Team Building part 1 - Another Brick in the Wall!

Written by John Roberts


Continued from page 1

3. The alternative model - not new but it works!

Visualise a ‘dry stone wall' ofrepparttar type often used for field boundaries. Stones are all different shapes and sizes - they are selected from what is available, inrepparttar 138879 right order so that they overlap and fit with each other perfectly to provide a solid fit. This means that no stone isrepparttar 138880 ‘wrong' size as long as you find others to fit around it. It doesn't matter if allrepparttar 138881 stones are perfectly aligned as long as they all mesh together to giverepparttar 138882 wall stability. There is no mortar used inrepparttar 138883 wall, it's all down torepparttar 138884 skill ofrepparttar 138885 bricklayer selectingrepparttar 138886 correct stones inrepparttar 138887 first place so thatrepparttar 138888 individual stones all support each other inrepparttar 138889 complete wall. The wall doesn't fall down for centuries! The wall doesn't look as uniform and pretty asrepparttar 138890 brick wall onrepparttar 138891 surface but actually performs its' task far better. The bricklayer has to have a real skill in selectingrepparttar 138892 right shaped stones to make sure they all fit together well inrepparttar 138893 first place, but once he has done that, maintenance is minimal!

Key: - Stones = Individuals and their skills Mortar = support from Team Leader and Human resources ( competencies, assessments etc ) Bricklayer = Team leader The first thing that is needed before you can recruit and build a team for you project is an expert ‘brick layer' or REAL Team LEADER! ( Not a manager/coordinator or facilitator). This doesn't mean someone who happens to have been inrepparttar 138894 companyrepparttar 138895 longest and is thought due for promotion. It doesn't mean someone who can write good reports and do allrepparttar 138896 administration properly - it means someone who can LEAD PEOPLE! This is someone who can control, cajole, coerce and do anything necessary to get people to perform at their own best whenever it is required, atrepparttar 138897 same time gaining respect from those around them that they have to deal with. They don't bully, shout or ‘use their position' to get things done, people respond to them naturally and TRUST them. It's NOT a promotion, it's another type of skill and you should look for this type of person in all levels ofrepparttar 138898 organisation. You can teach anyone to playrepparttar 138899 piano, but not everyone can be a top concert pianist - it is just a skill that some people have and not others. Leadership is exactlyrepparttar 138900 same - you can send someone on a ‘Team Leaders' course and they will be able to go throughrepparttar 138901 motions of team leading, but what you should look for is a ‘natural' - someone who hasrepparttar 138902 ability to really LEAD people. If no one of your present employees stands out as having this ability - look outside for someone. It is not worth compromising on this all important position - remember you need someone to put that wall together effectively to getrepparttar 138903 best results!

The team leader should then be tasked with putting togetherrepparttar 138904 team - selectingrepparttar 138905 strengths that are needed from individual people and making sure that their weaknesses are covered by other people inrepparttar 138906 team, so that you are putting togetherrepparttar 138907 ‘stone wall' with allrepparttar 138908 members supporting each other. Asrepparttar 138909 team is growing, all ofrepparttar 138910 team members should take part inrepparttar 138911 recruitment and interviewing process - after all they will have a feel for how someone will fit in withrepparttar 138912 rest of them. Giving everybody some responsibility for howrepparttar 138913 team is put together gives them all a stake in its success.

Fromrepparttar 138914 start there should be honest and open communication between all ofrepparttar 138915 team members andrepparttar 138916 team leader. There should be no need for ‘Annual assessments'. The Team leader should be aware at all times how their team members are performing in various areas, and in an honest and open environmentrepparttar 138917 team members themselves should be aware of any shortcomings and work towards solving them. A good team actually need very little maintenance input fromrepparttar 138918 Team Leader and should very quickly become self-supporting, just likerepparttar 138919 stone wall.

Summary So, if you are considering building a new team, try approaching it in a different light. Think ofrepparttar 138920 people,repparttar 138921 skills you want individuals to have - notrepparttar 138922 skills they don't have,repparttar 138923 overall skills that you wantrepparttar 138924 whole team to have and how they all fit together to give you a solid foundation. Choose a proper ‘Team LEADER' to maintain it and put contemporary ideas of ‘assessments' and ‘competencies' behind you! ( Don't tell your HR manager this, unless they are lying down in a darkened room ! )

Team Building part 2 - Honesty isrepparttar 138925 Key! Will focus onrepparttar 138926 running ofrepparttar 138927 team once it is built and will be published shortly

Acknowledgements Adapted from an original article by John Roberts, freelance training consultant, Director of JayrConsulting Ltd. www.jayrconsulting.co.uk This article may be freely reproduced / modified and used in any way, providing this acknowledgement is left in its entirety.

John Roberts is a freelance Training Consultant and Director of JayrConsulting Ltd. http://www.jayrconsulting.co.uk


Has Your Marketing Stalled? Company Reveals Five Simple Steps to Make Marketing More Proactive

Written by Paul Nastu


Continued from page 1

4. Meet with customers face-to-face--Talking with real customers is often more telling thanrepparttar most in-depth survey or a focus group performed by a third party. Make it a point to sit down with customers at trade shows, or get a client contact name from someone in sales and just call them up for a chat. (This is more than useful market research. You can also use customer anecdotes to strengthen your position internally.)

5. Share market research results consistently--Where do your research results live? In a drawer? In your head? Not good. Come up with a consistent solution for sharing them. Launch an internal newsletter, house results in a central database, leave them on tables inrepparttar 138878 lunchroom, find other ways to constantly remind people that you have tools to help them make decisions.

For more information on how to make marketing more proactive, visit: www.pjwritinggroup.com

Paul Nastu is President of PJ Writing Group LLC, which provides marketing communication services to clients that range from Fortune 50 companies to startups in search of a unique identity, voice, and message.


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