Building More Than Just Teams

I have been through my fair share of ropes courses and corporate scavenger hunts, so when I saw "outdoor team building" on the agenda for Faurecia’s Mexico Manager’s meeting last week, I was grateful to have a conflicting conference call.

What I witnessed when I returned to the group would eventually bring tears to my eyes. The 120+ Mexico Managers, Directors, and professionals were split into groups of five to six,  and each tasked with building *perfect* bicycles. The exercise was timed—and the teams were incentivized by a promise of both competition over the fastest perfect bicycle completion and a team bicycle race, of course using the bicycle the teams had made. We are a company that has manufacturing lines, so I was impressed that the team building had some relevance to our corporate goals in a fun and creative way. I was in for a big surprise when I later found out that our corporate tag line of “Inspiring Mobility” would have so much more of a personal connection.

I was also elated that each and every team took the competition of building and racing so seriously. The team members were intensely engaged and everyone had an important role in the project.  For a moment, I must brag. We have some seriously high quality employees throughout our company, and our teams in Mexico have demonstrated they are no exception. During the team building, I did not see a single eye roll, irritated exchange or person who disengaged during the hour-plus project. I had to laugh out loud when I saw some of the managers “test driving” the child-sized bikes in full shirtsleeves and slacks—hinting at vestiges of their childhoods well-spent.

When it was time to race the bikes around the Marriot, my inner U.S.-style lawyer swallowed hard (liability!) while our General Counsel in Mexico assured me nobody in his region would ever sue there for something as silly as falling off a bicycle in the grass during a team meeting. 

The race proved to be as hilarious as the test-drives—but no less intense. At the conclusion of the event, the winners were awarded and cheering ensued (some teams even adopting both a team name and chant that they all seemed to know—when did that happen?)…

When the racing hit a lull, the real surprise came. As the teams took pictures, a local charity brought to the courtyard 20+ kids from the poorest areas of Puebla. During the event, the children were tucked away in a conference room enjoying ice cream—the children were told they were merely attending an ice cream social. 

The teams were told to turn around to see the children, and instantly knew they were to have the opportunity to donate their bikes. 

The beaming pride of each employee as they directly handed the bicycle to a child in their community was only out-shined by the expressions on those precious children's faces. Watching the kids tear around the grass on their bikes that will soon get them to school and play was the icing on the cake. 

Prior to this point, I looked at “Inspiring Mobility” as Faurecia’s corporate vision of industry leading innovation, customer focus and forward-thinking solutions. During those moments in Mexico, I came to the realization that these teams had also *literally* Inspired Mobility for each child there that day—and for me. 

My last thought and the punchline for anyone who is in charge of team building: please consider doing something that helps more than just your employees. I promise they will get so much more out of the experience of helping others. 

#beingfaurecia

#inspiringmobility