What’s At Stake

Teamwork starts with pre-planning and organization. Setting clear expectations guides everyone to work toward the common goal of a successful, safely built project.

What’s the Danger

TEAMWORK AND TEAMBUILDING DISTINGUISHED

A construction team operating different projects needs to work together to navigate the dangerous work environment with optimal efficiency. But it is crucial to understand first that “teamwork” and “team-building” are two completely separate terms.

Team building is a distinct concept that focuses on the formation of a group. Teamwork, on the other hand, focuses on the aspect of a team’s ability to work together. Both of these aspects are crucial for success. Understanding this vital difference can help you to play your role, as a team leader or as part of the team on-site, more effectively.

HOW TO PROTECT YOURSELF

EFFECTIVE TEAMS FOCUSES ON SAFETY

1. Focus. Effective teams are focused on the same safety mission—identifying hazards, working safely, and preventing accidents.
2. Goals. Effective teams understand safety goals and commit to achieving them. Everybody on the team works together toward the same goals to achieve success and prevent injuries.
3. Involvement. When teams are successful, it’s because employees all over the workplace are involved in safety programs and in efforts to improve workplace safety.
4. Cooperation. On effective teams, members cooperate with one another and depend on each another to identify hazards, follow safety procedures, and prevent accidents.
5. Communication. Because team members are interdependent, they must be constantly communicating, sharing information, giving warnings, reinforcing safe behavior, and talking up safety.

BENEFITS OF EFFECTIVE TEAMWORK

Teamwork in construction means you are gathering a group of highly qualified individuals from different backgrounds and fields of expertise to achieve a common goal. This team can include architects, engineers, designers, laborers, owners, and investors. When these people come together and work toward the same goal, success becomes almost inescapable.

1. Improves the overall quality of work.

Each team member, regardless of designation, brings with them a level of expertise that no one else in the team has. In the same way each basketball or football player works together to reach a goal, construction team members also collaborate to make the project a success.

2. Utilizes resources efficiently.

In the construction industry, team members must use resources in a way that can yield the most efficient result. Whether it be time, finances, or construction materials, these resources are used wisely when working with a team.

3. Generates better ideas and decisions.

When it comes to decision making, teamwork is a great viability. It enables ideas from multiple minds to offer more creative solutions, and overall help conclude the best decision. This is evident in how teams with systematic operations can build successful businesses and come up with better innovations.

4. Increases accountability.

Working with a team increases a person’s sense of accountability and responsibility. This happens through the delegation of functions and tasks among the team members. Accountability may seem like a heavy burden to everyone involved. But once it is clearly and formally communicated within the team, everyone generally does what they are tasked to do without much coercion.

ESSENTIAL TIPS TO PROMOTE TEAMWORK

1. Communication: Strong communication goes a long way in the construction business. The best teams are the ones that communicate well. Members need to be able to express their thoughts and opinions, as well as respect other team members’ views and ideas.
2. Trust: Another critical aspect of any strong team is trust. There is a high level of risk involved in construction work. Members must have complete faith in each others’ skills and abilities. They must also understand the intricacies of each others’ roles so they can better respect the work they are doing and the goals each of them has.
3. Realistic Goals: Communicating well and establishing trust can allow the team to develop realistic goals. When the goals are clearly defined, everybody has an idea of when to complete what they are doing and what they have to do next.
4. Progress Review: Regularly reviewing the progress of work is a necessary task. Any developments during practice can affect deadlines and overall task completion. Reviewing work and discussing solutions to challenges go a long way in the safe and successful completion of the project.
5. Risk Management: Last but not the very least, risk management is one of the foremost aspects a capable team needs to consider. The very nature of construction projects is that there is a high level of risk involved. While all the team members might not be on-site throughout the project, everybody must understand the risks.
6. Shared goals and vision: The very first step is to define the goals and vision of the construction project then communicate to all members. People need to understand what they are working toward and how they contribute to the common objectives. The shared vision is the key to motive and inspire team members.

FINAL WORD

When it comes to team building and teamwork, communication and trust are the two essential elements that define how a construction team can approach work. Through these factors, a team can successfully set realistic goals for themselves and review the overall progress regularly.