From time to time, you may need to reorganize your teams, bringing in new members from a different part of your organization or even externally. To work cohesively and collaboratively, the people involved will have to first learn each other’s personalities and work styles. The change you’re making, whether planned or unplanned, is necessary. So, you don’t want poor team cohesion to complicate the transition even more.

If handled poorly, these transitions can lead to conflict and slowed productivity.

That’s why you need clear strategies for helping build team cohesion. In this article, we’ll discuss ideas to:

• Introduce new team members to each other (whether in-person or remote)
• Get people up to speed on how their roles are related
• Get a new team’s project work flowing quickly and efficiently

Let’s dive right into how you can get a newly formed work group to gel quickly and demonstrate strong team cohesion.

1. Revisit your onboarding practices

Borrowing practices from your new employee onboarding process is a great way to get people who are new to each other (but not necessarily new to your company) working together smoothly.

Repurposing these onboarding components can encourage new team gelling:

Start the process as soon as the new team is announced.

Meet one-on-one with each person on the team to clarify their individual roles and answer any questions they have.

Follow up with handwritten notes and even welcome packages (including team or company merchandise) to generate excitement around the plan for a fresh start.

Ask each person to record a video introduction to share in advance or prepare to make an in-person introduction when the team formally kicks off.

Plan a great first day working together.

Ensure everyone is prepared to be fully present and engaged on day one of coming together as a team. The last thing you want is for your new team to get off to a haphazard, uneventful start.

Aim to make all the team members feel special about their first day as a new unit, taking everyone out for lunch or enjoying a company provided meal together over Zoom.

Lay out the vision for the team’s role in your company.

Take time to reiterate how your new team will play an important role in the strategic projects that are critical to your company’s future. This gives a sense of shared purpose that will help build enthusiasm for the work ahead.

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