Team Building Redefined

Building a team does not mean holding an offsite meeting with food and fun activities. Real teams have a clearly defined mission for which they hold themselves mutually accountable and produce a collective work product. To achieve a high performing team there are a number of elements that are necessary for the creation of a team.
Before you embark on team building decide whether you really need to build a team or if a group can get the job done. Once that decision is made there are three critical areas that require thought and clear definition:

• What needs done – define “what success looks like” and ensure that there is a shared understanding of the common purpose, goals, and working approach
   
• Who is going to do it – clearly define team members role and responsibilities; build on their strengths to maximize performance and engagement
   
• Guiding principles – define the decision processes, issue resolution processes, team norms and communication expectations so that each team member is operationally aligned

 
Take the time to clearly define each of these critical areas and align the entire team around the definition of success, their roles and responsibilities, and the team’s guiding principles.