LTaiwanese company Foxconn is not known for its love of “happiness at work”. This computer component manufacturing giant, which employs more than a million people in China, was singled out in the early 2010s when a wave of suicides revealed the real working conditions of workers. And yet, every morning, before settling on the assembly line where it is forbidden to speak, the employees shouted in unison, with enthusiasm, in front of their bosses: “We are good, very good, VERY VERY GOOD! »we learn in a book by sociologist Jenny Chan (The machine is your lord and masterAgone, 2015).
The goal of this morning ritual? Remind individuals that they are above all part of a team, of a close-knit family. This is precisely the objective, in management, of team bonding. Fortunately, in general, it is not intended to mask horrible working conditions. If the team-building – or “team building” – has been a staple of managerial phrasing since the 1980s, with its unusual collective activities outside the workplace, from the smoothie workshop to the escape game, including ice sculpture, its cousin the team bonding takes the lead in corporate events.
The two terms are sometimes synonymous, but their etymology makes it possible to identify the difference: the team bonding – from the English verb to bond, “link” – is aimed at employees who already know each other. It can therefore be translated as “reconnection” or “team building”. the bondage is in a way the after-sales service of the buildingthe technical control of relations between colleagues.
Exceptional moments
Beyond the semantic nuance, the actions do not meet the same objectives. When the team-building aims to be intellectually stimulating, encouraging the spirit of competition – which team will find the treasure first… –, the team bonding leaves room for conviviality: it does not need to be supervised by animators, since it can be a simple team dinner or a drink to celebrate the holidays.
The objective is to create more personal than functional links, rather in small groups: by talking to each other about more intimate things, employees will develop trust and empathy towards their fellow workers, which will promote a more peaceful social climate.
the team bonding will rather look for exceptional moments, where you let go: parachute jump, session of “laughter yoga”, getaway in a “junk room” where everyone can vent their professional frustrations with big sledgehammers on dishes or flat screens… Or even a little walk on hot coals, paying attention to that it does not result in burns for twenty-five employees, as in the Swiss company Goldbach a few days ago.
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