Team Building - IELTS Reading Sample With Explanation

In the IELTS Reading Test, 60 minutes are allotted for 40 questions. There are three sections. You'll find general reading passages on the IELTS exam drawn from advertisements, notices, leaflets, newspaper articles, instructional manuals, or books. This IELTS Reading sample - Team Building contains following question types:

• True/False/Not Given
• Match the statement
• Complete the summary

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Section 1

Read the Passage to Answer the Following Questions

Team Building IELTS Reading Sample

1. Particularly in times of economic downturn, efficiency is of supreme importance across all industry bases; whilst companies may be looking to cut their costs, many still invest in staff motivation, training and development programmes, having developed an understanding of just how crucial strong internal relationships can be for success.
2. Louise Edwards of HR Success says that one of the barriers she comes across time and time again is that corporate heads often seem to understand that ‘team building’ is important but are not quite sure what it is or how to achieve it. In the terms of a sports club, she says, the team (i.e. what it is and how it is defined) is obvious and easy to identify. In contrast, she says, within a company – particularly a multi-layered, larger organisation, definitions may become more confused. Many define a business ‘team’ as the group of people who report to the same boss – a department, for example. However, according to Edwards, it is more productive to define a team as a group of people working towards a common goal. In training terms, therefore, this group could be members of a department with the same roles and responsibilities, such as a sales team with the common goal of selling or even the organisation as a whole, whose ‘goal’ in this case is the continued success of the organisation, their many different skills and roles all contributing to this in a number of ways.
3. Brenda Durham of Corporate Trouble-Shooters believes it inevitable that to some extent conflict will exist in a successful workplace since the necessary diversity of skills and personalities required for success will also unavoidably lead to misunderstandings and disharmony from time to time. A cohesive unit that minimises friction, she believes, can however be developed in any organisation committed to investment in its people. Whilst the taking on of external expertise for staff training and team building programmes can be costly, a number of companies, particularly those with a robust human resources department, are undertaking the training themselves. Liaison Wizards, established in 2001 and headed by Jeff Blackshaw, offers free training and development advice to companies wishing to offer motivation seminars designed in house, in the belief that contextualised training is always more effective. The company’s own business model is based upon generating revenue from advertising on their popular website – a great success, so far, having surpassed financial projections for each year it has been in operation to date.
4. Blackshaw likens the key to successful corporate team building to the tactics employed in a less formal sporting environment. He says that bonds, connections and empathy developed between members of a rugby team, for example, can also be developed within a department in the business world or even at company level. He says that good team work is fostered by respect, encouragement, shared enthusiasm and a caring and supportive workplace. Trying to exploit or dictate to personnel is sure to lead to failure, Blackshaw says.
5. Brian Osbourne, Human Resources Director of Opmax Inc, believes that programmes developed in house are inherently more likely to be of greater success than external offerings for two main reasons. Most importantly, he says, people are much easier to motivate if they themselves can be involved in designing and deciding activities – this level of consultation at the planning stage being much easier to achieve for an internal department than an external consultant. Of only slightly less importance, says Osbourne, training activities must be perceived by participants as providing outcomes geared towards developing the individuals’ potential, Once again, programmes developed by people with an insight into the personalities and culture at hand can be more easily tailored to suit the distinctive needs of that particular audience.
6. According to Osbourne, one of the biggest barriers to successful staff training is the perception that activities are too game-focussed, with no real objectives; many professionals, believing that such games are trite or patronising, are unable to appreciate the hidden benefits of building understanding and camaraderie within the group. If presented correctly, within the correct context and in conjunction with other, more staid approaches, Louise Edwards holds that games can be an enormous asset in staff training. In simple terms, Edwards defines the objectives of team building activities as a process, starting with the first stage – the clarification of the collective goals. This leads to the identification of the inhibitors preventing achievement of those goals and the introduction of enablers which will assist in goal achievement. This is followed by stage four – the final stage, where outcomes are measured and from that point on are monitored to ensure that goals are achieved and continue to be achieved. In stages 2 and 3 (identifying barriers and introducing positive alternatives) Edwards believes that the use of humour goes a long way towards relationship building on a personal level through development of empathy and removal of antipathy, ultimately fostering cooperation and support on a more formal level.
7. Alan Kidman, HR Manager of Tellam Industries agrees that the use of humour and games within a training context can go a long way towards helping an organisation achieve its goals. He has recently designed a two month long in house team building programme for senior management and will soon be delivering the first of a series of 8 workshops and activities. The goal of the project, he says, was to strengthen communication and support within the extremely diverse departments of the organisation. Heads of six departments, collectively responsible for over 200 staff members, are to be involved in the series of seminars. The programme, Kidman says, is experimental and if it proves to be a success is also intended for use in the organisation’s branches overseas. Previously the organisation has taken a more formalised approach to staff development training relying on methods such as psychometric testing discussions, motivational conferences and formal appraisals. The new, and as yet untried, approach will challenge participants in, by comparison, rather radical ways. One initiative, for example, requiring the writing, organisation and delivery of a theatrical performance to which all staff members will be invited to view.
8. Team building and motivational approaches include a wide variety of methodologies, techniques, theories and tools. Experts generally agree that different options may succeed or fail depending upon the culture of the organisation in which they are implemented. A fit with the personalities involved in crucial to success. Not only is delivery of appropriate training sessions themselves important but professional and measurable follow up is also a must.

