Team Building &
Communication
Create a joyous and fruitful cooperation — a 1-day workshop for research teams, delivered on-site or live online for your institution.
Why join this workshop?
Good cooperation, trust, and a positive work environment are the source of creativity and productivity in any team. When people communicate well, the joint output is always bigger than each person’s individual contribution — and every team member, not just the leader, shapes the atmosphere that makes this possible.
Friction is natural in any team, but left unaddressed it drains energy into worry, gossip, and drama instead of joint work. This workshop helps your team value what’s already working, spot early friction as an opportunity rather than a threat, and agree together on how you want to communicate going forward.
What you will learn?
Participants learn how to
- recognise how their own communication style shapes the team’s atmosphere and performance
- value what’s already working well in the team’s cooperation, and build on it
- spot early friction and misunderstandings before they become costly
- use criticism and appreciation constructively, instead of avoiding difficult conversations
- contribute to guiding principles the whole team commits to going forward
What participants take away
Participants leave the workshop with three concrete outputs:
- A shared picture of how the team currently communicates — and what already works well
- A view of friction and conflict as opportunities — not something to avoid or suppress
- Guiding principles for future communication — agreed together, not imposed from above
Harmonious cooperation isn’t the absence of friction — it’s what a team builds once it knows how to handle it.
What topics do we cover?
Part 1 – Value What Works. Where the team’s communication and cooperation are already strong, and how to build on that.
Part 2 – Spot the Friction. Where misunderstandings and conflicts tend to arise in the team, and why.
Part 3 – Build Guiding Principles. Agreeing together on how the team wants to communicate, to reduce drama and open space for trust and creativity.
How is it taught?
The workshop is interactive throughout, combining group exercises, individual reflection, and group discussion. Ahead of the session, we hold a preparatory meeting with the team leader to select the specific topics the workshop should focus on.
Who benefits most?
Delivered on-site or live online directly for your institution, for one intact team at a time, it works best for a group that wants to actively shift toward calmer, more open communication:
- Research teams and (administrative) units who want to strengthen how they communicate and collaborate
- Team leaders, PIs, and their teams who want a calmer, more joyous working atmosphere
- Departments or institutes wanting to invest in the culture of one of their teams
- Universities and research organisations building healthier team communication across their groups
About the instructor
Dr Bärbel Tress is an expert in collaboration within scientific environments, with over 19 years of experience as a scientific advisor to hundreds of scientists — from PhD candidates to Heads of Institutes. She has held research and teaching posts at universities across Europe and served as an Associate Editor for an international peer-reviewed journal.
How this course is usually booked
This workshop is offered on-site or live online, delivered directly for your university, research institute, or organisation — for one intact team at a time, not as an open course for individuals.
If you’d like to bring this workshop to one of your teams, we’d be pleased to discuss the options with you.
Contact us to discuss this further at info@tressacademic.com or ask for a free Zoom call!
Level
Whole team or unit, incl. team leader
FOCUS
Team communication & cooperation
Participants
up to 12 (one team)
Duration
1-day workshop
Instructor
Dr. Bärbel Tress
Mode
On-site or live online, institute-specific