Team cohesion

The socio-economic efficiency of work in a team, other things being equal, is directly dependent on the level of its cohesion.

Team cohesion means the unity of behavior of its members, based on common interests, value orientations, norms, goals and actions to achieve them. Cohesion is the most important sociological characteristic of a team. In its essence, it is similar to the economic characteristics of its production activities - labor productivity.

In its orientation, team cohesion can be positive (functional), i.e. focused on the goals and objectives of her work activity and negative (dysfunctional), aimed at achieving goals that contradict social goals and the goals of production activity.

The key point in creating a cohesive team is the selection of people based on the coincidence of their life values ​​regarding professional activities and the moral aspects of human existence.

There are three stages of team building, each of which corresponds to a certain level of its development.

The first stage is orientation, which corresponds to a low level of team development - the formation stage. This stage is characterized by the fact that a simple association of people is transformed into a group with common goals and objectives, and an ideological orientation. Each team member navigates a new team. This can be goal orientation and self-orientation. Targeted orientation is carried out by the manager through the selection and placement of personnel, detailed information about goals and objectives, plans and conditions of activity. At the same time, it is necessary to take into account how well new employees can fit into the team being formed and work well together. It is important to place workers correctly at work stations. If people who sympathize with each other find themselves in neighboring, technologically interconnected places, this improves their mood and increases their work and creative activity.

Everyone has their own personal idea of ​​their workmates and how they would like their team to look. Therefore, goal-oriented orientation is always complemented by self-orientation.

If a goal-oriented orientation prevails in a team, then the common goal of the majority of team members is transformed into their internal need and the orientation stage is relatively quickly replaced by the next one.

The second stage is mutual adaptation, which represents the formation of common behavioral guidelines for team members. These attitudes can be formed in two ways: under the targeted educational influence of a leader and through self-adaptation, as a result of imitation and identification.

The mutual adaptation stage corresponds to the average level of team development, characterized by the creation of its assets (an active group).

The third stage is a cohesive, or stage of consolidation, of a team, the stage of its maturity. The leader acts here not as an external force, but as a person who most fully embodies the goals of the team. In such a team, relationships of mutual assistance and cooperation prevail.

Depending on the degree of cohesion, there are three types of teams:

1. cohesive, or consolidated, which is characterized by the close relationship of its members, solidarity and friendship, constant mutual assistance. The composition of such a team is relatively stable. Such a team, as a rule, has high production indicators, good work discipline, and high employee activity;

2. dismembered (weakly united), which consists of a number of socio-psychological groups that are unfriendly to each other and have their own leaders. Group indicators, level of production discipline, value orientations, and activity of such groups are very different;

3. disunited (conflict) - in its essence a formal team, in which everyone is on his own, there are no personal friendly contacts between its members, they are connected by purely official relations. In such teams, conflicts often arise and there is a high staff turnover.

It should be borne in mind that the process of team unity and development is a reversible process. Under certain circumstances, it can stop and even turn into a process opposite to itself - into a process of decay. The reason for this may be a change in the leader or composition of the team, the goals of its activities, the level of requirements, or any other changes in the work situation.

The process of team building is managed by influencing the factors that determine cohesion.

General (external) factors include the nature of social relations, the level of development of scientific and technological progress, features of the mechanism of economic activity, and specific (internal) factors include the level of organization and management of production in the team itself, its socio-psychological climate, and personal composition.

Relationships in a team and its cohesion largely depend on what the team members themselves are like, what their personal qualities are and the culture of communication, manifested in the degree of emotional warmth, sympathy or antipathy. The team is formed from individual workers endowed with different mental properties and possessing different social characteristics. In other words, team members are representatives of different temperaments, gender, age and ethnic groups, have different habits, views, interests, which essentially represent the commonality or difference of their social positions.

The predominance of certain personal qualities among team members affects the relationships that develop within the team, the nature of its mental state, gives it a certain feature that can contribute or hinder its unity. Negative character traits especially hinder team unity: resentment, envy, painful pride.

In each team, along with formal relationships, there are informal relationships, the microstructure of the team. They also arise during functional connections between team members, but on the basis of their individual personal qualities and are expressed in the assessment of these qualities. These relationships can arise between friends and foes, friends and ill-wishers, both regarding official and unofficial functions. The basis of informal relationships is attraction and rejection, attraction and repulsion, sympathy and antipathy.

Formal and informal relations are in close interconnection and interaction. Formal relationships can give rise to informal ones, slow down or accelerate the process of their development, and give it a certain direction and social character. Informal relationships, in turn, can actively influence formal ones, acquire a stable character and develop into formal ones. They can complement, specify, contribute to the goals of formal relations, they can be indifferent, indifferent to them, or they can contradict these goals. It is very important that informal relationships not only do not contradict formal ones, but serve as their natural complement, and in this much depends on the team leader. The manager is a formal leader, and his subordinates can unite in informal groups, which will have their own informal leaders. And if the leader has enough common sense and experience, then he will try to win the trust of the informal leader and through him influence the behavior of members of the informal group.

