Communication problems between workers are constant in big companies. Everyday tension and differing personalities and profiles can sometimes lead to minor conflicts which affect group performance negatively and even delay projects or do not allow projects to be duly presented.
With a view to improving the performance of groups, companies are increasingly using team work dynamics; techniques to foster communication between team members, create a pleasant working environment and increase trust among workers.
In this article we will look at some of the most effective dynamics to improve the working atmosphere and boost the performance of the members of a work group.
What are team work dynamics?
Team work dynamics are a series of interactive activities which permit the reinforcement of certain aspects of team work. Each activity includes objectives to be accomplished for the company needs. In addition, the activities become enjoyable for the workers who come to internalise everyday aspects of their work.
These work dynamics have multiple benefits for companies. Firstly, they improve communication among employees and consequently their capacity to work as a team. As these types of activities increase the knowledge of the employees, they learn to understand styles of communication of other people and therefore can adapt to one another.
- They generate better coordination and internal cohesion among workers.
- They foment the professional qualities of each individual.
- They reduce stress levels of the staff.
- They encourage healthy competition between employees.
Moreover, they improve the commitment of the workers to the company, getting the workers to follow the same path in order to meet objectives collectively and in this way adapt to the different situations which come up on a daily basis.
The most enjoyable team work dynamics
Below we are going to show you a series of fun dynamics to foment team work and make a difference in the working environment.
Breaking the ice
Breaking the ice is a good technique to get to know each other better. The presentation of all the members of the company in an organised fashion favours personal relations between workers.
This is a team work dynamic aimed at favouring familiarity among colleagues, especially those who have never worked together before. It can be used by having interviews among the workers or by an individual introduction in public to all the coworkers.
For this activity we recommend a list of questions which encourages interaction of the participants. This will avoid silences among the employees if they do not have a sufficient number of relevant questions or if their participation is too brief.
Professional development dynamics
What many workers in a company want is to be able to develop professionally, investing their time in areas that allow them to improve their positions or their professional development.
For this reason, it is wise to include activities such as courses or extra training workshops which reinforce their development collectively and which also serve as an opportunity for coworkers to socialise and share interests together.
Role change dynamics
Role swapping is perfect for putting yourself in the shoes of your colleague or your boss. With this dynamic, the participants will take on roles which are opposite to their own and will have to find solutions for situations and problems which the person whose role they have assumed has to face on a daily basis.
In this way, each person can demonstrate their skills, apart from gaining awareness of the work and effort of others in their jobs. In addition, this will promote a climate of leadership and team work.
The unpredictable client
In certain business models, workers usually interact with clients both face to face and online. In this technique a member of the team will pretend to be a client visiting the company who has many doubts. The rest of the team will have to work together to respond to those doubts and quickly change their communicative strategy in order to connect with the client.
Putting yourself in the place of the client can permit us to foresee the queries they will have in their realtionship with the brand and work to find solutions to them in advance.
Participating in a cooking workshop
This is the perfect occasion to offer the working group an opportunity to let go of stress and work in harmony with the rest of the workers. They can also eat what they have prepared together.
What they are going to cook does not matter, the important thing is that the idea of developing new skills together will act as a stimulus to them. Taking into account their dietary restrictions will be necessary though, so that they can all enjoy the experience together.
This team work dynamic improves group cohesion and creativity.
Beat the clock
We all know that nowadays company employees work against the clock, limited in time when solving problems or delivering projects. This dynamic consists of a competition between several groups where they are asked to solve a series of problems to achieve a final objective. These problems must be solved by the group in the shortest possible time.
The dynamic brings great team working benefits and fosters the distribution of responsibilities in an optimal way.
Tips for successful team working dynamics
In order to have successful team working dynamics, we must bear in mind a series of objectives to avoid conflicts or problems between the group and the management so that the aims may ultimately be achieved successfully
- Plan everything: Do not improvise and plan the dynamics in advance.
- Focus on the objectives: The activities must be directed towards the objective you wish to accomplish, making sure at all times that the instructions have been understood correctly.
- A clear purpose: Remember that the employees are making their time available to develop these activities. As a result, the objectives of the activity for the company must bear a correlation with those of the employees. Workers prefer activities that help them to develop skills or which allow them to strengthen relationships with their colleagues.
- The dynamics must be continuous: You are not going to reach your objectives if you do just one activity, rather they have to be continued over time as this is a long term process.
- Inform your workers: There must be open communication at all times where the workers are asked for their opinions so that the activities carried out are oriented to them.