Over 20 people from IKEA Indirect and Material Services in Philadelphia came together for a Rescue Bear team building event in which the end product was building stuffed animals that were given to the Lower Macungie Ambulance Service in Macungie, PA. The group gathered at the Bear Creek Mountain Resort in Macungie, PA, for this special time of team building, group meetings. Throughout the event there was plenty of fun and laughter as games were played, memories expanded, values reinforced, and personalities explored. Overall it was a great time to experience the company of co-workers in a little different atmosphere than usual.

The basic lesson surrounding the event dealt with how talent is often time a determinant in filling positions, but then those people filling similar positions, all having similar talents and temperaments become a team, but somehow aren’t very effective. The talent pool is there, but with similar attitudes it can be hard for the team to be work in the most efficient manner. Personality clashes are too often the result of like personalities having different ideas on a matter. Resolving the problem is more difficult than if the team members have complimentary personalities. When dominant personalities are team members the work is complicated by people wanting to lead and no one willing to follow. The more expressive personalities are more concerned with enjoying the journey and having fun so they are easily distracted from the task for a more cheerful and entertaining activity. The amiable person on a team is so concerned with consensus that the work can suffer trying to get everyone to agree unanimously on the process. If all members are analytical then the concern will be getting enough information and making sure it is accurate that the actual work may be delayed.

The best functioning teams make sure they have a cross section of personalities so that they compliment and add to each other. The best and most effective and efficient teams are not made up of the most talented people, but rather those that can work together in such a way that the talent pool is augmented. That is, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. When designing teams and assigning responsibilities, look beyond just talent and make sure that the personalities and temperaments of the teammates are complimentary to each other. Building Bears that are donated to area first responders is a great way of building teams and experiencing the lessons of personality developments.