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7  Benefits  A    Team  Building  Event    

Will  Bring  Your  Business      

Share  the  experience…  

Four  Seasons  Event  Management  

My name is David Mold (that’s me in the picture) and I have been running

team building events for over 20 years and so have witnessed the benefits

first hand.

The term “team building” has become a buzzword in recent years, and has

many connotations. In terms of corporate development, team-building

exercises are important not for the immediate experience of the activities

performed by the team, but also for the group skills, communication and

bonding that result.

The activity, be it an obstacle course or the Chocolate Challenge, is merely the means to the end: a high-

impact learning experience. Team-building programmes provide realistic experiences that empower

individuals to contribute to common goals.

The success of most organisations depends on the ability of individuals to build effective teams.

The main goals of team-building are to improve productivity and motivation. Taking employees out of the

office helps groups break down political and personal barriers, eliminate distractions, and have fun.

The benefits of team-building programs are so significant that many of my clients have incorporated

teambuilding strategies into their standard training curriculum.

In today’s competitive environment it’s important to look after the assets of your business. And many

would argue that THE most important asset is your staff.

What follows next are some key points to help you decide if a team building event is right for your

organisation, what are the benefits and what you should consider.

Working with you we will plan, build and deliver an event that is specific to you and your requirements.

Here are 7 ways in which your business WILL benefit from a team-building event.

1. Improves morale and leadership skills

2. Finds the barriers that thwart creativity

3. Clearly defines objectives and goals

4. Improves processes and procedures

5. Improves organisational productivity

6. Identifies a team’s strengths and weaknesses

7. Improves the ability to problem solve

Tap into hidden potential Once you decide to participate in a teambuilding program, the question becomes: where shall you go?

Our organisation is called Four Seasons Event Management and we run team building programmes

and builds custom activities for employee teams from organizations – big and small. In the hustle and

bustle of the corporate world, where turnover and attrition levels are skyrocketing, there are good reasons

for companies to plan teambuilding programmes.

Activities in these programs are designed to motivate people to pool their talents and perform at their

best individually and as team players. Team members discover that diversity is their greatest asset and

trust, cooperation and effective communication are the key to a team’s success.

Structured activities not only encourage individual development, but bring all members together for a

common cause.

Team-building programs provide upbeat and powerful team experiences allowing companies to compete

effectively by enabling staff at all corporate levels to work as true team players.

Let’s get into the detail…

• What is a team?

• What are the most common problems?

• What should you be considering?

Benefits include: A Team That Works Better, Smarter Harder

What is a team anyway?

• A team is a small number of people with complementary skills who are committed to a common

purpose, performance goals, and approach for which they hold themselves mutually accountable

• Small Number

• Complementary Skills

• Common Purpose & Performance Goals

• Common Approach

• Mutual Accountability

10 common teaming problems

1. Floundering

2. Overbearing participants

3. Dominating participants

4. Reluctant participants

5. Unquestioned acceptance of opinions as facts

6. Rush to accomplishment

7. Attribution

8. Discounts and “plops”

9. Wanderlust: digression and tangents

10. Feuding members

Ok, so now let’s spend some time looking at a few of the main factors to think about in team building.

5 issues to be considered in team building

1. Interdependence

This is the issue of how each member’s outcomes are determined, at least in part, by the actions of the

other members. The structure of the team task should be such that it requires cooperative

interdependence.

Functioning independently of other team members, or competing with them should lead to sub

optimal outcomes for the entire team. Tasks that require the successful performance of sub tasks

by all team members are called divisible, conjunctive tasks.

Benefits include: A Team That Appreciates The Value of Each Member

2. Goal Specification

It is very important for team members to have common goals for team achievement, as well as to

communicate clearly about individual goals they may have.

The process of clarifying goals may well engage all of the issues on this list. Indeed, shared goals is one of

the definitional properties of the concept “team.” A simple, but useful, team building task is to assign a

newly formed team the task of producing a mission and goals statement.

3. Cohesiveness

This term refers to the attractiveness of team membership. Teams are cohesive to the extent that

membership in them is positively valued; members are drawn toward the team.

In task oriented teams the concept can be differentiated into two sub concepts, social cohesiveness and

task cohesiveness. Social cohesiveness refers to the bonds of interpersonal attraction that link team

members. Although a high level of social cohesiveness may make team life more pleasant, it is not highly

related to team performance. Nevertheless, the patterns of interpersonal attraction within a team are a

very prominent concern.

