What challenges have you faced when evaluating team building programs?

Start by asking the right questions. Why was the team building exercise necessary in the first place? What was the ultimate aim? What were the expectations and outcomes? How did we agree to measure the outcomes? How do we ensure that we action the results? What fresh data did the programme generate? How do we make sense of the data? How do we use the data for the benefit of the team?

To be effective, team building needs to start with good data and insight on the team and each team member. This comes from a curated and multi-dimensional assessment approach that is designed to gain insight and clarity. Without this, you are starting a journey without a roadmap or a compass.

Don’t waste time and money just to meet some “sounds right” goal you set for your management target the year before by kidding yourself that building sailable rafts with duct tape and cardboard will build and unite your team. Forcing people to spend time together outside of the office doing something that YOU think is “fun” is an anemic cliche. And asking THEM what they want to do only will result in agreement of the least bad idea with people accepting it just to move it along. Give them a day off in small groups to do whatever they want and expense it. A big group is NEVER going to be united and sing in harmony anyway all the time. Then have each mini group tell the whole group what happened at the next team meeting.

Team Building - Team work is a culture that needs to be nurtured in the team members of an organisation. Once it become part of their work life it is easy to reflect upon and fuel it for further growth. Any action done by cohesive force will align for the betterment of the activity.

One of the biggest issues with team building programs is in correct expectations. Research by Psychologist Anita Woolley shows that team cohesion has no impact on team effectiveness. If your goal for team building is to improve team performance and effectiveness, you are choosing the wrong objectives. Improving employee satisfaction and morale are more appropriate objectives to set when it comes to team building.

This is where you need a multi-dimensional approach to applying the right tools for the right situations. Find an experienced and certified assessment professional to have this discussion with (someone who is certified in many different types of assessments - personality, EQ, cognitive, competency, habit insights, 360's, team and organizational assessments). The right tools applied in the right way can take you from selecting talent, through onboarding, and into team building and individual and team development. This provides a massive cost benefit when the same tools can be used to provide value in multiple ways.

Before we begin, determine what it is we wish to understand, and develop a process. Evaluation should be based on valid and reliable information. We can use surveys, observation and interviews!

To evaluate team building programs, organizations should define specific and measurable objectives, communicate them clearly, and choose appropriate methods and tools to collect and analyze data. Consider the validity, reliability, feasibility, and ethics of each method, and balance the quantity and quality of data, and the costs and benefits.

Também é importante considerar que a frequência de análise precisa ser observada para n?o ficar muito alta, gerando altos custos, como também n?o ficar muito baixa perdendo o timing de análise.

Confounding factors can be minimized if we design an effective tool to measure performance and take into consideration at the outset any surrounding external or internal distractions!

Durante o processo de pesquisa devem ser evitados os momentos de stress ou mudan?as Corporativas para n?o contaminar os resultados.

While it is possible to minimize the influence of confounding factors and biases, the most proactive approach is to acknowledge they exist. Identifying our "positionality" empowers us to look more deeply into the results. It means understanding the background, identity, and preconceptions which shape the lens through which we view data. Acknowledgement is the gateway to achievement.

Pilot-testing is a pro-active intervention to minimize confounding factors and biases. Pilot testing of a small segment of the team reinforces the reliability of the evaluating instruments. Reliability is a crucial factor to establish consistency of the instrument(s) used to collect results from team participants (Lodico, et al., 2006). An important caveat is that pilot testing is a necessary precursor to the face-validity of the instrument used to collect data and not a preview of potential conclusions (Kistin & Silverstein, 2016).

See this example: A retail store might evaluate a team building program by tracking sales data before and after the program, and comparing it to sales data from a comparable store that did not have the program. The store could also survey employees to get their feedback on the program. To control for confounding factors, the store could compare sales data from the same time period of the previous year, or from a different region with similar economic conditions. To control for biases, the store could use anonymous surveys and train employees on how to avoid social desirability bias.

In my experience, reporting the evaluation results should be clear, concise, and precise. Use more pictures, graphs, numbers, and other data visualisation techniques to tell a story. Make it fun so that people actually remember what was reported. Prezi can be a great tool to make the reporting more conversational. Determine which stakeholders are the right stakeholders and solicit unvarnished feedback on how to action, refine, and improve.

Garbage in, garbage out! Report the results based on solid evidence. When reporting, design it to the audience. Who are you talking to? The board? Internal Stakeholders, External? Design it to get the information presented in a clear, efficient fashion. Don't try to include excessive information.

To share the outcomes of our team-building program evaluation, we'll keep it simple and engaging. Imagine we're telling a story with our data, using visuals like charts to highlight the main points. We'll be honest about any hiccups along the way, ensuring our story is grounded in real evidence. Then, we'll chat with everyone involved, gather their thoughts, and together, we'll use these insights to sprinkle a little magic on our future team adventures, making sure every step we take is a step forward.

Have a process to regularly report and evaluate data. Do not wait to evaluate data at the end of each quarter - meet regularly to make sure you are on track to hit quarterly goals.

From my perspective, I don't want to overburden teams with too much pressure. With that in mind, the important thing is effective and efficient process designed, a valid and reliable instrument, and accurate analysis of the data to continually improve!

What’s important to understand that there’s no correlation between team cohesion and collective intelligence, which is what has been found to create effective teams. Research by Anita Woolley and her colleagues found that team building alone doesn’t improve performance. Team building is still great for morale and satisfaction but it’s important to not have unreasonable expectations about what team building will produce.

Other things to consider when it comes to challenges with team development programs are buy-in and thorough follow through of the program. It does a disservice to the program when a team is only onboard for the first few months before devolving into prior practices for a myriad of reasons to include checkpoints on program objectives and review of new practices being implemented.

Make sure you have the right people in the right seats. Do not ignore the fact that some people do not align with your company culture just because they "get the job done".