About Teamgel
Teamgel was started by Pete Smith in 2003 in Johannesburg, South Africa. The objective was to “use LEGO® bricks for team building”.
At that time “team building” meant “a fun time out of the office”. Or, if you are South African, it meant “a brandewyn en Coke bosberaad at the Receiver of Revenue’s expense”.
Pete soon noticed behaviours he had seen when he was facilitating management development workshops at the Ford Motor Company. He decided to understand what was happening and do his best to make team work work.
Now Teamgel operates throughout South Africa and has worked in Abu Dhabi, U.A.E. and Lahore and Karachi, Pakistan. The rest of Africa, the Middle East and Asia await.
Why does Teamgel use LEGO® bricks?
Have you ever watched a child play with LEGO® bricks for the first time? It’s WOW! Immediate engagement. It happens with adults too. It’s FUN and lots happens at an emotional level.
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Teamgel’s unique approach to making team work work
Since inception Teamgel has operated on the principle of “Do more of what works for you.” Here are the unique pillars of our success. Read more
Teamgel’s Basic Beliefs about Team Members
In order to make team work work at an individual level we make assumptions about what it is to be a Human Being.
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Teamgel’s Inspiration
According to Richard Feynman, all science starts off with a guess that we strive to (dis)prove empirically. If experience agrees with the guess, it’s RIGHT.
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Pete Smith
Founder and CEO
At university Pete studied Philosophy. At that time he knew the answer to every question imaginable. Sadly he became an adult and the truth dawned upon him. Then LEGO® team building came into his life.
He realized that all theories, especially about Human Beings, approach the world from one limited perspective. For instance, to understand and influence a team member it isn’t enough to consider only knowledge and skills. The person’s emotions must be factored in as well. Yes, he learnt this approach from LEGO® bricks.
Nowadays Pete uses the fun and playfulness of LEGO® to make team work work by including the emotional side of people when influencing their skills and knowledge of being a committed team member. The answer to the meaning of life isn’t “42”, it’s “the fun of structured play”. And LEGO® fits the bill.