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Post by jno on Jun 24, 2021 4:10:52 GMT
Teambuilding in the workplace: Worth it or overhyped waste of time? So, have you ever been asked or forced to do teambuilding at work? If so, did it result in a better team or was it a complete waste of time? Do stupid activities actually make you get along better with those you work with? Where's Amy Allen? Oh yeah, she was kicked out of The A-Team by season 2. Did she need teambuilding?
Tell us if you love it or hate it here ...
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Post by felixdeburgh on Jun 24, 2021 12:20:05 GMT
I used to absolutely detest being forced to do stuff like this. It didn’t have any positive effect on working relationships and everyone saw it as a total waste of time, which could have been better spent actually doing some proper work.
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Post by jjmolloy on Jun 24, 2021 13:08:01 GMT
Self employed, so I don't have to endure this type of rubbish.
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Post by Arch Stanton on Jun 24, 2021 13:31:02 GMT
I ticked YES, contrary to those who’ve ticked NO. How’s that for team building Like most of these work based events it very much depends what mindset you go in with as to what you get out. I suspect that if people are ‘forced’ to go on a team building exercise to tick boxes it kind of defeats the object. Naturally some people really like them and some don’t, depending on the type of person you are. I also think that if they are done properly, where you genuinely focus on the strengths and weaknesses of each individual and the exercise isn’t just the brainwave of some idiot line manager justifying their existence, then if you’re open to it you can learn a lot, both about yourself and others. However that requires trained psychological assessment and valuable feedback. I think proper team building exercises need to be set up and organised right, if so these can take days. I don’t realistically believe it’s something you can do by spending half a day’s recess or an evening out with a few people.
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Post by McCann on Jun 24, 2021 14:08:27 GMT
Depends on how natural or (terrible phrase I suppose) 'organic' the team building is. Also, how stable is the workplace and what is the staff turnover like. I've worked in teams 15/20 years ago that were reasonably stable, the culture of the firm wasn't overly Americanised, and the team building was genuinely good fun. You could even be mates with your work colleagues. On the other extreme a lot of the teams I've worked in since then have suffered because of a destabilised culture across the business. With relatively high staff turnover and people find it difficult to take 'team building' seriously in these environments.
Don't get to know Sarah who sits over there, because she'll probably be moving on in a few weeks/months time anyway.
This has got worse as the years have gone by, and since the lockdowns started I really don't know how people manage teams in a conventional sense. Especially when there is high turnover or a lot of new joiners coming into the teams.
It's a bit of a mess in my view. But then I sort of live in the past anyway, and I'm quite content about it.
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Post by jno on Jun 24, 2021 16:19:11 GMT
I used to absolutely detest being forced to do stuff like this. It didn’t have any positive effect on working relationships and everyone saw it as a total waste of time, which could have been better spent actually doing some proper work. felix for president! Agree 2000% I ticked YES, contrary to those who’ve ticked NO. TRAITOR! I've actually got out of teambuilding recently as a result of being signed orf sick. A two day event and after the first day ended a colleague of mine was on the phone crying to me telling me how bad it was and asking for advice. That was productive day then, not. I'm with felix, this is a complete waste of everyone's time - things CAN be ironed out in the workplace with a bit of give and take and simply asking people what they think a fair compromise to a problem is. It also reduces the amount of time to do real work.
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Post by ltd on Jun 24, 2021 17:16:41 GMT
Always managed to avoid these, for which I'm grateful.
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Post by barrythebook on Jun 24, 2021 21:05:12 GMT
I've had to take part in a couple of these exercises and to be honest I don't think any individual really gained anything but the company seemed to be very pleased with itself for organising them. We drivers had to spend a day in the office, each assigned to a CSA (customer sales advisor) to observe the problems they encounter with customers on the phone and how they deal with them/resolve them etc. In return, the CSA's had to spend a day out on the road with us drivers, to experience the physical side of the supply chain. Fortunately I was assigned a lovely, dear little CSA called Lisa. A stunner in her short skirt and low cut top BUT being a size 8, she wasn't much cop at helping me throw around drums of cooking oil when she came out on round with me, especially in her high heels
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Post by jjmolloy on Jun 24, 2021 22:53:16 GMT
I've had to take part in a couple of these exercises and to be honest I don't think any individual really gained anything but the company seemed to be very pleased with itself for organising them. We drivers had to spend a day in the office, each assigned to a CSA (customer sales advisor) to observe the problems they encounter with customers on the phone and how they deal with them/resolve them etc. In return, the CSA's had to spend a day out on the road with us drivers, to experience the physical side of the supply chain. Fortunately I was assigned a lovely, dear little CSA called Lisa. A stunner in her short skirt and low cut top BUT being a size 8, she wasn't much cop at helping me throw around drums of cooking oil when she came out on round with me, especially in her high heels Are you sure you're not mixing it up with the last Carry On you saw baz!
