“I think teamwork is the culmination of many different members of a group coming together to work effectively toward a common goal. Teamwork requires a group of at least two working collectively. Teamwork is the most efficient way to complete tasks in a group setting.”
This interview is reaching out to a broad audience to help me (and you!) get a better understanding of just what people actually think about teamwork and how it impact their lives. I hope you enjoy it and maybe gain an insight or two.
Interviewee Profile
1) What is your official job / position title?
Account Executive
2) What is your direct supervisor’s official job / position title?
COO
3) What industry do you work in?
Entertainment
4) How many years have you been in your current industry and job?
1
5) What are 3 to 5 of your most important skills, specialties, or areas of expertise?
I am great with numbers, great verbal and written communication skills, and I have a great amount of perseverance.
Interviewee Responses
01) Describe (in your own words) what you think ‘teamwork’ means.
I think teamwork is the culmination of many different members of a group coming together to work effectively toward a common goal. Teamwork requires a group of at least two working collectively. Teamwork is the most efficient way to complete tasks in a group setting.
02) Think about a person you feel needs team-building training. How do you think this training would help him/her?
I think training would help this person a great deal. As of now, the person that I am thinking of has a hard time accepting other’s opinions in a group setting. They are very confrontational, which leads to inefficiencies. I would think training would be able to help them deal with other opinion in a more effective manner.
03) How do you think teamwork could help a company or business?
I think training could help a company by making the whole operation more familiar with each other. This could help strengthen relationships and let people start to know each other better, thus leading to an efficient and safe workspace.
04) Describe a teamwork / team-building exercise or event you’ve been through at your work, school, or during training.
One recent team building exercise that I have been through would be the two truths and a lie Here, people write two truths and one lie about themselves on a sheet of paper and the other members have to try to guess which was the lie. I helps to build bonds between team members as you find out things you would most likely not have found out regularly.
05) Explain at least 1 thing you’ve learned from a team-building exercise and how it has helped you.
The two truths and a lie was perhaps my most favorite team building activity that we did. It was in college and seemed like it might be difficult to apply to a corporate work setting, but could be beneficial if applied well. In this I learned that I shared common interests with a number of people that I had previously not spoken with.
06) Think back to a team-building exercise you did NOT enjoy. What do you feel could have been improved and why?
A team building exercise I did not enjoy was the desert island scenario where the presenter passes around a roll of toilet paper and says for each person to imagine themselves stranded on a desert island and to take as much toilet paper as they would need for a week. Then, after everyone grabs the toilet paper, they had to say one thing about themselves for every ply they took. I didn’t like it because there were people who shared nothing and there were people who shared everything. There was not enough communication with everyone.
07) Describe what you like most about team-building efforts and training.
The thing I like the most would be getting to know you colleagues. In a work or school setting, you really don’t get to know people all that well unless you see them outside of work. This helps you become more familiar with different people and enhances communication between you.
08) What are a few things you like least about team-building efforts and why?
The things that I like the least are the excessive sharing times or the people that do not let themselves share anything. The whole point is communication and familiarity. However, when people share too much or too little, it becomes selfish and really works in the opposite fashion of desired.
09) When learning about team-building, would you rather read about it, listen to a trainer, watch training videos, or physically participate in an event? Describe why you feel that way.
I would rather physically participate. It is really the only way for this to be effective. You can’t get the same team building out of simply reading about it. Action is a necessary step.
10) Pretend you are asked to give a quick team-building presentation at work. What are your first couple of steps to get prepared?
My first couple steps would be simple. I would first let myself forget about my work tasks for the duration of the exercise. Then I would try to come up with some good ideas of things to share in case it was necessary. Then I would try to make sure I go in with an open mind.
11) In your opinion, what type or personality of person do you think could benefit most from team-building efforts?
I believe that the unsocial types of people benefit the most as they are the least likely to go out of their comfort zones to create conversation outside of normal work talk. This helps them build relationships that they might otherwise not have been able to. It is a great thing for them to do.
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