“Teamwork means that people who work together to create a better cohesive group and in the end create a greater result than if they were to work by themselves. That people will work together and put aside differences and give input to make their work the best possible, while taking all individual’s opinions and thoughts. That is what I believe teamwork to mean.”
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?
Teaching Assistant
2) What is your direct supervisor’s official job / position title?
Teacher
3) What industry do you work in?
Education
4) How many years have you been in your current industry and job?
2
5) What are 3 to 5 of your most important skills, specialties, or areas of expertise?
Creativity, persistence, care, hardworking, people friendly
Interviewee Responses
01) Describe (in your own words) what you think ‘teamwork’ means.
Teamwork means that people who work together to create a better cohesive group and in the end create a greater result than if they were to work by themselves. That people will work together and put aside differences and give input to make their work the best possible, while taking all individual’s opinions and thoughts. That is what I believe teamwork to mean.
02) Think about a person you feel needs team-building training. How do you think this training would help him/her?
Teamwork training would benefit a person greatly because it would build up multiple skills. One of them being people skills. It would allow the person to work efficiently with other people and create a better working environment. Another benefit is that it would help broaden their views and opinions when it comes to how to approach different obstacles.
03) How do you think teamwork could help a company or business?
Teamwork benefits a company by creating a better working environemnt. Morale is boosted because things are more social. Not only that, the level of work tends to be higher due to the different people giving their opinions and such. All of this boost productivity.
04) Describe a teamwork / team-building exercise or event you’ve been through at your work, school, or during training.
A teamwork exercise that I have done at my school was a group presentation. This presentation was given to us and we chose people to do specific work based on their strength. From there we covered each other weaknesses and created a great presentation.
05) Explain at least 1 thing you’ve learned from a team-building exercise and how it has helped you.
One thing I learn about team building experience was that people are willing to offer help and advice when you least expect it. That people will go out of their way to help and assist you. This creates a better atmosphere and boost morale.
06) Think back to a team-building exercise you did NOT enjoy. What do you feel could have been improved and why?
An experience that I did not enjoy was when one of the members refuse to do any work. It could of been improved by talking to that person privately and discussing the issue. Hopefully persuade them to help and work together in the end.That way, relationships aren’t damage.
07) Describe what you like most about team-building efforts and training.
What I like most about team building exercises is the social aspect of it. I get to talk to others and see how they present different ideas and views. It creates a better relationship among the members and makes the work more enjoyable.
08) What are a few things you like least about team-building efforts and why?
What I like least about team building efforts is that sometimes we have to make a compromise that leads multiple sides to be less than happy. It creates tension and could possibly breakup the work atmosphere. Especially when members of your team are very hard headed or persistent.
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 in an event. The reason being is that I am a hands on person. This would allow me to be there and have personal experience that I can relate to.
10) Pretend you are asked to give a quick team-building presentation at work. What are your first couple of steps to get prepared?
To get prepared I would write an outline of my speech. I would then create a rough powerpoint presentation to go along with my speech for visual aid. Afterward I would practice a rough speech with a friend so that my presentation goes well.
11) In your opinion, what type or personality of person do you think could benefit most from team-building efforts?
The personality types that can benefit the most from team-building efforts are the shy types. They are the ones that are just to shy to get involve with others, but sometimes have amazing ideas and/or opinions. That is why team-building efforts help bring them out of their shy comfortzone and get more social overall.
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