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Post by kelotoph on Jun 25, 2021 9:44:42 GMT
Whereas I genuinely tried to put alot into these events, and had some fun sometimes, I was always conscious of the fact that by being on them, my work was piling up in the meantime and would not be being done by anyone else. This usually resulted in either missed deadlines or me having to work late to catch up, which did nothing for the team building at home or my motivation at work, so counter-productive really.
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Post by Arch Stanton on Jun 25, 2021 11:09:12 GMT
Whereas I genuinely tried to put alot into these events, and had some fun sometimes, I was always conscious of the fact that by being on them, my work was piling up in the meantime and would not be being done by anyone else. This usually resulted in either missed deadlines or me having to work late to catch up, which did nothing for the team building at home or my motivation at work, so counter-productive really. Sounds like you would have been better off with a Time Management course, Kelo.
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Post by kelotoph on Jun 25, 2021 12:08:38 GMT
Whereas I genuinely tried to put alot into these events, and had some fun sometimes, I was always conscious of the fact that by being on them, my work was piling up in the meantime and would not be being done by anyone else. This usually resulted in either missed deadlines or me having to work late to catch up, which did nothing for the team building at home or my motivation at work, so counter-productive really. Sounds like you would have been better off with a Time Management course, Kelo. Or a more realistic boss!
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Post by jno on Jun 27, 2021 7:27:49 GMT
Arch is Billy No Mates in the poll for this one. We definitely need more voters!
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Post by Arch Stanton on Jun 27, 2021 7:50:57 GMT
Arch is Billy No Mates in the poll for this one. We definitely need more voters! Yes. No one wants to be in my team. The fact that all the people voting no - you know, the none team players - are the ones who probably would benefit most from team building skills.
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Post by jno on Jun 27, 2021 10:40:44 GMT
Arch is Billy No Mates in the poll for this one. We definitely need more voters! Yes. No one wants to be in my team. The fact that all the people voting no - you know, the none team players - are the ones who probably would benefit most from team building skills. Nah, they're so cool they don't need teambuilding sh1te more like.
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Post by NickP on Jun 28, 2021 8:32:56 GMT
I'm not sure about "Team Building" although my daughter who is head of marketing of one of the biggest UK insurance companies seems to spend quite a lot of time in this activity, might be something to do with the fact that alcohol does seem to be a vital ingredient. As a freelancer for over 45 years and changing crews on a regular basis we did practice a form of team building while on locations away from home. An interesting quote from Nick Gillott who was the production manager on the first two series of Minder. He said: "it's very important to cast the crew on a long running series, as a crew that doesn't get along costs the company money in time wasted while they pursue their petty agendas". So maybe I do agree with jno to a degree but for not the same reasons.
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Post by Portland Road on Jul 1, 2021 21:46:18 GMT
A stunner in her short skirt and low cut top BUT being a size 8, she wasn't much cop at helping me throw around drums of cooking oil when she came out on round with me, especially in her high heels Are you sure you're not mixing it up with the last Carry On you saw baz! "....mmmm, bit of rear-wheel drive eyyyy....!"
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Post by steve99 on Jul 5, 2021 3:20:55 GMT
I'm not someone who'd naturally be keen to take part in team-building events as I think it suits more gregarious people and I suspect most employees feel a bit self-conscious and uncomfortable doing this sort of thing. From many years working in offices, I would say it's the more outgoing type of person who's 'up for' team-building exercises but they're often the least likely to benefit from them, as their personality leads them to do their own thing in their day-to-day working life and not give a great deal of consideration to others. As mentioned earlier in the thread, team-building events can have a negative effect if an employee is stressing about stuff lying on their desk waiting to be done and they subsequently have to work late to catch up. This of course is overlooked by whoever initiates the exercise. It can also cause resentment in that staff will inevitably think they'd rather have a decent pay rise than do team-building. It may be the case that the organisation can't afford to give a pay rise worth much but it shows crass insensitivity to go ahead with something like team-building if workers are feeling undervalued. That's management for you though, in that they get an idea in their head and nothing will stop them from ploughing on regardless of misgivings others may have, assuming anyone is brave enough to query it or they bother to consult the workforce, neither of which is likely. I would guess that senior management are more keen on team-building exercises as generally speaking they tend to be more extrovert and their salary and status make up for any doubts they may have. Or to put it bluntly, if you feel you're just pratting around it's much easier to shrug off if you're on a hefty wage and you don't have the prospect of a manager asking when a task will be completed (with the latter only arising because of time spent on team-building). As senior managers don't work in a team though in the way most people do, the exercise itself wouldn't seem to be of great use to them. Team-building may therefore be one of those ideas which in theory sounds as if it could improve a workplace but which doesn't really work in practice, or at least not for most people. However, I'm furious at barrythebook for having the luck to be in the company of that CSA.
