Team Training Sessions As a Means of Improving Performance

Training can be used to enhance knowledge and skills. For some people especially those who have a relatively high need to learn and grow on the jobtraining sessions can thus also be a source of inspiration and motivation. Training certainly provides an opportunity for teams and their members to work things out. Thus, a key way that organizations can support efforts to use a team concept as a business strategy and structure is to provide training that is relevant to team performance. However, I have seen too many organizations just throw training at problems without much analysis to determine if it is an effective solution. It may be relatively easier to arrange for training than to address organizational issues such as compensation, staffing, and roles and responsibilities. Leadership must devise a plan regarding what kind of training is useful, how to provide it, and how to ensure that people can use what they learn during the training. All too often, training sessions are fun and inspiring but are not integrated into a plan to transfer the learning from the session to on-the-job performance. This ends up frustrating team members rather than enhancing their efforts.

In my first consulting work over twenty-five years ago, I na vely thought that my role as team trainer was to excite people about the benefits of working together. I found my audiences receptive and usually very enthusiastic. However, I did not find many of them following through with efforts that made a difference for their organization and the people within it. I learned through experience that good ideas do not produce behavioral or organizational changes. I relearned the obvious: Adults are active, not passive, learners. They had hired me as an expert to teach them about teams. However, I found I could help my clients more by getting them to sit down together, analyze their current situations, speculate on plans, and systematically apply the procedures and frameworks I could provide them. So over the last couple of decades, I have developed some rules for myself as a team trainer. I would urge you to adopt these rules for yourself and add others that you have learned from your own experiences.

• Never talk for more than fifteen minutes without getting people to do something with what you are talking about.

• Don't present anything about teams until you get near unanimous agreement from members that their current situation needs to change.

• Don't sell the team concept, but rather pose questions and provide options and get the participants to think about which options might fit their situation.

• If the workshop includes union leaders and managers, remember that they got where they are today by being willing to be the focus of attention. Don't set up a workshop where you are the center of attention. Make sure your audience participants are the stars, not you.

• Most adultsespecially "old school" leader typesare lousy listeners. However, when reminded or even challenged to listen, they can listen effectively. Remind your audience to listen to each other, not just you. Get everyone involved and work effectively and efficiently together through the use of small group exercises/discussions.

• Be aware that insights are seductive. While it can feel so good to help participants understand things from a different perspective, insights don't produce change. You need to diplomatically push people to spell out the implications of their insights. In particular, push them to spell out who would have to do what with whom for the insight to result in actions that would make a difference. If they are not ready for this level of planning, at least have them commit to a timeline for developing the process.

• Start workshops with small group exercises and discussions, especially when members do not know each other very well. By the end of your workshop, make sure participants are placed in small groups with people they will have to work with back at the workplace. Make sure that instructions to the later exercises include an emphasis on making verbal or written commitments regarding how they intend to make use of what they have learned and/or relearned. It seems to help to have witnesses to these commitments whom one will have to face later.

• Team training sessions should never be one-shot efforts. Start each session with a review of what members learned from the previous session, what commitments were made, and what actions actually took place. At a minimum, make sure you include a review activity on the agenda at the next team meeting.