Team Building through Brainstorming & Conversation

I really like the people I work with. They are funny, intelligent, kind, and strong advocates for children. Together, we have regular, informal conversations covering a wide variety of subjects. At a recent staff meeting, we enhanced these day-to-day conversations in a team-building activity with a process based on the principles of The World Café. Our goal was not only to explore — through conversation — questions focused on our work, but also to use this as a team-building exercise.

The process was very simple. Our department staff was divided into two groups. Each group sat around a table with a large, blank piece of paper and multiple markers. Drawing a question from a coffee mug — we didn’t have a hat handy — each small group had three minutes to brainstorm answers, jotting them down on the paper as they were verbalized. The questions were all framed to elicit positive responses and conversation such as “What makes a really good Children’s Services staffperson?”

and “What do we do really well in our Children’s Services department?”

and “How might parents describe the Children’s Services department?”

The questions encouraged thought, conversations, and sometimes laughter. Between questions, staff were invited to change tables so new connections could be made, fresh answers would be generated, and we had a variety of new ideas expressed for each question. When the process was complete, we hung all the questions and answers in our non-public work space to allow staff  the opportunity to continue to think and talk about these questions.

Sometimes in the hustle and bustle and stress of our work we forget that we *are* making a difference in the lives of kids. This simple activity was a very eye-opening and affirming process that was a good reminder of why we have chosen this work. It would be easy to replicate this team building activity in your own work setting.