When trouble comes, we don’t say: “It’s because of you.” We say: “I am with you” *** Close-knit team

DO YOU know what the population of the city you live in is? In Minsk, for example, there are about 2 million. Do you know how many truly united teams there are in the city, ranging from commercial holdings to a small “cell of society”?

Judging by the unemployment rate, the growing popularity of recruitment agencies, activity in the development of motivation tools, the increase in family conflicts and the spreading “frenzy” spirit of not caring, it can be argued that there is every reason for today’s topic.

This week we talked to an employee about why appointments are so often canceled. It seems that it is safer to arrange a meeting with competitors than with your own. And do you know, friends, what he referred to? On the emotional state.

According to him, every 4th Belarusian suffers from varying degrees of depression. The idea was voiced that the probability of failure of the agreed meeting is proportional to the crowding of clouds in the sky. Don't you think this is strange?

And how wonderful it all began

When we were born, we joined the team. I really hope that by that time your closest adults have maintained an atmosphere of love and care for you. They preserved it and passed it on from their parents, who also received it from such famous ancestors as Noah Lamekhovich and his wife.

We were “enlisted,” registered, and surrounded with incredible attention. Over time, as we developed our ability to reason, we could consciously influence the microclimate in the family, promoting cohesion. Do you remember how it was?

When we joined a new team, be it an elementary school, a university, or a work group, we were determined to strengthen the cohesion of our new team. We defended her interests, ran various distances for her victory, sacrificed sleep and savings.

And suddenly, something broke. Either the would-be leader screwed up, or someone else’s inertia set the whole team up... In general, depression knocked on the door of disappointment.

And now I no longer want anything but the sun in the sky.

What does a cohesive team look like?

Talent wins games, teamwork wins championships*** Michael Jordan

Another weekly planning meeting. You arrive about ten minutes before the start. The employees are already discussing something. Suddenly, one of them throws a question in your direction whether you managed to fulfill his instructions and with what result. You think, why not immediately ask me in front of everyone, “Can you be trusted or not?”

Another situation. You show up on your doorstep tired, hoping to get some rest after a hard day. But your husband, without notifying you, organized a reception. Will you have thoughts that he doesn’t care about you?

Such thoughts, friends, are just bells - we need to work on cohesion.

In general, the term “ team cohesion” did not originate in a sports environment. He falls just short of such concepts as “devotion” and “loyalty.”

This is a kind of unanimity and a sense of comradeship. The cohesion of personalities, unity, attachment is so strong that one can say “he and I are one.” Would you like to become part of such a team?

Then focus on relationships and only then on functionality. First living people, then achievements.

While doing this, I interacted with excellent specialists in the same industry, but as people they were all different. When recruiting employees for the team, I needed more than just specialists (if a person comes with a statement that he is an expert in a certain field, I have no reason not to trust him; otherwise, his fraudulent tendencies will quickly become apparent during work).

I need people who are capable of devotion. I must be sure that none of those I hire will undermine the already constructed “building.” And here a reasonable question arises:

What kind of people makes up a cohesive team?

If you want a team to win the high jump, you're looking for two who can jump 2.5 meters, not five who can jump half a meter each*** HR agent

Perhaps you, dear friends, have your own standards for conducting an assessment. And if they work, I'm just happy. My standard is personal interest and trust, which prevent negative emotions from going off scale.

The cohesion of a team is obvious when people belonging to it are not afraid to show attention to the “personal” of their employee. If the relationship has already been built, there is no fear of running into a rude “none of your business.” And trust will prevent you from making negative comments, like, “Why is he interested in this, what does he really need from me?”

The ability to speak frankly, while maintaining tact and emotional balance, is not just a good sign, but a desirable property of any close-knit team.

What is the level of communication in your team, how often control over emotions is lost (and it is not at all necessary that we are talking about a work team). Even if you are far from a manager and your powers are very limited, you can always make changes with your positive example. And I'll just remind you

1. He who is slow to anger is very shrewd, but he who is impatient exalts stupidity

For some, the advice to think before speaking will seem banal to the point of boring. And yet, dear friends, remember, do we easily find time to think or are we too hasty in words?

And if we still manage to think despite the growing emotional temperature, then what? Maybe the following questions: how significant is the real reason for indignation, what are the real goals of the current dialogue?

2. A prudent man is temperate in his words, and a prudent man is cold-blooded.

Coldness is usually unattractive. But if the heat in a conversation is obvious, why not take responsibility and cool down?