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Post by barrythebook on Jul 22, 2021 20:52:06 GMT
Are you sure you're not mixing it up with the last Carry On you saw baz! "....mmmm, bit of rear-wheel drive eyyyy....!" I could have watched her rear wheels driving all day long pr, believe me .
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Post by barrythebook on Jul 22, 2021 22:11:59 GMT
I'm not someone who'd naturally be keen to take part in team-building events as I think it suits more gregarious people and I suspect most employees feel a bit self-conscious and uncomfortable doing this sort of thing. From many years working in offices, I would say it's the more outgoing type of person who's 'up for' team-building exercises Good point steve. People who feel awkward and out of their comfort zone whilst attending these courses probably get no benefit out of them whatsoever and quite possibly spend days dreading the onset of such an event which I'm sure will affect their performance in the workplace. These events suit some folk down to the ground but those who don't wish to attend because of nervousness or embarrassment around others should be catered for in a different way.
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Post by jno on Jul 25, 2021 9:19:41 GMT
I'm not someone who'd naturally be keen to take part in team-building events as I think it suits more gregarious people and I suspect most employees feel a bit self-conscious and uncomfortable doing this sort of thing. From many years working in offices, I would say it's the more outgoing type of person who's 'up for' team-building exercises Good point steve. People who feel awkward and out of their comfort zone whilst attending these courses probably get no benefit out of them whatsoever and quite possibly spend days dreading the onset of such an event which I'm sure will affect their performance in the workplace. These events suit some folk down to the ground but those who don't wish to attend because of nervousness or embarrassment around others should be catered for in a different way. The last team building event cost in excess of a grand a day. All those I've spoken to that attended told me they felt worse afterwards than before and it was more detrimental than advantageous. Waste of money? Absolutely. Rather donate it to charity.
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Post by steve99 on Jul 25, 2021 19:16:44 GMT
I'm not sure whether it's senior management, HR or both who dream up these ideas but they rarely seem to think it through. To me, it's obvious this sort of thing will only appeal to the more outgoing of people, whom I'd guess comprise a small(ish) minority of the population and therefore a similar quota of any given workforce. But it seems to be a case of that's a good idea, let's organise it. Why not consult staff in the first place though and save everyone time, inconvenience and potential embarrassment.
Team building is one of those ideas which some managers feel is reflective of a modern organisation, but it's not very modern thinking to bulldoze through those sort of activities and the staff can like it or lump it. What may also come into play is the ego of a senior manager, who would be miffed if they put forward the idea only to see it rejected by the minions.
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Post by barrythebook on Jul 26, 2021 20:13:46 GMT
Team building is one of those ideas which some managers feel is reflective of a modern organisation, but it's not very modern thinking to bulldoze through those sort of activities and the staff can like it or lump it. I agree. In many cases I would say that Team Building days are just held to tick another box and as you say steve, some managers feel they're expected in todays world of business. Whether employees gain anything from them or find them very difficult to deal with probably wont enter the managers head as long as the box is ticked.
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Post by westldner on Aug 19, 2021 22:29:24 GMT
I voted yes, too much favourism and people need to put that aside and work in a team, to remind that it's about the work, not who someone likes or not.
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Post by jno on Aug 20, 2021 2:48:00 GMT
I voted yes, too much favourism and people need to put that aside and work in a team, to remind that it's about the work, not who someone likes or not. Unless the one organising the whole thing is the worst example of showing favouritism to their friends in the workplace of course.
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Post by westldner on Aug 22, 2021 22:57:08 GMT
I voted yes, too much favourism and people need to put that aside and work in a team, to remind that it's about the work, not who someone likes or not. Unless the one organising the whole thing is the worst example of showing favouritism to their friends in the workplace of course. Ah yeah, that happens, of course!
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Post by simon316 on Oct 18, 2023 16:53:18 GMT
As a Government employee, it's amazing how much team destruction goes on at my place. Eight people left in four weeks and still more to go...
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