Team Building Activities and Techniques That Get Results

Building Teamwork at Workplace – 3 Easy Steps to Becoming a Great Company to Work For

Takuya Hikichi — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 08:00:29 +0000

Step 1 – Identifying the goal upfront

If you are struggling to inspire your team, narrow down the main focus that your members are trying to achieve. If you can successfully “pinpoint” the purpose of everything your team is attempting to achieve together, the clearer and more united your team should identify the purpose or the mission of your team.

Step 2 – Verifying that the goal speaks to its teammates

After identifying the purpose, verify if everything your team does now works toward achieving the goal.

If not, find out why. Does that goal of your team speak to your team members? If it speaks to them, regardless of who is leading the task, your organization will work towards it. Do not force if the goal is not resonating with its members. Too many employees are sick and tired of working only to be forced into compliance.

Step 3 – Fix everything that is not encouraging teammates to work together

If it seems to be working, but your team is not responding well, it means the team environment is not encouraging enough for members to be forthcoming about how they’re feeling (as if, speaking up means jeopardizing their jobs).

Stop everything you’re doing, ask for feedback as a leader because your team may be telling you that you are NOT inspiring them.

CHECKLIST:

Clearly identify the purpose of your team
Verify if everything your team does now works towards achieving the goal
If not working, fix it
If it seems like “Yes”, but not sure why it isn’t working 100%, your team is scared to tell you the truth

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Team Building Activities for Work – Two Simple Steps to Adding Greater Value at Workplace

Takuya Hikichi — Sun, 12 Sep 2010 03:33:12 +0000

When building unity, motivating employees, and building corporate identity at workplace, managers develop team building activities. However, building a strong, identifiable, and competitive corporate culture require more efforts than simply going through exercises. Here are a few tips that will help managers strengthen teamwork at workplace.

Becoming “obviously visible”

Wearing t-shirts (preferably in colors other than white), buttons, hats, making posters, banners, flags, and car bumper stickers all send signal to the rest of the organization that there is something important taking place at work. In an effective example, during the month of February, organizations implement the color pink in an effort to join the cause for fighting against breast cancer. The visible identity built on a well communicated mission statement alerts everyone that it is time to get involved. If the mission, the cause, and the idea of the message speak to the employees, they will effectively unite workers regardless of who is leading.

Secret to motivating teams every time a team building game is played

When motivating adults to participate in activities and games, unless explained in advance how the practice would help them, not all adults become interested in playing team building games or activities at workplace. Spend time brainstorming with leaders for creative activities that would teach employees a new insight or refreshing perspective how the corporate mission, values, idea or a cause promoted is going to make an impact on the lives of employees. Well thought-out activities designed to add values will allow employees to realize managers are genuinely interested in making better work environment. If a game is played only for the sake of “filling” a team meeting time, it adds no benefit and better to conduct the meeting without the game.

No matter how practical a game or activity may be, unless the team values such activity supports the purpose, it does not leave lasting effect. The best activity is something employees want to take action after spending time practicing – something they will take home and make them want to implement.

CHECKLIST:

Become visible by wearing t-shirts, hats, posting banners
Spend time coming up with creative activities so that the employees know managers are serious about the purpose of team building and teamwork unity.

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Building Team Culture – Establishing Values and Culture Early On

Building Team Culture – Establishing Values and Culture Early On

Takuya Hikichi — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 10:00:30 +0000

In his Stanford lecture address, Jerry Kaplan talks about how companies should establish values and culture early on.

I would say as far as this – when you hire new employees, instead of telling about the company facts, tell them about the stories of founders and see if it resonates.

Your company may be the best or the greatest in whatever you do, but what is the mission, value, philosophy behind the greatness?

Your founders, whether it is still observed today in your company or not, saw the future before them and built the company based on values and culture he/she believed in. Quite often when the employees discover this, they become more motivated to do the work.