3. A fool pours out all his spirit, but a wise man keeps it calm until the end

Imagine how porridge gurgles in a pan like a geyser. She looks affectionate and appetizing only in a calm state. Sometimes when we are upset, we say more than we want to, and then we end up regretting it. Isn’t it wiser to remain calm “until the end” of a tense dialogue?

4. Hatred leads to discord, but love forgives all mistakes.

The only difference between a rational dialogue and a trial is that the latter is focused on the past. The ease with which past hurts are recalled also indicates clear trust issues.

As you can see, friends, close-knit team- it’s not an easy matter. But if there were more such teams in the city, then staff turnover and family breakdown, and perhaps the prevalence of depression, would be reduced several times. Do you agree with me?

It is a cohesive team that is able to overcome crises on the path of its development without losses, which cannot be said about a group of compatible people.

Compatibility implies the ability to complete a task.

Cohesion means that the team composition is well integrated.

Team (group) cohesion is an indicator of the strength, unity and stability of interpersonal interactions and relationships. It is characterized by mutual emotional attraction and general satisfaction of the participants with both the team and joint activities as a whole. Team cohesion is a necessary condition for successful team work. In a group formed from strangers, some time will necessarily be spent achieving the level of cohesion necessary to solve common team problems.

Factors that enhance group cohesion

K. Rudestam (1993), A. Alexandrov (1997) and other researchers of group behavior identify the following factors that contribute to strengthening group cohesion:

• coincidence of interests, views, values ​​and orientations of group members;
• homogeneous composition of groups (especially in terms of age: it is undesirable to combine in one group people over fifty years of age and under eighteen);
• an atmosphere of psychological safety, goodwill, acceptance;
• active, emotionally intense joint activity aimed at achieving a goal that is significant for all participants;
• the attractiveness of the leader as an example, a model of an optimally functioning participant;
• qualified work of a leader who can carry out special work to strengthen team cohesion;
• the presence of another group that is seen as rival;
• the presence in the group of a person who is able to oppose himself to the group, who is sharply different from the majority of the participants.

Note that the last two points, although they contribute to team cohesion, are destructive and cannot be considered as team-building tools.

Reasons for the decline in group cohesion

Firstly, the emergence of small subgroups in a group, which causes “small-town” behavior and thinking. The larger the group, the more likely it is that subgroups will form. It is clear that in a large group this is inevitable; This is associated with a certain limited number (five to seven, rarely up to twenty) people in the team. In addition, acquaintance, friendship, or sympathy between individual members of the group before the start of interaction can lead to the alienation of such a couple or small group from the entire team. Related to this is the problem of combining “old” and “new” members of the emerging team, which customers want to solve.

Secondly, mismanagement on the part of the leader can lead to unnecessary tension, conflicts and even team collapse. For example, if a leader starts intrigues, brings certain participants closer to himself or removes them from himself, distributes powers and rewards based on personal preferences, and not on the competence and real merits of the team, manipulates people and information in one way or another, then such a group sooner or later ceases to be a team (if you can even call it one).

Thirdly, the lack of a common goal, captivating and uniting participants, as well as the lack of joint activities. For example, when you ask a group of students the question: “In your opinion, is our group a team?” - the participants answer: “No, we are not a team: we are all wonderful people, but we are separated, we don’t have a single goal...”. When people do not have a future that unites them, this future is created by a leader who brings down the goal from above. When the single goal set by the leader is realized and accepted - internalized - by each member of the group, then an environment appears for the emergence of group cohesion and the transformation of the group into a team. If the leader does not set a unifying goal for his group, then each participant moves towards his own. The conflict of goals that arises on this basis leads to a decrease in group cohesion.

Cohesion determines the success of teamwork because it helps to overcome crises in development, makes the group invulnerable and resistant to situations saturated with negative emotional experiences, and allows one to solve complex tasks that cannot be accomplished by one group member alone. Unity and team building are most important for those organizations whose effective activities directly depend on the degree of unity and mutual understanding of employees.

Difference between cohesion and group identification

It is necessary to emphasize the difference between the phenomenon of group identification and cohesion.

Group identification- identification of oneself with a generalized image of a member of a social group, due to which there is an acceptance, often uncritical, of its goals and values.

According to the definition of a team (team members “identify themselves and their partners as belonging to the team”), group identification is an important factor in allowing a group to become a team. However, group identification often leads to unpleasant consequences, manifested in the so-called groupthink.

Groupthink- the style of thinking of people who fully identify themselves with a specific social group. This creates a situation where unanimity becomes a greater value than following logic and rational choice of decisions. The level of conformity grows, information essential to the group’s activities begins to be analyzed in a tendentious manner, and a belief in the omnipotence of the group and unjustified optimism are cultivated.

