When a Californian security firm decided to play team-building games, they didn’t realize that the event ended in disaster not just for employees but for the business as well.
In the highly competitive game, teams of sales were pitted against one another. In the course of the game, names of the competitors were placed in strategically-placed spots so that the players could ‘fight to the death against each the other.’ The winning team mocked the team that lost by requiring them to wear diapers and eating baby foods, and throwing a pie at them.
Following the incident, employees filed suit against the company, and it was forced to pay USD1.7 million in damages! This is an excellent example of honorable intentions!
Many team-building games fail because they are based on at least a few or even all of the factors listed above. They believe that the most effective team games put teams up against one another in fierce competitions and set out clear winners and losers. This is paradoxical because the majority of organizations want to foster more collaboration between employees and not an intense rivalry. They desire an environment that is collaborative and where it is possible to achieve success together. What is the point in picking games that build teams in which the focus is more on competition than cooperation?
One of the primary reasons team building games don’t work out are as follows:
Lack of understanding of the final goal and objective:
A lot of employers love to throw an unexpected surprise on their employees. However, this could cause harm. If employees do not understand the ultimate goal, they could experience a lot of hostile relations between them. It is better for companies to inform team members of the program for team building. In reality, companies could go further and offer team members the ability to select. By respecting the opinions of the team and choices in this matter and giving them what they want, organizations make the first step toward efficient team building.
In an attempt to get employees to commit to becoming a team
Facilitators may force a massive challenge on employees as the initial activity. Naturally, this causes over 90% of participants reluctant to give their best. Facilitators need to design games in a way that there is a correct sequence of plays that starts with ones that address the group’s situation. Do team members know each other? Are there conflicts that need to be solved before the group can function as a unit? The complexity level will gradually increase so that everyone can be equally involved.
Rivalry = stiff competition.
It is not the primary reason for teamwork collaboration is. According to research that exceeds 87% of the time, the advantage is given to teams that have a cooperative approach over the competitive approach. The reasons for this are not difficult to discover. If you attempt to ensure that one or more of your team (or members of the team) win, everyone, suffers. If individuals feel that they aren’t doing enough, it affects their performance. Sometimes, competitions reveal the egos of the contestants, and some might even use unfair methods to be successful. Additionally, people learn less when they compete against one another. Therefore, games for team building must be focused on imparting knowledge instead of rewarding winners.
In some cases,
managers make the mistake of judging the program as to be a futile exercise that is done to keep employees happy. This attitude is transmitted to the teams in a way that results aren’t satisfactory. Building teams is objective, and it is essential to have an assumption at the top levels that the company thrives off the spirit of teamwork.
Don’t work with the wrong consultant.
The quality of team building activities is only equal to the caliber of the group building Event Company you are working with. The experts in this field possess the expertise to assist management in selecting the most appropriate activities for their objectives. When searching for a consultant in team building, it is crucial to choose one who is enthusiastic about their work and who is ready to collaborate with you in order to ensure the achievement of your group.
