A growing number of employers are recognizing that their most valuable asset isn't their revenue, or their reputation, but their people, and they're turning to the team building industry to help them strengthen this key resource. Team building can improve employee morale, strengthen leadership skills, enhance creativity and problem-solving, and improve productivity.

Realizing the need for team building is just the first step; for the process to be effective, you need to draw on all of the team building you can find, to help you better determine what team building approach best suits your company. Things to consider when researching team building information:

1. The size of your company or team
2. Your objective or goal in seeking out team building information resources
3. The success or failure of previous team building efforts
4. How much you can budget for team building exercises

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Start with basic information on team building

New to team building? Find out how it works and what it's for before you decide to implement it at your organization. Whether you choose to do it yourself, or hire a professional, you'll need to know your goal for introducing team building to your staff.

I recommend: The Team Building Portal features resources to help you diagnose ineffective teams, and identify the most appropriate team building approach for your company. Teambuilding, Inc. offers a comprehensive guide to basic team building information and resources.

Find team building resources that make the process fun

Part of the purpose of team building is to help employees enjoy working together. Team building is generally structured so that it feels more like play, and less like work. Before you decide on team building materials for your business, make sure they're something your staff will enjoy doing. That way, they'll be more involved in the process, and learn more from it.

I recommend: The Team Building Portal's free games section features games designed for everything from encouraging communication to helping employees work together for the good of the group. The site includes the objective of the game, what size group it's for, what materials you'll need, and exactly how the exercise works. Wilderdom's free games section includes in-depth descriptions of popular team building games and exercises.

Look for team building reference material on workshops, classes and seminars

You may want professional guidance on organizing team building activities, and with online team building reference materials, you can quickly and easily compare your options, and decide what program is right for your company.

I recommend: Teambonding offers customized team building games that are administered on site; check out the photo gallery to see the activities in action. Teambuilding Adventures offers leadership consulting, off-site adventures and on-site interventions.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Team building can be a potent cure for teams that are in trouble, but it also has value for companies whose employees already work well together. Periodic team building activities can help strengthen this bond, and when you've identified what works well for these teams, you can use that information to create a team building guide you can refer to when there's a problem--instead of starting from scratch.