Groupthink occurs most often during the first stage of team formation. Trying to maintain the unity of the group at all costs, at the first stage people are able to sacrifice not only the truth, but also any members of the group who stand out from the general mass to the feeling of pseudo-unity.

Sometimes during training, this phenomenon manifests itself strikingly clearly, when the drama of the minority’s sacrifice to the majority unfolds before the trainer’s eyes as part of a discussion or role-playing game. We once observed how a group, placed in a crisis situation of a “catastrophic” task “Accident on the Moon”, trying to meet time, executed one of the participants - first on a symbolic level, depriving him of “oxygen”, and then translating their actions into reality, depriving him of the right to vote in the discussion and seating him in a circle. The man, experiencing rejection by the group, left the room. None of the group members even noticed this. The group executed one of its members for dissent: the man knew too much. In particular, he was the only one in the group who remembered from his school physics course that in the absence of a magnetic field on the Moon, a compass would not work there and was therefore useless. He persistently tried to convey his knowledge to the group so that it could successfully cope with the task. But groupthink caused those identified with the group to disregard the opinion of one of their colleagues - and ultimately the truth. When the exercise ended and the group began to analyze its activities, the “disidentified” participants experienced a severe sense of guilt.

Each manager strives to unite the team in order to maximize the level of comfort of employees and their desire to move together towards their goal. There are many tools used to build relationships between employees.

You will learn:

• What are the advantages of a close-knit team?
• How to form a cohesive team
• How the New Year can help unite the team
• What problems may arise in creating a cohesive team?

What are the benefits of a close-knit team?

1) Collective-team is an analogue of such concepts as strength, unity and reliability of personal interactions and relationships between employees. Team cohesion is a necessary factor for the company’s productive and focused work. A group selected from strangers must spend N amount of time to unite and focus on solving the tasks assigned to it. As a rule, only a well-worked and loyal team can successfully overcome periods of crisis during its formation and advancement, which is their fundamental discrepancy with a group where the members are hastily found people.

2) Only a cohesive team has the ability to overcome the crises that await its members on the path of their formation without losses, which cannot be said about a group of incompatible people. The concept of compatibility is a real opportunity to overcome difficulties, and solving the problems they face actually means that all team members are integrated in the best sense of the word.

3) If the company has a friendly team, then staff turnover practically zero or none at all. Employees do not run away from work after the end of the working day, do not try to help each other out, and do not have the habit of gossiping about their colleagues.

4) Working in such a team, it is immediately clear that everyone is ready to help a colleague, talk about their ideas and developments that can be applied in common work. Employees do not experience negative emotions when thinking about work, they are less tired and more stress-resistant. and they are the ones who are ready to ultimately increase the company's profits.

Team building that will unite the team

Find out how to think through a scenario for an ideal team building from the article in the electronic magazine “Commercial Director”.

Characteristics of a cohesive team

1. Awareness is one of the important concepts of conscious human behavior. The level of awareness of people affects the performance of the entire team as a whole. A timely information process, sent to all recipients and reaching everyone, gives a person a feeling of involvement in the life of the team and its goals. Thanks to this, there are no uninitiated or indifferent employees in the team.

Openness and interest in the economic interests of almost all team members encourages employees to jointly participate in the management activities of the team. It is unlikely that even the most experienced top manager will be able to hope for the support of the team if he does not use or minimally uses the available information channels, both oral and printed, in his work.

2. Discipline is the accepted order of people’s behavior, which meets the moral norms and rules established in the company, which allows you to regulate the processes of behavioral mood in the team. A disciplined person in a team is a stimulus for social development and responsibility towards work. High awareness and understanding of the importance of one’s place in the team contributes to the conscientious performance of functional duties.

Compliance with discipline is the fulfillment by people of established norms and rules of behavior. The level of personal relationships between management and each team member directly affects the quality performance of job duties and social functions.

Methods for maintaining order and discipline can vary widely. Types of social discipline can be such concepts as morality, mores and traditions.

3. Activity is an increased activity performed by a person not so much because of the obligation to fulfill official duty, but because of the opportunity for free self-expression. Thus, the activity of the individual is a need for work and knowledge of the surrounding world.

A person always has a desire to realize and more fully express his inner essence, which leads to his most complete and integral development as a person. The level of activity and initiative of a person is more influenced by the situation when he is alone or in contact with colleagues. Naturally, the feelings and moral component of a person in society are much different from his behavioral mood in a state of loneliness.

4. Organization programs the accurate and competent definition and distribution of rights and responsibilities of employees. It can be traced in the response of team members to changes in the environment, to updating internal and external awareness. The attitude of personnel to the labor process and discipline depends on the correct organization of work.

It is easier for a top manager to work in a highly organized team. To create such a company requires enormous effort and the highest professionalism. Organization is influenced by reasons such as the role of the individual in the team, discipline and other important factors. But even an ideally formed team experiences ups and downs during its existence due to the distribution of responsibilities of its employees as subjects of labor communication and cognition.

