Program Goals: Collaboration
1. Get to know others: For participants to learn more about the team and the members that make up the team. Develop respect and appreciation for the skills, diverse backgrounds, values, and talents that each member brings to the team and understand that their individual attributes are a resource to be tapped for team effectiveness and learning.
2. Collaboration: For participants to discover value in sharing information and best practices, plus the need for common and shared goals within the organization. Additionally for participants to see and understand the value of sharing best practices that are effective in their business lives.
3. Enjoyment: The teambuilding program will be enjoyable and set an expectation that the team setting will be rewarding while requiring hard work to increase and sustain effectiveness.
Opening: Establish Team Program Atmosphere
• Expectations of team for the program, how the Teambuilding will fit into larger organizational goals
• Behaviors and norms of team (Full Value Contract)
• Challenge By Choice
Activities - Openers
• Gotchya an icebreaker that opens the group to laughter and comfort with each other
• True Knot True an activity that is part truth telling, part lying, and part revenge
• Preference Card Interview (Based upon DiSC profile system) an activity that asks participants to choose cards with various words that represent behaviors, participants then speak to other participants about why they chose the cards and how it relates back to their personal expectations of the day.
Outcomes: Participants will
• Understand goals for the day
• Feel invited to participate in the Teambuilding Program
• Learn about the other participant
Initiative: Change Up (entire group) participants are given playing cards and led through a series of initiatives based on the cards and their quick thinking
Focus: Communication and working within a “change” dynamic while still improving upon performance. The open sharing and accepting of different views on how to improve performance.
Processing: What strategies did the group develop to implement an effective solution? What was the consequence of change during the activity? What strategies did the group develop to adjust to change? What recommendations does the group have for managing change at work based on the experience?
Initiative: Pipeline (entire group) the group is challenged to transport different objects down a “pipeline” with communication blockers, and deceptive information.
Focus: Proper use of resources, as well as creative uses of existing resources. Participants being able to rapidly switch roles or tasks for the greater good of the training and HR team.
Processing: Did the team create a workable plan? How did this happen? Was the time spent planning adequate? Did you set a clear goal? Was it realistic? What would you do differently next time to improve effectiveness performance?
Initiative: Focus Ring (2 teams) each team using ropes and small diameter ring must transport a tennis ball from a pipe to a second pipe.
Focus: Teamwork, remaining committed to the task until full completion, the understanding that each team member’s input (not necessarily agreement) is needed for reaching completion of tasks.
Processing: We will use the random question Dice for processing
Initiative: Puzzle Connection (2 teams that act as one) the group is shown a puzzle then they challenged to complete the puzzle in the given time frame while switching jobs and locations.
Focus: Practice problem solving and communication skills, increase the understanding of the need for constant communication between existing teams.
Processing: As a team initiative, which elements of a high performing team were evident and which elements needed more emphasis? Clarity of purpose and clarity of roles are essential for team performance. How did these two factors influence performance? What similarities do you see between this and the workplace? Is there anything we want to focus our attention on in future initiatives?
Wrap Up: Thank you, and now what? Discussion about taking the day back to the office
(Group hug) high fives!!
Special Notes on Processing:
Create-Learning Facilitators will process and reflect after the majority of the activities. This session may include although is not limited to use of Metaphor cards, group drawing, Socratic question and answers, Small group presentations of learning, Personal reflection through the use of sharing circles and various hand signals, as well as creating concrete plans of how the skills gained will be used in the workplace personally and professionally.
Create-Learning has shown results using a variety of processing activities to actively engage each participant. Create-Learning uses processing techniques and activities to give each individual participant the greatest learning possible for the day.
Individuals and teams will learn about the different personalities and skills of their peers. This is learned through the hands on nature of the activities and the highly interactive processing session after each activity. Create-Learning enables the group to take credit and responsibility for their own learning, and gives them tools that can be used immediately in the workplace.