Teambuilding may be defined as
"the process needed to create, maintain, and enrich the
development of a group of people into a cohesive unit"
(Solomon, Davidson, & Solomon, 1993). Teambuilding exercises
are very important in the development of teams that will
work together for an extended period of time on a complex
project or a series of activities. Minimally, teambuilding
should include structured opportunities for team members to:
1) get acquainted and become cohesive as a team; 2) become
aware of their interdependence (how each team member's
success is tied to the success of the other members); 3)
develop roles and norms for cooperation; 4) learn to
communicate and resolve conflicts effectively; and 5)
reflect upon how well they work together.
To see interviews with
Darwyn Linder
and
Karl Smith about the theory
and practice of teambuilding, click on the links below.
 Darwyn
Linder
Professor and Chair, Department of Psychology
Arizona State University
 Karl
Smith
Professor of Civil Engineering
Institute of Technology, University of Minnesota
To see interviews with industry experts
Ron Bengelink
and
Roderick Taylor about
teaming in the workplace, click on the links below.
Ron
Bengelink
Chief Engineer for International Programs
Boeing Commercial Airplanes
Roderick
Taylor
Installation and Qualification Functional Area
Leader Intel
Intel Corporation
To read about some of the teambuilding exercises that our
faculty and experts have used successfully, click on the
links below.
Getting
Acquainted/Developing Cohesiveness
Veronica Burrows
Associate Professor of Chemical and Materials
Engineering
Arizona State University
Jim Richardson
Associate Professor in the Civil Engineering
Department
University of Alabama
Demonstrating Interdependence
Jim Morgan
Associate Professor of Civil Engineering
Texas A&M University
Eric Guilbeau
Chair, Bioengineering Department
Arizona State University
P.K. Imbrie
Assistant Professor of Engineering, Department of
Freshman Engineering
Purdue University
Cesar Malave
Associate Professor of Industrial Engineering
Texas A&M University
Developing Rules and Norms
Russ Pimmel
Professor of Electrical Engineering
University of Alabama
Learning to Communicate and Resolve Conflicts
Effectively
Richard Felder
Hoechst Celanese Professor Emeritus, Department of
Chemical Engineering
North Carolina State University
Ron Roedel
Professor of Electrical Engineering
Arizona State University
Cesar Malave
Associate Professor of Industrial Engineering
Texas A&M University
Reflecting on the Group's Functioning
John Merrill
Assessment Consultant, College of Engineering
Ohio State University
John Demel
Professor of Civil and Environmental
Engineering
and Geodetic Science
Ohio State University
To get PDF files of actual
teambuilding exercises developed or adapted by our faculty
and experts, click on the links below.
Getting Acquainted
Team
Interview
Developing Rules and
Norms
Developing Team Groundrules
Your Experiences with Teams
Reflecting on the
Group's Functioning
Plus/Delta Team Reflection
More teambuilding activities
can be found in the
Featured Lessons and Activities area.
Articles
Five Issues to Be Considered in
Teambuilding By Darwyn Linder and Susan Ledlow
An article outlining the
major goals of teambuilding and suggesting strategies for
achieving those goals.
Strategies for Helping Students
Develop Team Skills By Susan Ledlow
An article outlining
practical techniques for teaching skills that enhance team
performance.
Student Teams in Engineering
The Foundation Coalition
This overview of the use of
student teams in the Engineering classroom provides
definitions, research, testimonials and tips for building
successful teams, all of which are designed to encourage
and facilitate the use of teams in Engineering education.
Roles and Gambits
By Susan Ledlow
A list of roles and
responsibilities that can be assigned by a faculty member
or chosen by a cooperative learning team.
Code of Cooperation
[link to CodeCoop.pdf, unavailable] |