To strengthen personal connections in the team, take into account the interests of employees, using economic and social leverage.

5. Cohesion is an action that unites all employees in their common work and gives integrity, which proves the team’s attraction to each other and to the team. This is undoubtedly a qualitative indicator of any work collective.

When the formation of a cohesive team is required

1) At the stage of active development. If the number of employees increases over a short period of time, the “old guys” sometimes develop rather difficult relationships with the newcomers. To unite both groups, you need to start with leaders, both recognized and unrecognized. Team building will serve to bring you closer and benevolent.

2) During stagnation or business downturn. This period is characterized by the fact that employees, doubting the future of the company, begin to work unsteadily, slowly, without showing initiative, begin to look for a new job, and then go free swimming. At this time, the main task of the manager is to raise the working spirit of the staff so that they can realize that improving the situation is in their hands.

3) When there is a conflict between the company's departments, such events will help resolve the problems that arise. So, in one company sales fell sharply. The head of the company organized team building, which contributed to the breakthrough. This event was held after the January holidays, after which the employees went to work rested and ready to move mountains.

What factors influence team cohesion?

1) Common interests, hobbies, views, ethical and material values ​​and orientation of group members;

2) Age composition of groups;

3) A feeling of psychological safety and goodwill;

4) Active and intense joint labor unity aimed at solving common problems;

5) The attractiveness of the leader as a reference model who performs functions to the maximum;

6) Skilled leadership work;

7) The presence of a competing group;

8) The presence in the group of a person who is sharply different from other members and who opposes himself to the group.

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Ways to unite the company team

1. Corporate events. They are used as an effective mechanism designed to unite the team or divide it. The unoriginality of the script and the same type of corporate events will not lead to anything good, since employees treat these events as artificial. During the meeting, they are tense and cannot feel at ease. The person understands that this is a continuation of the work process. After returning to work, people feel awkward and worried that someone behaved inappropriately, someone had too much alcohol.

A full-fledged holiday occurs when the entire scenario is invented and implemented by team members. Colleagues learn new information about themselves and others, and everyone is positive from the very beginning. This approach saves the company money, since holding corporate events by specialized organizations is quite expensive.

In order for the event to be rich and original, you need to conduct an anonymous survey to find out what employees want to see as a corporate event. To do this, fill out a questionnaire. After processing the completed questionnaires, you will understand what employees want, and an initiative group will be determined that can be involved in organizing the event.

2. Team-building sports trainings. Team building will help team members create loyal relationships and motivate team unity and team organization. Improperly organized team building can lead to unforeseen consequences - disengagement of employees, loss of authoritarianism on the part of the manager, and dismissal of staff. Therefore, you should take the choice of a coach very seriously and take into account the physical fitness of the participants. There was such a case, a female leader broke her arm during team building and then thought for a long time whether it was done intentionally or not.

When a company employs active young people, and the physical shape of the manager leaves much to be desired, then team building is hardly justified. This can diminish the boss's authoritarianism. If the general director has much higher sports training than the employees, there is no need to force everyone to take an active part in the event.

For example, in one company the manager, an athletic man aged 36, was passionate about skydiving, so he organized extreme team building for top managers, who were mainly representatives of the fairer sex over 40 years old. Naturally, no one was forced to jump, but they hinted that anyone who did not jump was not our man. Many had to jump, but not all. It is better to compete with extreme sports with those who love such recreation.

3. Team building activities. These include carrying out educational trainings, which will unite the existing staff. They will help adapt new employees to achieve positive results:

- Find a common language. There is a known case when a company conducted training 6 times and each time for a new department. The company's management set a goal for the staff to speak the same language. This could be achieved by undergoing training from one trainer. As a result, colleagues began to use a single terminology. Typically, this training is most useful for employees with different educational levels.

– Bring newcomers up to speed. Within a few hours or days, a new employee gets to know his colleagues, gets involved in the work and ceases to be a stranger. During this time, the team can draw up a portrait of the person and move on to an active form of cooperation. Under normal circumstances, a newcomer can undergo adaptation for several months.

– Earn authority. In the financial division of one company, the core of the employees were people of above average age. A new manager was appointed to the position of financial director, and a young woman at that. How the employees reacted was quite predictable - disrespectful attitude, insubordination, sabotage.

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The financial director made an unusual proposal - she announced her intention to conduct free seminars on English and financial analysis. It is clear that at the first lesson there was no queue of people interested, but there were also those who became interested and came to the conclusion that the classes were worthwhile, and even free. He told his colleagues, and the employees reached out. As a result, she gained authority and respect from her colleagues.

