The Corporate Learning Institute helps individuals and teams develop optimal collaboration skills. How do they do it? Recently, Dr. Susan Cain worked with a high profile client in Santa Barbara, California. The team, from a start-up company in famed Silicon Valley, California, was struggling. Bolstered by an impressive start, with sufficient investor funding and a great go-to-market service, sales flattened, the inevitable lay-offs occurred, and the team splintered into predicate factions.

CLI partners Dr. Susan Cain and Dr. Tim Buividas were asked to help the team regroup.

"We worked within the CLI span of capabilities, which includes strategy development, cultural assessment, innovation and project management and team capability development," commented Dr. Tim Buividas.

Together, market position was assessed. Then, short, mid-and longer-range goals were revisited. A redeveloped strategy began to emerge with an action plan to generate early wins. "We had to combine team building activities with discussion to break through to deeper conversation," Dr. Buividas noted. The team made progress in developing open conversations in a more casual environment; they began to see how missed conversations led to silos and fed the fear factor rampant within the culture.

"The team members stopped hiding out from each other and could now see themselves as one team. This only occurred after we introduced team building activities that required trust and communication to complete," Dr. Buividas concluded.

CLI partner Dr. Susan Cain agreed. "We have developed a select grouping of portable team building activities that serve to engage clients directly in conversations about trust, collaboration, problem solving and innovative thinking. They can spark very deep conversations about the state of the organization’s health, about grudges that have been built between people, and about how to move ahead to solve even the organization’s biggest challenges."

Team building activities, combined with an organization’s business context needs can pay off in big ways. Today, the start-up that CLI worked with is back on track with their progress and clear on their common goals. Their road ahead is not easy, but is optimized by the new agreements and skills that they now have in place. "Combining team building with a strategic change agenda is a great way to improve the odds for future success," Dr. Buividas stated.

For more information on how to optimize your team's future, visit The Corporate Learning Institute at www.corplearning.com.

Susan Cain

Corporate Learning Institute

scain@corplearning.com

1-800-203-6734

www.corplearning.com

Ropes Courses in Illinois for your growth

Ropes courses offer teams an opportunity to develop more trust, open up communication and develop collaboration skills like sharing information, solving problems together and creating innovative approaches. Ropes courses exist throughout Illinois. Ropes courses are divided into low ropes courses, and high ropes courses. Low ropes courses in Illinois are often built at Park Districts and private camps. Now there is a new low ropes course in Illinois located at the Chicago Hilton Indian Lakes Resort. This is the first ropes course built in Illinois to accommodate adults-only, to focus on how adults learn and collaborate together. Adult low ropes courses allow teams to focus on the skills needed for the workplace. Illinois'newest low ropes course offers adults an unusual learning experience set amid a golf course-like setting. 

Other Illinois ropes courses facilities offer low and high ropes courses throughout the state of Illinois that provide the skills that teams need to succeed. Many of these courses provide a cost-effective alternative, but require adult groups to share space with youth groups. Ropes courses in Illinois have existed for many years and are often utilized year-round. Many offer shelters and indoor classroom space to allow teams to debrief the ropes course activities even in inclement weather. Some ropes courses in Illinois provide student groups with a needed boost to ensure cohesion. These ropes courses are often associated with colleges and universities. 

There are many ropes courses in Illinois that can work best for your group if only you research your needs. Enter "Ropes Course Illinois" into your search engine and many options will appear. The option that is best for your team should fit into your timelines, budget and ability needs of the ropes course facilitators.