It’s an era in which team work matters, especially so in starting up a business. There are so many start-up business team models, from Apple, Microsoft, Yahoo and Google in the US to China’s Lenovo, Huawei, Alibaba, Tencent and Baidu. 

Liu Chuanzhi of Lenovo attributes that company’s success to three key elements: building a team, having a strategy and leading the team. Teamwork has been the core of the company’s organizational capacity and the cornerstone of its sustainable business development. 

Ma Yun, founder of Taobao, said that the best team should have members that sincerely work with each other to get through all difficulties. Ma pointed out four key elements in a successful team: talents that can complement each other, a clear goal, a good system and an extraordinary culture.

Ma’s view coincides with that of Charles Pellerin, former director of NASA’s astrophysics department. Pellerin applied his perspective and experience as a scientist and a leader and developed a 4D extraordinary team building system in NASA. The system’s online evaluation (individual and group development appraisals), workshop and team trainer process have helped members to know themselves better and understand team culture and task characteristics.  

Through his program trainees can better adapt themselves mentally and physically and work as part of an efficient team.