– Development of new documents. During the training session, you can work together to develop, for example, a corporate set of rules for the company, which sets out all the acquisitions and developments of the company. If such a document is provided by a higher organization, it will not work. It’s another matter when the employees themselves become the creators, and the document is honed through an open discussion.

How to unite truants and drinkers

Aigul Gomoyunova, General Director of Penopol Group of Companies, Moscow

The main part of our company are warehouse employees (loaders) and sales department. Therefore, we had a constant turnover of staff. The loaders' staff was constantly being replaced because they drank and skipped work. In just one year, the entire sales department left. It seemed impossible to find out the reason for the constant turnover, because at that time I paid too little attention to the issues of retaining employees. I was at a loss as to what the reason was: our wages are quite high.

Hundreds of methods were used to change the situation: fines, bonuses, promotions - nothing worked. Various methods were used throughout the year, but there was no result.

Remembering my past experience as a business coach, I thought about conducting trainings on team building, inviting the whole team to it: after all, every employee should understand that the final result depends on his contribution, regardless of what he does. The movers expressed a strong reaction to the proposal; they were pleased that someone was interested in their opinion and listened to it. Today they are already interested in the training schedule. The office staff also reacted actively and with understanding.

The first training was devoted to identifying problems with interaction. We played a game on the theme of a shipwreck, in which everyone present took part. Everyone tried to prove their point of view, no one heard anyone, the office employees treated the lower classes with semi-contempt, i.e. movers. The problem was obvious: the entire team was divided into groups, and each considered itself the main one. The goal became clear to me - team unity.

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The culmination of the training was our biggest event, when we rented a cottage and went out into nature for four days. The picnic program included barbecue, paintball and training. The participants were divided into two teams, each including colleagues from all departments. Before we started, I asked departments to make a list of what they needed to buy for their work.

The accounting staff needed some kind of program, the loaders needed an electric car and a microwave, etc. The winning team could choose only one item. Before the start of the competition, everyone argued and proved that the most important thing was the one they ordered. And when the game started, and the first winning team chose the very first item, the situation changed dramatically, each department refused its prize, everyone chose a microwave for the movers, realizing that it was more important to them. And this was repeated at every stage of the competition - everyone completely forgot about their interests and decided on its value for the company, and not for themselves personally.

Today I am pleased with the result:

– permanent employees work at the warehouse site, loaders take an active part in the work of the company.

– in the office, only two employees quit in 2 years, one of them for a good reason.

The effect of the training did not appear immediately, but the first results became visible after the 2nd training.

How to unite the team with the help of a New Year's corporate party

Nadezhda Finochkina, director of the company “Formula for Successful Selection”, Moscow

One day, a client approached us with a request for help in increasing the level of interaction between employees. It was not customary for the team to communicate with each other or attend corporate gatherings. Such relationships within the company were reflected in productivity.

We gave the client's employees a carefully thought-out and original surprise. We conducted mini-interviews with the staff separately in advance to find out personal preferences and facts from their biography, what they spend their free time on. We collected 25 questionnaires and, using the information provided by employees, prepared a questionnaire for the quiz. On the announced day, the entire team of 35 people was invited, as the New Year holidays were approaching.

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According to the rules of the quiz, you had to listen to an interesting description of the hobbies and characteristics of any employee and determine who exactly they were talking about. This story was accompanied by a showing of his childhood photographs. The duration of the corporate holiday took about 6 hours in total, including the official part, a quiz with photos and a buffet reception.

After the corporate event, the colleagues got to know each other again. Such an unusual and educational experience helped the team unite and even created friendly relations between departments. In just one evening, people learned more about each other than in the previous ten years of work.

An original idea for team building for 300 rubles

Eduard Kolotukhin, General Director of the company “Stayer.ru”, Yekaterinburg

Our company is not engaged in sales, but in the emotional involvement of customers. True, this approach works only if team members are endowed with emotional intelligence, the ability to note and emotionally welcome the best sides of their work colleagues. One of the ideas that helps develop empathy in a team is cards with the word “CLASS!”

The essence of the idea. To convince employees to notice the good deeds of their colleagues and thank them, we did not use the usual means of suggestion such as “encourage the best qualities of your colleagues.” Instead, we used a simple technique: we allowed employees to pay each other a small incentive every month. Today, any member of the company can personally present 300 rubles once a month to someone who, in his opinion, has earned it. All employees are given a personalized “CLASS!” card on the first day of each month. Throughout the month, he can give this card to a colleague whose work has delighted or helped him. On the last day of the month they are counted, and we celebrate the leader of the month in corporate media and on the company website.

Here are examples of cases that, in our opinion, are worthy of encouragement and monetary incentives. One replaced a colleague who was on vacation or sick. Another went to the post office to do his business and bought some stamps to send mail to the company, although he was not asked to do so. You can always do a good deed! But if a person is sure that there were no people worthy of the award in the past month, then he may not indicate anyone and not give his card to anyone. Then the next month starts from scratch.

