A great team is more than just a group of people lumped together. A great team is a well-oiled machine running on all cylinders, fueled by purpose, positivity, and playfulness.
Now that your teams are created with a clear intention, the next question is — how do you ensure the teams work well together?
So at your next event, make sure to use these tips to help your teams reach for the gold.
1) Announce teams prior to the company event.
Giving people advance notice of who is on their team allows time for even deeper connections. Bonds will start to form in the office — on Slack channels, group emails, and high fives in the hallway. You’ll feel that camaraderie build, and when the day of event comes along, your teams will be ready to hit the ground running.
One way ZogCulture does this with clients is we host a pep rally in advance of their larger outing. This way, teams can come together in a formal capacity before the actual event, and they have a chance to get to know each other, build trust, and get excited not just for the event, but for the new connections they’ve already made.
2) Speaking of, focus on building trust from the start.
According to Jordan Bower, founder of Transformational Storytelling, the biggest worry for leaders thinking about the future should be trust. Here at Zog, we believe a great way to foster trust is through team activities.
One of our favorite activities at a pep rally or to kick off an event is to ask teams to create a team name. We call this exercise, “Uncommon InCommon,” where teams identify hobbies, passions, experiences or traits that they all have in common. They then create a team name based on what they all share.
3) Have people be responsible for team roles.
Any good team needs a coach, a captain, and someone to keep the team organized and on track. What would the Dillon Panthers have done without Coach Taylor? And do you… Remember the Titans? Imagine what that team would have been like without Gerry Bertier and Julius Campbell.
Miriam Grahmina, author of The Project Management Question and Answer Book agrees that assigning team roles helps improve a project in a number of ways. Specifically, it enhances efficiency, productivity, morale, and decision-making. We typically encourage teams to self-select a team captain, scribe, and coach. Depending on your goals, you may want to assign them in advance.
If you want your teams to excel during and after an event, it’s your job to set them up for success. As Michael Jordan so famously said, “Talent wins games, but teamwork wins championships.” Let’s go, champs!