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In times of increasing change organisations have to find ways of responding creatively. Creative responses require the organisation's members to co-operate with each other. It is rare that one person can produce the ideas required or carry them out. 'Team Building' activities increase the amount of effective co-operation in the organisation. Managers must build co-operation within and between teams to get the best results.

Although very many organisations have invested in team building within teams rather less have taken seriously team building between teams. There is scope for much more effective working. Most organisations, for example, could improve communication and co-operation between line and staff departments and vice versa. Line groups often experience staff ones as making demands rather than being helpful. Staff groups often say people from the line dismiss their work and are uninterested in the organisation as a whole.

Difficulties between marketing and production and production and research are very common. They are not inevitable. Very simple methods can help a lot.

The drive to improve team working usually comes in response to an outside pressure. This is often competition that demands increased flexibility and business orientation. A business oriented organisation requires excellent co-operation within and between groups. This co-operation is necessary to get the business done.

Business oriented managers have to think about the processes operating between people and groups. There must be clear communication of what people need from each other (and do not need). In this way they can eliminate unnecessary work. This way of thinking is difficult for people who may have operated for a long time in a culture where these activities were absent. They may want to create co-operation between groups but find this difficult. There are four reasons for this:

• They lack the confidence in their influencing skills and fear making things worse
• They do not easily seek feedback about how others in the organisation see their departments. They may find it hard to offer feedback too.
• They lack knowledge about how to create co-operation between groups
• They have not received permission or active encouragement from the top to work on these issues

Anyone can do much informally to create understanding and co-operation between his/her Department and others. For example, he/she can:

• Ask the other Department what his or her Department could do differently which would make the relationship or work more productive
• Where problems arise, investigate them to learn how to prevent them in future. Avoid blaming.
• Set up joint informal meetings to explore issues of mutual interest
• Encourage his/her staff or colleagues to be clear and open with the other Department's people about what they want and do not want from them and listen to their point of view

More formal methods are also available and can work surprisingly quickly.

• You can set up an Inter-Group workshop. Two groups meet in separate rooms and list 'How we see ourselves? ' 'How we see the other group? ' ' How we think they see us? '. Groups share perceptions (listening!). They then form mixed groups to work on common problems. This is enjoyable and very effective.

• Use survey feedback. An outsider or members of the two departments interview people to uncover the nature of the difficulties, examples of successful co-operation and how to improve things to mutual benefit. People from both Departments discuss the data and plan what to do. 

• Start to identify the key interfaces in the organisation and work with managers and staff to improve them
• Run training for managers in Influencing and Change Skills so they will confidently take initiatives to increase co-operation between groups.
• Work with Departments to create guidance for managing co-operation between groups. Publish this via a Report or management meeting.

• Influence the organisation so top management gives permission and encouragement for improving the interface between groups with a budget that matches its importance.