Building Connections Across Campuses: Reflections on the English Team Day

Facilitating meaningful interaction among colleagues can support both collaboration and a sense of community. This article reflects on the English Team Day to examine how such team-building interventions foster relationships, support team cohesion, and enable discussion about team strengths and future aspirations. As part of the Language Center, the English Team brings together English language and communication educators whose work supports students’ language, communication, and professional development.

Authors: Katariina Launiala and Thomas Wishart

“Nutritious for body and soul” was how one participant summarized the first-ever English Team Day that was held in Lahti in August. Given that members of the English Team are spread across the Lahti, Lappeenranta, and online campuses, possibilities for meeting in person are relatively rare. It was therefore no surprise that the participants seemed to relish the opportunity for live interaction, an observation supported by Kaltiainen and Hakanen (2024), whose research suggests that the sense of community develops differently when interaction is face-to-face rather than solely online. Their study, published by the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health, further demonstrated that improving the sense of community in a workplace improved motivation and productivity, as well as overall well-being by reducing feelings of loneliness. Although participants expressed appreciation for the autonomy and independent nature of their work, they also valued their colleagues’ input and expressed the need for more opportunities to deepen interpersonal relationships within the team.

Due to the nature of their roles, the English Team members typically organize and manage their responsibilities independently. Despite the challenges involved in bringing together a group such as this, such efforts are worthwhile, as effective teamwork strengthens collaboration and contributes to outcomes that exceed those achievable through individual effort alone (Lacerenza et al. 2018, 517). It is therefore not surprising that research emphasizes the importance of bringing individuals together and developing them into a cohesive team (Lacerenza et al. 2018, 528). Creating a deeper sense of unity appeared to be one of the primary goals of the Team Day.

Building Connections Through Shared Experiences

The program was planned and organized by the team’s new manager, Kirsi Korkealehto, and the English Team coordinator, Hanna Vihava. The evident collaboration between the new manager and the team coordinator implies that the planning process had already established a positive working relationship. The apparent benefits of this cooperation align with research suggesting that collective effort on a shared project fosters interpersonal connections (Love et al. 2021, 8). Through their collaboration in organizing the event, Korkealehto and Vihava created an opportunity for the wider team to strengthen their own professional and social connections as well.

The day began with a short introduction by Korkealehto, who provided both her professional background and personal insights. By providing both academic credentials and personal anecdotes, she presented herself as both a leader and a colleague, helping to create an atmosphere of openness and trust. This approach aligns with a recent Finnish study that identified open communication between management and staff, along with a positive feedback culture, as among the most effective means of supporting employee well-being (Raitala 2024, 30).

Open communication was further encouraged by assigning participants to small groups randomly, which research suggests can promote trust by encouraging interaction beyond existing social circles (Lacerenza et al. 2018, 523). Group members were invited to share the stories behind their names, providing a structured yet informal conversation opportunity. The activity struck an effective balance between personal and professional discussion by creating meaningful interaction while remaining comfortably suitable for a professional setting. Additionally, the exercise helped participants learn and remember each other’s names.
Celebrating Strengths, Shaping the Future

The second task adopted a more structured approach and encouraged participants to reflect on the team through a series of questions. The ensuing discussion addressed existing strengths, managerial support, collaboration, team identity, and sources of motivation. Together, these themes prompted participants to evaluate both the team’s current functioning and future aspirations. Lacerenza et al. emphasize that fostering understanding within a team helps ensure future effectiveness (2018, 523). Although the English Team comprises individuals from varied backgrounds, a notable degree of consensus emerged during the discussion since the team identified an existing positive, supportive, and collaborative atmosphere. Team meetings were valued for their structured agendas and tangible outcomes, which corresponds with research suggesting that successful teams thrive when their work is guided by clear, meaningful goals (Love et al. 2021, 2).

The Power of Supportive Leadership

The expectations expressed for the new manager aligned with several qualities previously identified as strengths within the team. In particular, the participants desired supportive, flexible, and open-minded leadership. Combined with requests for accessible communication and managerial accessibility, these findings imply that team members place considerable importance on leaders who facilitate open dialogue while still fostering autonomy. The findings align notably with Raitala’s research (2024, 57), as both suggest approachable leadership may be perceived not only as a desirable personal characteristic but also as a mechanism for sustaining collaboration, trust, and employee engagement within the team. Next, the focus shifted from management to peer relationships within the team and the participants described their colleagues as helpful and supportive. However, the importance of fostering a climate in which constructive criticism could be expressed more freely was also discussed. Based on this observation, opportunities for strengthening psychological safety within the team might be beneficial. Lacerenza et al. (2018, 525–526) identify open communication, feedback, and reflection as some of the most successful tools for improved team effectiveness. Lastly, the work itself was deemed motivating, with notable emphasis on interaction with students being particularly meaningful.

More Than a Team Day

At the end of the event, the participants reflected on their experiences. The overall feedback was positive, and there was a clear consensus for similar coming-togethers to be organized more frequently. This preference dovetails with research by Lacerenza et al. (2018, 523–525) on team dynamics, which describes how events, such as team days, can be valuable occasions to build trust, clarify shared goals, strengthen relationships, and reflect on how a team works together. Moreover, research shows that these elements are among the most impactful components of team-building interventions (Lacerenza et al. 2018, 523–525).

In conclusion, the Team Day functioned as more than a social gathering. It provided a structured forum for reflection, dialogue, and relationship building, all of which have been identified in the literature as essential contributors to team effectiveness. Furthermore, the discussions highlighted not only the existing strengths but also a shared goal of further developing collaboration. Moreover, the positive reception of the event indicates that team members valued the opportunity to connect with one another beyond their daily responsibilities. Perhaps most importantly, the event served as a reminder that even in an autonomous and geographically dispersed team, meaningful in-person connections remain beneficial. Such interactions ultimately help sustain the collaborative and supportive culture that team members already regarded as one of the English Team’s defining characteristics while empowering them to perform their roles more effectively and contribute to shared goals.

References

Kaltiainen, J. & Hakanen, J. 2024. 70% experience a sense of community at work – others reported an even weaker sense of community than before. Finnish Institute of Occupational Health. Cited 27 Aug 2026. Available at https://www.ttl.fi/en/topical/press-release/70-experience-a-sense-of-community-at-work-others-reported-an-even-weaker-sense-of-community-than

Lacerenza, C.N., Marlow, S.L., Tannenbaum, S.I. & Salas, E. 2018. Team development interventions: Evidence-based approaches for improving teamwork. American Psychologist. Vol. 73 (4), 517–531. Cited 27 Aug 2026. Available at https://doi.org/10.1037/amp0000295

Love, H.B., Cross, J.E., Fosdick, B., Crooks, K.R., VandeWoude, S. & Fisher, E.R. 2021. Interpersonal relationships drive successful team science: an exemplary case-based study. Humanities & Social Sciences Communications. Vol. 8, 106. Cited 27 Aug 2026. Available at https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-021-00789-8

Raitala, N. 2024. Supervisors’ role in subordinates’ well-being at work: how organization can support supervisors in well-being leadership. Master’s Thesis. Turku University of Applied Sciences, Business Management, Administration and Marketing. Turku. Cited 27 Aug 2026. Available at https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-202403295452

Authors

Katariina Launiala and Thomas Wishart are Senior lecturers of English language and professional communication at a joint Language Centre of LUT and LAB.

Illustration: https://pxhere.com/fi/photo/1567381 (CC0)