facilitation

Many years ago I was told the story about an IT technician who was called to an executive’s office to fix a computer. The techie arrived, opened the machine, turned one screw, closed it and fired it up. It worked perfectly!

When the executive received the account for USD 255 he was incensed. He phoned the techie, demanding to know how turning one screw could possibly cost so much.

 I have been involved in the teambuilding industry since 1994 and as a result I often get asked by industry publications if I’d like to write editorial or them.  When I agree, they want to charge me a fee because they feel that my article will constitute “marketing”. 

The real message behind this practice though, is not that they want to charge me for marketing, but they are willing to place anyone’s contribution if they are willing to pay.  Irrespective of the author’s experience and / or standing in the industry. The teambuilding industry has changed dramatically in recent times, in part due to the recession, but for the most part because people have changed along with companies' expectations of these excursions.

Having recently facilitated the toughest meeting of my 15 year consulting career, I did some serious reflection on the whole meeting culture and the reasons we spend so much time in them. Heck, some of the companies I've worked with book meetings to discuss the next meeting!

I often get asked by industry publications if I’d like to write editorial or articles for them. When I agree, they want to charge me a fee because they feel that my article will constitute “marketing”.

The real message behind this practice though, is not that they want to charge me for marketing, but they are willing to place anyone’s contribution if they are willing to pay. Irrespective of the author’s experience and / or standing in the industry.

One such publication recently published a “feature” on teambuilding in which the contributors (along with glossy photos and company promotion) claimed that outdoor teambuilding was fast replacing indoor, boardroom-type training sessions. The same publication ran an almost identical feature about four years ago. It is naïve to think that in the fast –changing business culture we operate in, teambuilding trends would not also have changed over the last half-decade.

The diversity of teambuilding programmes implies that almost anyone can now offer some form of “teambuilding”. Teambuilding programmes are marketed using the words “experiential”, “adventure-based”, and “facilitation”. What does this mean? And what sets teambuilding apart from fun and games (corporate recreation)?

Teambuilding has become a world-wide phenomenon and team building sessions have become synonymous with every corporate breakaway, conference and get-together.