The Pfeiffer Book of Successful Communication Skill-Building Tools

Chapter 26. Work Dialogue: Building Team Relationships

Judith F. Vogt and Karen L. Williams

Goals

• To explore the sequence of building from interpersonal to team relationships.

• To provide an opportunity to enhance work relationships through mutual openness and disclosure.

• To allow the participants to practice interpersonal skills related to sharing personal information, taking risks, listening, and giving and receiving feedback.

Group Size

Up to ten pairs of participants. Participants should know one another and have worked together, either as members of an ongoing team or from having worked together in cross-functional teams.

Time Required

Approximately two and one-half hours.

Materials

• A copy of the Work Dialogue Instructions for each participant.

• A copy of Work Dialogue Booklet for each participant. (Note to the facilitator: Prepare each Work Dialogue Booklet by cutting along the dashed lines. Assemble the pages in order and staple them along the left side to form a booklet.)

• Newsprint flip-chart paper and felt-tipped markers for each subgroup.

• Masking tape for posting newsprint.

Physical Setting

• A room, series of rooms, or outdoor area in which the pairs can communicate in relative privacy. Also, a space in which all participants can work in groups of three to five members each, with wall space for posting flip-chart "products."

Process

1. The facilitator introduces the activity by discussing the following points:

   • Today's organizations have shifted (or are shifting) to work relationships based on ...