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Lesson 02: Teamwork

Learning outcomes:

By the end of this lesson, you should be able to:

A. Develop and employ vocabulary related to teamwork

B. Infer information from a reading passage
C. Use and practice on defining and non-defining relative clauses

Reading Comprehension

Preparation
Match the definitions (a–h) with the vocabulary (1–8).

Vocabulary Definition
1. …… a facial expression C a. the quality of being a good leader
2. …… bonding E b. a group of people who work together from
3. …… leadership A geographically separate locations
4. …… an agenda D c. the look on someone’s face that shows how they feel
5. …… multitasking F d. a list of points to be discussed at a meetingj
6. …… a misunderstanding G e. the process by which a close relationship develops
7. …… a distraction H between people
8. …… a remote team B f. doing more than one thing at a time
g. an occasion when someone does not understand
something correctly
h. something that stops you concentrating on what you
are doing

Working in a remote team

Aisha had been very successful managing her team in Edinburgh and was asked by the
company to lead a remote team for an important two-year project. Keen to demonstrate her
leadership abilities to the head office, Aisha got her team members together for a remote
meeting. But right from that first meeting, she realised that this was going to be a different
challenge. For a start, Archie was late for the meeting by about 15 minutes because of ‘technical
problems’. Lucia kept asking about really specific details, while Aisha was hoping to use the
meeting to get to know the team members and identify priorities. Archie and Lucia kept
accidentally talking at the same time, and when they didn’t speak, there was an uncomfortable
silence. Valentina hardly said a word. No one had their cameras on, so there was none of the

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usual communication through body language or facial expressions. Without these visual clues,
Aisha had no idea whether people were interested, lost, confused or bored. By the end of the
meeting, Aisha didn’t feel like she had achieved much of her agenda and wasn’t sure what
people had understood. She wondered how she was going to build trust and encourage bonding
in her team.
As companies continue to think globally, and as modern-day technology makes remote
working easier, remote teams have become common. Instant messaging, videoconferencing and
other web-based tools all help. But communication via modern technology is not without its
problems. Meetings, essential for team bonding and working together effectively, can be
particularly challenging online. Aside from having to coordinate people in different time zones
and ensuring that no one is multitasking and getting distracted, meetings on virtual platforms are
not always helpful for good communication. As seen from Aisha’s example, videoconferencing
is often characterised by uncomfortable silences and people talking over each other.
So what can managers of remote teams do to improve meetings and encourage successful team
bonding? Here are five tips.

1. Build trust quickly.

It can be hard to trust people you don’t know very well, so make sure the first meeting
includes proper introductions, where members of the team are able to share information about
themselves, their role and their context. Encourage people to have their camera on for conference
calls right from the start so that team members can put a face to a name and build stronger
relationships.
2. Discuss preferred communication styles and approaches to work.

Schedule some time during one of the initial meetings to talk about things like time-
keeping, expected amount of participation, how closely members prefer to follow the agenda and
so on. Talk about the challenges of online meeting platforms and how members can help make
meetings more effective.
3. Discourage distractions.

Minimise the risk of people multitasking and not paying attention during meetings by
creating a culture of calling with video on. Another way to ensure that people concentrate during
meetings is to give each member a role, for example, someone to take the minutes, someone to
notice problems and someone to offer ideas and alternatives.
4. Try to understand what silence means.

If someone is quiet for a while, it might mean ‘thinking time’, and that’s OK. But it might
also mean lack of understanding or disagreement, so try to get more information from them. Ask
for everyone’s point of view at the beginning of a new project and make regular opportunities to
speak to team members individually. This will help you understand other people’s opinions on
things and avoid misunderstandings.

5. Actively manage turn-taking and be careful not to let one person

dominate the meeting.

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If you notice that someone isn’t talking much, ask them for their opinions and bring them into
the conversation, or speak to that person later individually to check everything is OK.
With team members located in different places, remote meetings are vital for team bonding and
effective teamwork. By making an effort to build trust and encourage good communication, we
can avoid common problems and find new ways of working that bring many advantages to the
team.
British Council, 2020
http://www.britishcouncil.org/learnenglish
Task 1
Are the sentences true or false?

1. Aisha was asked to lead a remote team because she was good at managing her team in
Edinburgh. TRUE
2. Everyone was there at the start of the first meeting to introduce themselves to the team.
FALSE
3. Archie and Lucia didn’t like each other and so they kept interrupting each other. FALSE
4. Aisha was sure that Valentina was bored during the meeting. FALSE
5. More and more people are working in remote teams now. TRUE
6. Modern technology means that remote meetings are just as good as face-to-face ones. FALSE
7. Using cameras during meetings can be helpful for different reasons. TRUE
8. It is always better to speak to the team all together whenever possible. FALSE

Task 2
Complete the sentences.
pay point remote team
facial uncomfortable avoid leadership

1. Aisha wanted to use her new role to demonstrate her leadership abilities.
2. She realised that there are particular challenges to leading a remote team.
3. During the meeting, some people talked at the same time and there were uncomfortable
silences.
4. It can be difficult to know how people are reacting if you can’t see body language or facial
expressions.
5. If we want our remote teams to be successful, we need to find opportunities for team bonding.
6. If people multitask during meetings, there’s a risk they don’t pay attention.
7. It’s a good idea to ask for everyone’s point of view on new projects. 8. Trying to understand
why people are silent helps to avoid misunderstandings.

Discussion
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Have you ever worked in a remote team? What challenges did you face?

Language

Circle the correct answer. A dash (—) means that no word is needed.

1. That's the woman to whom I spoke about the job.

2. The house in which they live is opposite a big park.
3. All of the exam papers are collected and given to the examiners, whose job it is to mark
them.
4. This is the title of the book __ I need for my course.
5. Next to the hotel there's a great gym where you can work out.
6. My mother, Who is retired, has decided to learn Chinese.
7. My car, Without which I can't get to work, has broken down.
8. We waited for nearly an hour to be served, but our meal, when it arrived, was awful. Decide
whether the following relative clauses are defining or non-defining and select
the appropriate option based on the situation.
1. I have three brothers.

My brother who lives in Sidney came to see me last month. DR

My brother, who lives in Sidney, came to see me last month.

2. I have one sister.

My sister who is 25 years old spent her holiday in France.

My sister, who is 25 years old, spent her holiday in France. NDR

3. Bob's mum has lost her keys.

Bob's mum who is a musician has lost her car keys.

Bob's mum, who is a musician, has lost her car keys. NDR
4. My friend Jane moved to Canada.

My friend Jane whose husband is Canadian moved to Canada last week.

My friend Jane, whose husband is Canadian, moved to Canada last week.

NDR
5. I am a shoe fanatic.

The shoes which I bought yesterday are very comfortable. DR

The shoes, which I bought yesterday, are very comfortable.

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6. Mr Robinson is very famous.

Mr Robinson whom I met at the trade fair is a famous inventor.

Mr Robinson, whom I met at the trade fair, is a famous inventor. NDR

7. Tamara has two cats. Both of them are black.

Tamara's two cats which can play outside are black.

Tamara's two cats, which can play outside, are black. NDR
8. Kevin has four cats. Two of them are black.

Kevin's two cats which are black can play outside. DR

Kevin's two cats, which are black, can play outside.

9. We are on holiday. Yesterday we visited a church.

The church which we visited yesterday is very old. DR

The church, which we visited yesterday, is very old.

10. We are on holiday. Yesterday we visited a church.

St. Mary's Church which we visited yesterday is very old.

St. Mary's Church, which we visited yesterday, is very old. NDR