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Section 2

Solution and Explanation
Questions 26-30

Do the following statements agree with the information given in the reading passage?
In boxes 26 -30 on your answer sheet write

26. Typical stresses of working with different people are removed with the correct training.
27. Liaison Wizards claims that training has increased their income every year since the company started..
28. Many companies are unsuccessful because they are dogmatic and take advantage of staff..
29. In house training is more successful primarily because employees feel more involved in the planning..
30. The value of games as a training tool can be misunderstood..

Question 26.

Answer: FALSE

Supporting Sentence: “A cohesive unit that minimises friction, she believes, can however be developed in any organisation committed to investment in its people. Whilst the taking on of external expertise for staff training and team building programmes can be costly, a number of companies, particularly those with a robust human resources department, are undertaking the training themselves.”

Keywords: cohesive unit, minimises

Keyword Location: Para 3 Lines 4-8

Explanation: According to the passage, proper training can only reduce staff friction, not totally eliminate it. As a result, this assertion is FALSE.

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Question 27.

Answer: FALSE

Supporting Sentence: “The company’s own business model is based upon generating revenue from advertising on their popular website – a great success, so far, having surpassed financial projections for each year it has been in operation to date.”

Keywords: generating revenue, surpassed

Keyword Location: Para 4 Lines 1-4

Explanation: The majority of Liaison Wizards' revenue comes from advertising on their renowned website, rather than from their instruction. To put it another way, Liaison Wizards asserts that advertising has boosted their revenue year after year since the company's inception. As a result, this assertion is FALSE.

Question 28.

Answer: NOT GIVEN

Explanation: The answer to this question must be Not Given.

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Question 29.

Answer: TRUE

Supporting Sentence: “Most importantly, he says, people are much easier to motivate if they themselves can be involved in designing and deciding activities – this level of consultation at the planning stage being much easier to achieve for an internal department than an external consultant.”

Keywords: programmes developed in house, greater success

Keyword Location: Para 6 Lines 3-6

Explanation: In-house training is said to increase motivation by allowing workers to feel more involved in the design and decision-making process, resulting in greater success. To put it another way, in-house training is more effective since employees feel more involved in the planning process. As a result, the given assertion is correct.

Question 30.

Answer: TRUE

Supporting Sentence: “many professionals, believing that such games are trite or patronising, are unable to appreciate the hidden benefits of building understanding and camaraderie within the group. If presented correctly, within the correct context and in conjunction with other, more staid approaches, Louise Edwards holds that games can be an enormous asset in staff training.”

Keywords: trite, patronising,

Keyword Location: Para 7 Lines 2-6

Explanation: Despite the fact that many people believe that games cannot be used to train people, Louise Edwards believes that games can be beneficial. In other words, many experts may misunderstand the importance of games as a training tool. As a result, the correct answer to this question is TRUE.

Question 31.

Answer: B. Brenda Durham

Supporting Sentence: “Brenda Durham of Corporate Trouble-Shooters believes it inevitable that to some extent conflict will exist in a successful workplace since the necessary diversity of skills and personalities required for success will also inevitably lead to misunderstandings and disharmony from time to time”

Keywords: misunderstandings and disharmony

Keyword Location: Para 3 Lines 1-4

Explanation: Because people's skills and personalities are so diverse, Brenda Durham feels that misunderstandings and conflict are unavoidable in the workplace. In other words, Brenda Durham predicts that many businesses will face employee conflict. As a result, B must be the correct answer to this question.

