When NOT to do team building
Situation:
Team members lack the skills required to do their job.
Recommended action:
Provide training for the team. This is appropriate when teams are having problems making decisions or communicating. Indicators of poor decision making, communication, priority setting etc., should be explored to determine if training is required rather than, or in conjunction with team building.
Situation:
Individual performance problems are impacting team effectiveness.
Recommended Action:
Individual issues need to be addressed independently of team building. Team building should not be done to handle performance issues of an individual. The can damage the morale of the entire team. Deal with these situations one-on-one.
Situation:
There is confusion about the team's authority
Recommended action:
Although teams can clarity their shared purpose or mission, they may not be able to resolve problems related to their limits of authority. This is particularly true for cross-functional teams. When appropriate, the management sponsors and team leader need to agree on the scope of the authority, boundaries and limits.
Situation:
The team has had a bad experience with team building
Recommended action:
In these situations, it is important to delay team building. Look for ways to set aside time in regular team meetings to help the team improve its effectiveness. As the team make progress, it may become ready to engage in full-fledged team building.
Situation:
Team members feel stuck and perceive there is a lack of opportunity for career growth or development.
Recommended action:
Organization wide, companies need to put in place systems that allow individuals to develop their skills and talents. You should do all you can to provide growth and learning opportunities for team members. This includes making sure individuals assigned to cross-functional project teams get the full benefit of this experience. For intact teams, you can use rotational assignments and special project to increase personal satisfaction.
Situation:
It is not possible to get all the team members involved in team building.
Recommended action:
Sometimes there are geographical or logistical factors that impede a team's ability to come together for team building. Alternatives include:
- Convening a meeting of managers and supervisors and working with them to resolve issues. They can take the agreements back to their team.
- If team is scarce, focus the team building on key issues, so you can conduct team-building activities as part of regularly scheduled meetings.
Situation:
The team does not have the resources it needs
Recommended action:
This is an issue the team may not be able to resolve. You need to work with the leadership team to determine how to acquire the additional people, budget, equipment or other resources the team needs to meet its goals.
