If you've ever been to the Pike Place Fish Market in Seattle then you are probably familiar with the FISH philosophy which has for at least the last decade permeated the global business environment. The idea behind the philosophy being that employees are responsible for delivering a great experience to each other and customers and this experience is enhanced when employees show up to work each day and deliver 4 main concepts:

• Play
• Make Their Day
• Be There [for Coworkers] (Often referred to as "Be Present" This is more to do with giving your full attention to a task or individual.)
• Choose Your Attitude
  

(for more specifics about the FISH Philosophy http://www.charthouse.com)

I have been through FISH training and have seen many companies who have invested the dollars and resources to bring the FISH philosophy into their work environment. I actually really like the philosophy behind FISH and what it stands for, but where I struggle with it is when myopic leaders believe it is going to truly change and evolve their work culture. As a team building exercise it is great, as a  way to build and sustain culture, no way!

If your organization doesn't understand what the culture is today and what the desired culture is for the future, it doesn't matter what team building you do, it won't make any long term difference.

Culture evolution and change is not about team building, it’s about defining the culture for the future, setting expectations, communicating those expectations and holding employees accountable for behavior that demonstrates the culture.

Once your culture is defined and in place, then there is certainly room for team building and other "rah-rah" opportunities to keep things fresh, but i can't think of one instance where team building alone built a corporate culture that was sustainable and was responsible for driving business results.

Team building should be an outcome, not the strategy.