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■ Creative problem-solving training designed to strengthen teamwork
within the organization.
■ Interdisciplinary work team meetings for three days off site to plan
progress and to build teamwork.
■ Annual retreat for the leadership team to decompress, keep each
other informed, and to plan and problem solve.
5. Building strong teamwork between two or more functions:
■ Increasing collaboration between a marketing organization and the
sales and research organizations.
■ Strengthening teamwork and coordination in horizontal, cross-func-
tional processes such as those found in supply chains.
■ Building a stronger working relationship between the organization
and a contractor or vendor responsible for fulfilling contract
specifications.
■ Building trust and teamwork between a home office executive staff
and management in regional branch offices.
■ Creating teamwork between a corporate headquarters of a global
company and its regional or national teams in different parts of
the world.

Guidelines for Team Development
You can learn much from other leaders’ team development successes and fail-
ures. Here are some guidelines for success.

1. Have a clear, simple goal for the team building. Be clear about what your
leadership team is to accomplish—that is, its task. Task objectives identify
changes in what the organization does. The leadership team should be clear
on what to develop, such as a new set of organizational goals, new products,
a new organizational structure, a new set of standard operating procedures, a
new image or ad campaign, a new technology, or a more efficient work flow.
A leadership team of an insurance company recently worked on its account-
ability for key tasks as a way to improve how it develops new products.

2. Solicit involvement and input before beginning. Participation builds
commitment. Get team members involved in planning the sessions. Get indi-
vidual and group input on membership, where to get information, issues to
address, communication, and decision making. Make sure you have developed