This text is part of the special Team Building notebook
When well thought out, planned and structured, the team building can have a real effect on the effectiveness of teams, according to specialists.
THE team buildinga term that is often overused. This is in fact commonly used generically to describe the bonding teama simple gathering of employees aimed at strengthening group cohesion — an outing to the restaurant or the bowling alley, a weekend at a chalet, for example. Marc Merulla, founder and director of Team Building programs, and Corinne Prost, specialist in organizational behavior and lecturer in the Department of Management at HEC Montréal, however, agree that the team building is much more complex than it seems. ” THE team buildingit’s when we have a common goal and we accomplish something together,” says Mr. Merulla.
For Mme Prost, team building should not be seen as a simple social intervention, but as a lever to improve the work system. “The question to ask is: what does this bring to the effectiveness of the team? » she emphasizes. For them to have an effect, the activities of team building must therefore be thought of as ways to work on interpersonal processes, not just to “have a good time together”.
In the same vein, Marc Merulla recalls the distinction between team bondingTHE team building and team development, which goes further than the first two, incorporating training and tools, such as psychometric tests, to hone specific skills within a team. The professional cites as an example a bicycle construction activity for charitable purposes organized by an employer. If participants simply assemble the bikes without prior thought, it remains a mundane task of team bonding. “It becomes team buildingeven team development, when we do preparatory exercises to work on skills, communication, interdependence and accountability before the goal, which is the manufacture of bicycles,” he says. Corinne Prost adds: “The objective of team building is to understand how individual differences influence the way each person approaches teamwork. »
The right time
If the distinction between team bonding and the team building is essential, knowing when to organize these activities is just as important. Mme Prost says it’s crucial to consider the team’s stage of development when determining when an intervention is appropriate. “When the team is forming or at the start of a project, the team building can help speed up the socialization process and strengthen social bonds [entre les membres] “, she explains. This is when these activities can have a beneficial effect on long-term collaboration.
On the other hand, she warns against the systematic use of these activities at inappropriate times. “If the team is already well into its lifecycle or in full production, team consolidation may not only be unnecessary, but may even be a waste of time or even detrimental to efficiency because we turn away from the priority,” she explains. Timing is therefore essential so as not to lose sight of the main objectives of the company. Furthermore, “it won’t be much use to do team building if we forget the perspective of the dimensions of team effectiveness,” she says.
Marc Merulla shares this opinion and recalls the importance of first understanding the needs of the team. “It is crucial to ensure that the activities chosen correspond to a real need of the team and its long-term objectives,” he explains. For him, team building should never be seen as a simple fun break, but rather as a strategic tool to strengthen cohesion and improve collective performance.
Finally, for team building to be even more effective, it is crucial to “find a fair balance between the time allocated to the task and that dedicated to interactions”, mentions Corinne Prost. She emphasizes the need to use tools that “bring depth to the understanding of individual differences”, as this has a direct effect on the way we approach work.
The real challenge of team building is therefore to think about how to regulate teamwork interactions, in order to optimize collaboration. “We need to work together and coordinate, because that’s how we accomplish bigger and more important things than if we were alone,” concludes M.me Prost.
This content was produced by the Special Publications team at Dutyrelating to marketing. The writing of the Duty did not take part.