Leadership
The Folly Of Team Building!
By Dr. Wale Akinyemi
Why am I passionate about organizational culture? It is because I have learned over the years that while we call it organizational culture, it is indeed the master key for unlocking virtually anything we want in life.
Why, for instance, do some crops grow in temperate regions while others grow in tropical regions? The simple answer is the environment. Cassava will do well in Nigeria but cannot survive in Europe. Palm trees will do well in Mombasa but will not survive in Nyeri, even though they are in the same country. The farmer can do everything right- plant the seed, tend the crop, add fertilizer, and do everything a farmer ought to do- but nothing will change simply because the environment is not right for it.
Similarly, we have seen many cases of students who are struggling in a particular environment but, once they are moved to a different environment, become the stars of the school.
Too many examples abound, including the number of African athletes who were unknown in Africa but became superstars once they moved to a different environment.
The story of László Polgár is one that I have often shared. A man had a dream for his daughter- that she would become a genius- because he believed that geniuses were made and not born. How would he know if his experiment had worked? She would become a chess grandmaster at a young age. This was at a time when, in his native Hungary, it was believed that women did not have the requisite skills to thrive in chess. He then went on to create the environment for his objective to happen. He did this by not allowing her to go to conventional schools. He homeschooled her and taught her only three things- science, mathematics, and chess. In July 1984, at the age of 15, she became the top-ranked female chess player in the world. And just to prove that the first one was not a fluke, his other two daughters followed the same path.
There is a huge disconnect between vision, values, and environment. This disconnect has led to many firefighting measures that do not address the root causes of lacklustre performance and sickly organizational behaviour, one of which is team building.
Where team building is concerned, most organizations read from the same script, and it goes something like this: there is friction in the office. Silos are emerging, and traces of toxicity are beginning to show up. Gossip is rampant, and trust levels are low. Efficiency in delivery is either getting affected or will soon begin to be affected. What does HR do? The same thing they have always done, which is to plan a team-building session. They have done the same thing every year, and every year they still end up with the same issues, but nothing will stop that team building from happening.
So, they begin to plan, and they go off to some faraway place and play games. The games vary depending on the creativity of the person conducting the teambuilding exercise. Note that this person conducting the exercise is not someone who understands their business in any way. Mostly, he is someone who is athletic and has a proper understanding of outdoor games, and so people do indeed have a great time. Lots of sweat, noise, fun, and laughter, and at the end of the day, everyone agrees that they had a great time.
There is a huge disconnect between vision, values, and environment. This disconnect has led to many firefighting measures that do not address the root causes of lacklustre performance and sickly organizational behaviour, one of which is team building.
Then comes crunch time. They all get back to the office, and the memories of the away event linger for a few days. Then, a very simple occurrence in the office takes the organization back to its former settings. The silos regroup, and the problems that precipitated the need for team building show up again. What does HR do? Wait for the next team building. This cycle continues over and over again, yet different results are expected.
But seriously, what did we expect? It ' s like when two people are at each other ' s necks,
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