Page 164 - How America's Best Places to Work Inspire Extra Effort in Extraordinary Times

The Power of “We” to Magnify Engagement C151

: Tolerating in-groups, out-groups, and cliques within the
team is a sign of failure to communicate, collaborate, coordi-
nate, and connect with other team members.

Leveraging Teamwork to Overcome the Tipping Point of 150

The “small company” atmosphere of the company is one of
its greatest attributes. One knows just about everyone in the
organization.
—SURVEY COMMENT

As organizations grow, they hire new employees and open
new locations, and their leaders must take proactive steps
to preserve team collaboration and stave off the loss of that
family feeling. Here are some of the practices that are work-
ing for growing employers:

: Limit unit size where possible to promote better team
building and relationship development. Create new loca-
tions or business units as the employee population grows
beyond 150, where possible.
: When team size or remote office separation is an ob-
stacle to teamwork, compensate by using technology
(such as Cisco’s TelePresence) to facilitate virtual com-
munication, increasing the frequency of contact between
team members, and building in face-to-face communica-
tion opportunities where feasible.
: Promote cross-divisional communication, project teams,
and task forces.
: Identify people who have a network of relationships that
form a natural bridge between two groups.