Result. The relationship between the two internal divisions is slowly building. By the way, this pleased me the most. The staff gradually gets involved in the game, learns to notice signs of attention and concern from their colleagues, because sometimes it’s difficult to come up and say: “Thank you!”, but with personalized cards it’s easy and simple. In addition, we noticed emotional leaders of the company.

Factors that reduce team cohesion

Factor 1. The presence of small subgroups in the group, which leads to “parochial” behavior and thinking. The larger the group, the greater the likelihood of subgroups emerging. Limit the number of team members to 5-7, sometimes up to 20 people. Typically, friendships or acquaintances between individual members before the group is formed will lead to separation of these individuals from the team, which can lead to the alienation of that pair or small group from the entire team. This problem can be present when combining old and new team members, which clients usually want to resolve.

Factor 2. Incompetent leadership of the leader leads to conflict situations and even the elimination of the team. So, if a leader is engaged in building intrigues, bringing in or removing selected members, giving powers and rewards, based on personal preferences, and not on the knowledge, competence and existing merits of the team, then such a group eventually ceases to be a team.

Factor 3: Lack of common purpose and shared direction. For example, asking a group of students: “Is our group considered a team?” - the participants say: “No, we are all good people, but we have no future.” When people do not have a future, it is created by a leader who brings down a goal from above. When this goal is realized and accepted by each member of the group, then the group turns into a team. If the leader does not give such a task, then everyone carries out their own plans and sets personal goals.

Information about the author and company

Aigul Gomoyunova, General Director of Penopol Group of Companies, Moscow. "Penopol". Field of activity: production and wholesale trade of construction and finishing materials; logistics services; The holding of trainings.

Nadezhda Finochkina, director of the company “Formula for Successful Selection”, Moscow. "Formula for Successful Selection" LLC. Field of activity: personnel selection. Number of staff: 5. Closed vacancies per month: 7–12.

Eduard Kolotukhin, General Director of Stayer.ru, Yekaterinburg. GC "Stayer" (Stayer.ru). Field of activity: production and sale of sportswear, as well as equipment; sale of sports equipment. Number of staff: 25. Annual turnover: 50 million rubles. (in 2014).

There are many benefits to working as a team. The main ones are the diversity of knowledge, ideas and tools that team members have, as well as the camaraderie between them. The most commonly reported trait of high-performing teams is cohesion, a measure of how attractive the group is to its members (as well as their reluctance to leave). Thus, in more cohesive teams, their members will be more cooperative and effective in achieving the goals they have set for themselves. Lack of cohesion in a team's work environment will undoubtedly affect team productivity due to unnecessary stress and tension between employees. Thus, cohesion in the workplace can ultimately lead to increased success for the company.

Team development takes time and often follows designated stages, from the team being a group of strangers to the formation of a cohesive team with common goals. According to researcher Bruce Tuckman, in both group dynamics and the four stages of team development he popularized (forming, confronting, normalizing, executing), leaders must keep team members motivated in order to successfully overcome the challenges that arise during the confronting and normalizing stages (Figure 1).

Stage formation represents the beginning of everything, it can be said that this is the honeymoon period; high expectations are placed on all team members. The relationship develops, the goal is clear, and the ground rules are established. Stage collisions occurs as team members begin to fight for positions, make mistakes due to confusion, and argue about leadership, strategy, and goals. At this time, team leadership becomes essential. A leader must excel in keeping the team motivated, solving all problems and communicating goals and objectives.

Once the confrontation stage has been overcome, the team is ready to establish open communications, firm positions and norms - this is the stage normalization. Trust has finally been acquired, and “when the level of trust is high, the connections are simple, immediate and effective.” These are the first steps towards cohesion. Once cohesion is achieved, teams will move from normalization to implementation, and subsequently to highly efficient task performance.

What is cohesion?

Cohesion is the extent to which team members stick together and remain united in achieving a common goal. A team is said to be in a state of unity when its members have bonds that unite them with other team members into a cohesive whole.

Members of a highly cohesive team focus on the process rather than the individual; they respect everyone on the team, assuming good motives; and they are fully committed to the team's decisions and strategy, creating accountability within the team. Also, in a cohesive team, due to the strong bonds among its members, a friendly team environment, dedication and personal contribution of the team member in the decision-making process, morale is stronger. Successful business strategies are usually executed by effective teams with high levels of team cohesion. Highly cohesive teams are more committed to goals and activities, are happy when the team succeeds and feel part of something significant, all of which also improve self-esteem, which in turn improves productivity (Figure 2).