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Question 32.

Answer: C. Jeff Blackshaw

Supporting Sentence: “Liaison Wizards, established in 2001 and headed by Jeff Blackshaw, offers free training and development advice to companies wishing to offer motivation seminars designed in house, in the belief that contextualised training is always more effective.”

Keywords: contextualised training, more effective.

Keyword Location: Para 3 Lines 8-11

Explanation: Contextualized training, according to Jeff Blackshaw, is always more effective. To put it another way, he feels that company-specific training is more effective than generic training. As a result, C is the correct answer to this question.

Question 33.

Answer: E. Alan Kidman

Supporting Sentence: “The new, and as yet untried, approach will challenge participants in, by comparison, rather radical ways. One initiative, for example, requires the writing, organisation and delivery of a theatrical performance to which all staff members will be invited to view.”

Keywords: untried, approach

Keyword Location: Para 9 Lines 1-4

Explanation: According to Alan Kidman, the new, untested training methods will put participants through extreme challenges. To further understand the concept, an example is given. The two lines have the same meaning because "modern" is replaced with "new," "pilot" is replaced with "untried," and "method" is substituted with "approach." As a result, E is the correct answer to this question.

Question 34.

Answer: C. Jeff Blackshaw

Supporting Sentence: “He says that good team work is fostered by respect, encouragement, shared enthusiasm and a caring and supportive workplace.”

Keywords: good team work, caring and supportive workplace.

Keyword Location: Para 5 Lines 4-6

Explanation: Jeff Blackshaw says that good team work will be achieved in a positive workplace. In other words, he believes that successful team relationships are formed in a positive work environment. Therefore, the answer for this question must be C.

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Question 35.

Answer: A. Louise Edwards

Supporting Sentence: “Louise Edwards of HR Success says that one of the barriers she comes across time and time again is that corporate heads often seem to understand that ‘team building’ is important but are not quite sure what it is or how to achieve it.”

Keywords: team building

Keyword Location: Para 2 Lines 1-3

Explanation: According to Louise Edwards, most corporate leaders have a poor understanding of what "team building" is and how to achieve it. In other words, Louise Edwards believes there is a misunderstanding about what "team building" entails. As a result, the correct answer to this question is A.

Question 36.

Answer: four

Supporting Sentence: “This is followed by stage four – the final stage,”

Keywords: final stage

Keyword Location: Para 7 Line 11

Explanation: We may deduce that the entire procedure has four phases because step four is recognised as the final stage. As a result, the correct answer to this question is “four”.

Question 37.

Answer: Collective goals

Supporting Sentence: “In simple terms, Edwards defines the objectives of team building activities as a process, starting with the first stage – the clarification of the collective goals.”

Keywords: clarification, objectives

Keyword Location: Para 7 Lines 7-9

Explanation: The identification of the collective goals is the initial stage of team building activities. To put it another way, it's critical to have a clear understanding of the team's or company's overall objectives. As a result, the correct response to this question is "collective goals."

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Question 38.

Answer: Inhibitors

Supporting Sentence: “This leads to the identification of the inhibitors preventing achievement of those goals and the introduction of enablers which will assist in goal achievement.”

Keywords: identification, achievement

Keyword Location: Para 7 Lines 9-10

Explanation: Inhibitors are the hurdles that prohibit the team from reaching their goals. As a result, the correct answer to this question is "inhibitors."

Question 39.

Answer: Humour

Supporting Sentence: “In stages 2 and 3 (identifying barriers and introducing positive alternatives) Edwards believes that the use of humour goes a long way towards relationship building on a personal level through development of empathy and removal of antipathy, ultimately fostering cooperation and support on a more formal level.”

Keywords: fostering cooperation

Keyword Location: Para 7 Lines 13-16

Explanation: Humour, according to Edwards, can increase empathy, reduce antagonism, and enhance cooperation and support. As a result, the correct answer to this question is "humour."

Question 40.

Answer: monitored

Supporting Sentence: “This is followed by stage four – the final stage, where outcomes are measured and from that point on are monitored to ensure that goals are achieved and continue to be achieved.”

Keywords: outcomes, goals are achieved

Keyword Location: Para 7 Lines 11-13

Explanation: Outcomes are measured and monitored in order to guarantee that goals are met and continue to be met. In other words, success can be measured and tracked periodically. As a result, the appropriate answer to this question is "monitored."