May 9, 2012 at 10:38 pm
Comments posted to this topic are about the item Teambuilding and Bonding
May 10, 2012 at 5:16 am
Recently I attended a conference for three days that was also attended by folks who I only communicate with about work orders and problems. Naturally, I only had a "what a pest" attitude about some of these folks. However, during our three day stay I got to know these folks on a social level and found I really enjoyed their company and found common bonds with all of them. Now I find that I have more patience with them and sometimes go the extra distance being helpful because I now consider these folks friends.
We learn in college and other professional development courses about how important team building and "face-time" is. I can attest to the fact that getting to know coworkers, team members, clients, etc on a social level is very beneficial. I think that whenever you find yourself wearing thin when dealing with others it may be time for a reenergizing social event. The event doesn't have to be fancy or expensive. A pot luck in the park is great. The food alone is a great conversation starter!
Holly
May 10, 2012 at 6:06 am
We have a team meeting for all people from all our offices here in the UK in a few weeks time and I'm looking forward to it much for the reasons expressed in the editorial. Working in one location which supports the company worldwide has obvious advantages, but we only ever seem to communicate with other departments when something goes wrong. While a worldwide meeting would be ideal, at least getting together with other people from all over this country will hopefully be a good start.
May 10, 2012 at 6:40 am
Interesting that you brought up the decline of team building, as I had just opened a link to this in my email:
http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article.cfm?articleid=2995
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-- FORTRAN manual for Xerox Computers --
May 10, 2012 at 8:21 am
At my former company we had "Beer Friday" starting at 4PM,(ok 3PM unofficially) every week. It was fun. And typically we stayed a little bit longer on Fridays just because it was enjoyable to code under the influence at work.
May 10, 2012 at 8:30 am
Great topic Steve - thanks,
Here at Intel (Folsom), team building is an important part of our culture and a lot of smart effort goes into selecting activities and venues that encourage interaction in non-vocational areas and it works well.
Team building is a good thing in my experience whether a trip to the museum, learning to throw a rug, having a BBQ or paintball contest.
Tom in Sacramento - For better, quicker answers on T-SQL questions, click on the following...http://www.sqlservercentral.com/articles/Best+Practices/61537/
May 10, 2012 at 8:43 am
Personally for myself, business and pleasure don't mix for me. Never has, and I like it that way. 😀
"Technology is a weird thing. It brings you great gifts with one hand, and it stabs you in the back with the other. ...:-D"
May 10, 2012 at 9:05 am
I can kind of enjoy such events and always go along with them, though they always do seem a little icky. We do not have them at my current employment - beyond the Chistmas meal - and I'll be honest, I don't miss them. I get to know colleagues all I need to. For instance I often accompany colleagues to meetings and after 2 long drives in a day, that is enough.
May 10, 2012 at 9:16 am
Oooo...ick...now I don't like the Christmas luncheon either. This "social" event just is not comfortable for some reason. Now we also have what we endearingly call "Trough Day" just before Christmas. We all bring in food and have an informal drop in gathering in the main foyer/hall of the main building. This is much more enjoyable.
May 10, 2012 at 9:20 am
Exactly, and the way some employees and their families behave at these offsite events, they never live it down at work either. I have personally seen such events ruin people's credibility at work from then on out. Better to keep these two areas distinctly separated IMHO.:-D
"Technology is a weird thing. It brings you great gifts with one hand, and it stabs you in the back with the other. ...:-D"
May 10, 2012 at 9:23 am
TravisDBA (5/10/2012)
Exactly, and the way some employees behave at these offsite events, they never live it down at work either. I have personally seen such events ruin people's credibility at work from then on out. Better to keep these two areas distinctly separated IMHO.:-D
Excellent point, and while I wouldn't agree they should be separate, you should remember that even in a social setting, you're at work.
A good book on this point is Career Warfare. Worth the read if you want to climb the ladder.
May 10, 2012 at 9:24 am
The IT department here makes occasional 'excuses' for having some fun at lunch out
Additionally the company does a couple events each year for old timers and retirees. And once a year there is a full dress party at an elegant location for employees and spouses.
It's all optional, no one is pressured to attend.
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-- FORTRAN manual for Xerox Computers --
May 10, 2012 at 9:34 am
, you should remember that even in a social setting, you're at work.
Steve,
People remembering that, and then actually practicing that, particularly after they have injested a certain amount of alcohol is two totally different things my friend. Anyway, what if it isn't you that misbehaves, but instead it is a member of your family? I can tell you some real horror stories about peoples families at these events, and once it happens once, the particular employee never lives it down. 😀
"Technology is a weird thing. It brings you great gifts with one hand, and it stabs you in the back with the other. ...:-D"
May 10, 2012 at 9:42 am
TravisDBA (5/10/2012)
, you should remember that even in a social setting, you're at work.
Steve,
People remembering that, and then actually doing that, particularly after they have injested a certain amount of alcohol is two totally different things my friend. Anyway, what if it isn't you that behaves, but instead it is a memebr of your family? I can tell you some real horror stories about peoples families at these events. 😀
Maybe that serves as a kind of insight into people, how they behave when they let their hair down is a kind of insight into them, either in a positve, or possibly negative way. Fortunately for me, my wife is a bit of a charmer, but I can imagine circumstances where some spouses/partners are better left at home.
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-- FORTRAN manual for Xerox Computers --
May 10, 2012 at 9:56 am
Team building can be a good thing, but it requires committment from both the employees and management, something that isn't always present.
Employees - People need to take it seriously. We need to be willing to get to know others. We need to accept that we are all different, and that while we don't have to agree with everyone else, we should not mistreat them simply because we think they are different. In fact, we are just as different when viewed from their perspective. In my experience, this is the lesser issue in team building, people tend to naturally accept others with a minimum of social interaction being required.
Management - In my experience, this is what usually causes most of the issues. Team building does not work when you create an atmosphere that makes it impossible for people to like each other. When everyone gets the same compensation no matter their level of productivity, when highly productive people continue to have work piled on them while less productive employees slide through the day with nothing to do, when workers that produce quality are expected to pull double and triple the weight of those who make repeated mistakes - how can we expect people to get along? Employees can't complain, they get labeled as the difficult one. The only recourse is to internalize things, which leads to anger, which leads to conflict, all because management is all too often unwilling to do their job.
By all means, engage in team building. Just don't waste my time with it if you aren't going to ensure that the atmosphere we work in is condusive to a successful effort. Engage in team building, but please make sure any efforts you make to improve the environment aren't designed to temporarily offer reduced stress, knowing full well that tomorrow we go back to 20 hour days, 5 times as many projects as can be reasonably handled, and blame being thrown around willy nilly.
Remember, a team is only as strong as the weakest link, whether that be the manager or the worker.
Dave
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