Key Elements for Achieving Team Cohesion

High-performing teams are the key to a company's success. Whether the task is to create an innovative product or service, or to design a new process or system, more expectations are placed on teams rather than individuals than ever before. The ideal team combines individual talents and skills into a super-effective whole with capabilities that exceed the capabilities of even its most talented team members.

High-functioning teams are not the result of random events. They achieve higher levels of participation and cooperation because their members trust each other, identify with the team, and have confidence in their abilities and effectiveness. Such teams have a high level of team emotional intelligence (EI).

In general, emotional intelligence is defined as a comprehensive awareness and understanding of emotions (Figure 3). It is used in decision making, regulation and self-management, which is a very important aspect of teamwork. Research has shown that emotional intelligence has a positive impact on team performance through greater team cohesion.

Building a team's emotional intelligence requires developing the emotional competence of the entire group as a whole. Teams with high levels of EI have established norms that aim to enhance trust, group identification, and effectiveness. As a result, their members collaborate more closely with each other and join forces more creatively to advance the team's work.

Research conducted by organizational behavioral experts Vanessa Drasket and Stephen Wolf suggests the following three methods for building your team's EI:

1. Take time for team members to evaluate each other's skills.

Interpersonal empathy is essential for trust. Interpersonal empathy builds trust among team members; once team trust is achieved, individual trust follows. The team must be aware of the skills and personality of each team member. People working in teams where they got to know each other were more effective and got more work done. When team members know those they work with well, they gain a different level of trust in each other. Trust increases motivation, and motivation increases commitment, if these indicators exist in the team, then you have achieved cohesion, which, in turn, increases efficiency.

Team building is a great way to practice developing emotional intelligence. For example, when a team is formed in a company, team building activities should be organized, even outside of work hours and away from the workplace, so that team members get to know each other better and develop empathy. Scheduling meetings outside of work places builds camaraderie. Team building also builds commitment to the organization as the team feels that the company cares about the success of the team as a whole. Games are one way to engage team members and learn about each other's skills on a more personal level.

2. Increase and manage emotional issues that can help or hinder the team's progress.

It's important to establish a comfortable, team-approved way to express the inevitable anger, tension, and frustration that comes with teamwork, and to channel that energy. Both humor and playfulness can be useful tools in resolving conflicts and relieving tension and stress.

Here are a few examples of well-known companies.

• At innovation consultancy IDEO, team members threw stuffed animals at the walls of the room when things got hot. In addition to improving mood, these actions served as a reminder that the group had established norms for expressing difficult emotions, thereby making them feel less threatening to individuals and the group as a whole.
• Xerox had a different approach, team members wrote down their grievances and cut them down to the size of a $1 to $100 bill depending on how big they thought the problem was and threw it into the “opportunity” jar.

3. Celebrate success.

Building a team's emotional intelligence also requires expressing positive emotions such as gratitude and admiration when expectations are exceeded. Recognizing individual and team achievements not only strengthens the team's identity, but also demonstrates team effectiveness and a collective commitment to excellence.

Team dinners together after the successful completion of a project are an example of a typical celebration. The whole team goes to a restaurant to celebrate their success and hard work. Another example is thanking the team's accomplishments in a monthly newsletter from the CEO, so the entire company is aware of what has been accomplished.

Other Factors Affecting Team Effectiveness

Although cohesion is an important and determinant of team effectiveness, cohesion alone will not guarantee success without organizational commitment. Team members may feel cohesive with their teammates but be completely disconnected from organizational values ​​and vice versa.

High-performing teams must have team spirit and perceptions of organizational support, but team spirit must be stronger than perceptions of organizational support. Team spirit can be defined as “the extent to which employees believe the team values ​​their contributions and cares about their well-being.” Perceived organizational support is defined as “the extent to which employees believe the organization values ​​their contributions and cares about their well-being.”

In addition to cohesion, there are a number of other factors that are important in developing a team to do its job, as shown below and in Figure 4:

1. A clear set of tasks that are clearly outlined by management
2. Metrics that allow team members to evaluate their performance and the relationship between team performance and key business indicators
3. Continuous learning
4. The right to make decisions is important to achieve business goals
5. Valuing and rewarding the team, not just individual incentives
6. An open culture with easy access to relevant information and senior management when needed.

Final word

Teams drive an organization's success, yet building and leading high-performing teams is one of the most challenging tasks any leader faces in today's competitive environment. Cohesion is a key factor in the functioning of effective, high-performance teams. Emotional intelligence also plays an important role in building these teams, with emotional intelligence promoting cohesion. Managing emotions is how you build a team. This is an opportunity to inspire team members. Leaders must understand how team cohesion works and how unity energizes the team. Leaders must inspire team members by fostering a sense of belonging, empathy and mutual respect, while also giving people choice and power over what they can do. Once this feeling of support, this foundation, is created, the result is boundless creativity.

posted in the section: Planning and control

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