Team building exercises that have a component of fun or play are useful in allowing attraction bonds to

develop. Task cohesiveness refers to the way in which skills and abilities of the team members mesh to

allow effective performance.

4. Roles and Norms

All teams develop a set of roles and norms over time. In task oriented teams, it is essential that the role

structure enables the team to cope effectively with the requirements of the task.

When the task is divisible and conjunctive, as are most of the important team tasks in our society, the

assignment of roles to members who can perform them effectively is essential. Active consideration of the

role structure can be an important part of a team building exercise.

Task roles may be rotated so that all team members experience, and learn from, all roles. Even then, it is

important that the norm governing the assignment of roles is understood and accepted by team members.

Norms are the rules governing the behaviour of team members, and include the rewards for behaving in

accord with normative requirements, as well as the sanctions for norm violations. Norms will develop in a team, whether or not they are actively discussed.

Benefits include: An Increase In Retention

5. Communication

Effective interpersonal communication is vital to the smooth functioning of any task team. There are many

ways of facilitating the learning of effective communication skills.

Active listening exercises, practice in giving and receiving feedback, practice in checking for

comprehension of verbal messages, are all aimed at developing skills. It is also important for a team to

develop an effective communication network; who communicates to whom; is there anybody “out of the

loop?” Norms will develop governing communication.

Do those norms encourage everyone to participate, or do they allow one or two dominant members to

claim all the “air time?”

(From Scholtes, Peter R., The Team Handbook, Joiner Associates (1988))

FREE Team Building Advice Call I would like to offer you a FREE 30 minute team building event planning call. We can discuss your team building needs and I will advise you on the best approach for your business. There is no hard sell, no pitching just honest advice based on your needs and my experience in this area. I look forward to speaking with you David Call: 01590 681981 Email: david@fs-em.co.uk

                                    Tel; 01590 681981

Fax; 01590681535 E-mail; info@fs-em.co.uk Web; www.fs-em.co.uk

Ploughlands, Westbeams Road, Sway, Hampshire SO41 6AE

 

About me! “I have run Four Seasons for over 18 years and during that time we have built a reputation for delivering great fun filled and unique events. My background was in the hospitality industry and it was is the high level of customer service that I wanted to bring into the company when I set it up, it is the small things that get taken for granted that make all the difference. As MD for Four Seasons I am responsible for most things to do with running your own business, however I take great pride in taking clients ideas and turning them into great fun events, ideas we have converted into events are The Da Vinci Code, Team Apprentice, 24, Prison Break and The Heist and then watching them experience the day they helped create. Having spent three years cycling around the world (the wrong way!) I know what it takes to see things through to completion and I use this same determination to deliver on all of our client’s events no matter how big or small.”

Benefits include: Team Members That Feel Recognised And Valued

 

The Rent Service "Wow....this is excellent and truly insightful ! ..You definitely seem to have got us all sussed." "In pretty much every respect, excellent isn't really sufficient." "We got to understand and know things about each other that we never have known before, it would take a long time to reach this level of understanding." Rolls Royce "A big thank you for organising such fun and active events, although completely exhausted after the three days we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves! All the events were fun and challenging and you were successful in creating an atmosphere that was both competitive and team building. We can assure you that you come highly recommended by us and we will be sure to use your organisation again" Xansa Multi Activity Day - "From start to finish, the day was handled very professionally and the event management team were probably the best I have worked with.... Would definitely use again and would recommend to others without hesitation" Chartered Society of Physiotherapists City Slickers – "Very good day & much appreciated by the staff. We will take forward some ideas as an action plan" British American Tobacco Team Challenges – "We all had a great time, brilliant, thanks" Unilever Boot Camp – "Attention to detail excellent. Will definitely use you again, have already passed your details on to a fellow department" Tree Boot Camp – "As always, a pleasure" Benfield Group Cycle Treasure Hunt – "Excellent service, could not have been better, well managed & very friendly" Latitude 51 Sailing Day – "You provided an excellent day" HTSPE RIB Treasure Hunt – "A stimulating and exhilarating day" Group 4 Construction Day - "We all thoroughly enjoyed the day & the mix of events" Ordnance Survey Murder Mystery – "The team really enjoyed it – as the photos show!"

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