Forget the facts and figures only stockholders care, but re-read what the founders hoped to achieve with the company. Share this with the employees and motivate.

Here’s a team building activity you can do tomorrow.

Make emotionally driven movie about the company’s founders, their vision, values and mission and watch it with employees.

This way, they will know that their job isn’t just a job, but connecting ideas to people they serve.

Personality of a Company: Establishing Culture and Values Early On

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Employee Engagement Survey Ideas

Takuya Hikichi — Sat, 28 Aug 2010 10:00:19 +0000

Smart managers know that an organization is not merely a group of employees but a collection of individuals bristling with various emotions. Likewise, successful organizations provide jobs not merely a source of livelihood, but as a means for the employee to reinforce his talents and skills.

To engage employees most effectively, managements should conduct an employee engagement survey and use ideas suggested by experts to improve employee involvement.

Survey Ideas for Engaging Employees Effectively

Periodically, every organization should frame a questionnaire that will help management take a peek into the minds of employees and find out the level of employee engagement in the organization (Photocredit) . Below is a list of questions that can be used to find out the involvement level of employees:

What can you do to help relate yourself to the company that you are working for?
What is your understanding of the objectives and mission of your organization?
Describe your job responsibilities.
Does the nature of your work make you feel important in your company’s achievement of its mission?
Have you been provided with the requisite equipment to deliver the work expected of you?
Does your immediate superior encourage and support you?
Have you faced discrimination in any form at work?
When was the last time you were appreciated, encourage or rewarded at work?
Have you offered any suggestions to improve the quality of work?
Do you feel that your opinions will be taken into account by the company?

When these surveys are conducted effectively, organizations reinforce the values and ideas about their mission and objectives among employees.

Processes and decision making in the organization become transparent and based on merit by taking all the employees into confidence and elicit suggestions about a new management practice or strategic change that is being contemplated.

Listening to the feedback from the employees promote a sense of belonging. Without it he will feel lost, purposeless and soon start searching for a better alternative.

These are only a few examples and every organization can devise a similar questionnaire to gauge the extent of employees’ engagement.

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Employee Engagement Ideas that Work

Takuya Hikichi — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 02:29:30 +0000

What happens when a key employee of the organization leaves for better pastures, leaving the business vulnerable and weak in the wake?
The most probable reason for that to have happened is because the organization had not taken enough care and pain to keep the employee engaged.
Employee Engagement Ideas That Work

The most important asset, i.e. human resource need to be tied down to the organization with successful employee engagement ideas.

The one defining phrase for keeping employees engaged, involved and anchored to the workplace, is “job satisfaction”.

Humans on the whole need a lot more than just a paycheck to stick with their companies. The senior leaders themselves must come forward in addition to the Human Resource personnel to engage their employees to their mutual satisfaction.

Giving a raise or throwing in a few more perks alone will not do the trick. It takes a lot of commitment on the part of senior management to retain talent at all levels of the organization.

Communication

Foremost amongst all ideas that work is the clear communication across the organizational network.

Just telling or informing the employees about the policy directives or set of instructions is not communication.

It involves engaging them with interaction, listening to their ideas and needs and to make then understand and believe in a shared directive or vision.

They will only believe when the leaders themselves believe in those ideas and it’s very easy for them to see through the façade, if the message is not honest and sincere.

Appreciation

Employees attach a lot of importance to sense of worth and their value being acknowledged and appreciated in the organization.

(Photocredit)

It’s human tendency both within and outside the organization to seek a pat on the back for good work done and has even more significance in the workplace, where the person’s skills are at work.

Smart managers always walk that extra mile to make their employees feel worthwhile and valuable and never miss the opportunity to appreciate and acknowledge the excellent work done.

This more than anything else inspires, motivates and retains the performing and promising talent within the corporation, small or large.

To retain star performers, skilled personnel and promising freshers, keep engaging them with consistency, sincerity, open communication channels, appreciation and fairness.

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Employee Engagement – Six Activities to Boost Morale