The primary reason I am posting this HBR article is not to attack the traditional value of offsite team building. However, in my executive coaching I consistently see an overvaluing of collaboration without a through understanding of what it really means. The idea that everyone needs to be able to give their input on most projects is not effective and results in more talking and less productive working. This post is worth the time to read:
“Many companies, when they decide to invest in team building, decide to do offsite events like bowling nights or ropes courses. Sometimes these events get really elaborate. One sales and marketing executive I know told me how he was flown to London with 20 of his colleagues, put up in a pricey hotel, and then trained to do the haka, a traditional war dance, by a group of Maori tribe members from New Zealand. This exercise was supposed to build relationships and bolster team spirit, and, by extension, improve collaboration.”