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Secrets of Facilitation reveals the principles and techniques effective facilitators use to produce amazing results through groups. The author identifies 60 secrets that separate great facilitators from good ones. He then puts you right in the room through his case studies and numerous sample dialogues, so you can see and experience the techniques in action!

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Team versus Group: A Team Building Exercise

By Michael Wilkinson, CMF
Managing Director, Leadership Strategies, Inc.

Any project team, even the strongest ones, can fall into dysfunctional patterns. As facilitators, we are called in from time to time to help project teams and intact teams (people who work together on an on-going basis) get back on track.

As one of the critical activities in our team building workshops, we ask participants to define the difference between a team and a group in a polarity form (i.e., "While a team is this, a group is that"). Here is a sample of how participants might respond.

What is the Difference Between a Team and a Group?

 

Team

Group

A.

Common goal or purpose

Self-interests, individual goals

B.

Defined responsibilities

No role definitions

C.

Works together

Acts independently

D.

Has a leader

Doesn't have a leader

E.

Communicates continuously

Communicates if necessary

F.

Takes responsibility

Blames others

G.

Relies on one another

Relies on self

The teams are then faced with a list of items to classify as a team or group. There are relatively easy items, like a "symphony orchestra." There are also more difficult items such as "volunteers rescuing a child out of a well" and "the U.S. Congress." For each item, the participants work in teams to decide if the item is a team or a group and they have to justify their decision by indicating one or more of the reasons A-G from the Team/Group Difference.

The last item on the list: "Your Organization." The teams have to indicate whether they believe their organization is a team or a group.

This exercise can be quite effective, regardless of what the participants decide about their organization. The real learning is in discussing their justification (A-F). What inevitably results is a discussion around the team's strengths and its areas for improvement.

The discussion also often leads to a deeper understanding of how teams are organized and how teams operate.

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