Belbin in higher education
Teach the theory. Then let your students experience Belbin for themselves.
Belbin has been taught and used in higher education for over 30 years. We're proud to be on the syllabus and in the classroom.
Belbin is a research-based methodology used worldwide to help people discover, articulate and refine their strengths, to build more effective teams and improve business performance.
More than just a theory, Belbin is a practical tool, and the fully-normed and researched Belbin reports offer comprehensive, tailored advice and guidance.
Using Belbin can help to:
- facilitate students’ personal development
- enable more effective teamwork
- enhance course engagement, attendance, performance, and ultimately, employability.
Hear from lecturers and students below to see how both have benefited from including Belbin theory and Belbin reports in to their lectures.
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The theory
Dr Meredith Belbin defines a 'Team Role' as one of nine clusters of behavioural attributes identified by his research at Henley as being effective in order to facilitate team progress.
Having a language and framework to understand the contributions needed to facilitate the success of a team is critical in organisations today.
This is why universities and business schools worldwide teach the Belbin theory, and use the Belbin reports.
They are giving their students education and skills they can hone and perfect in the classroom, and which they can use to full effect in the world of work.
How do students find out their Belbin strengths?
The only way to find out where your students' Belbin Team Roles strengths (and weaknesses) lie is to ask them to complete the Belbin Self-Perception Inventory, and ideally to obtain feedback from others.
The Self-Perception inventory is completed online and generates a Belbin Individual report. The report is full of insights and advice that students can use to encourage self-reflection and maximise learning opportunities offered by study groups and problem-based learning.
You can purchase the Belbin reports from us in a number of ways: as needed; or more cost-effectively, via annual licence. Get in touch so we can explore the best option for you, your department and your academic establishment.
Business Schools use Belbin to benefit their students in their learning and academic outcomes
Professor Javier Marcos, Professor of Strategic Sales Management and Negotiation, shares his experience of using Belbin Team Roles to help students with their group assignments.
Case Study
Developing employability and cultural intelligence at Northumbria University
Dr Teresa Roca, Senior Lecturer in Leadership and Human Resources at Northumbria Business School, shares how she uses Belbin internationally to give students a competitive advantage, increase employability and develop emotional and cultural intelligence.
Case Study
Leeds University Business School
Melissa Schuessler, Senior Teaching Fellow, shares how Belbin adds to the student experience and makes life easier for academics.
Case Study
Belbin and University of East London
Belbin reports were used with students at the University of East London to elevate student learning and outcomes.
By using Belbin to identify and acknowledge the diversity of roles within a team, the objective was to enhance communication, reduce conflict, and promote a collaborative atmosphere conducive to achieving project goals.
Esade Business School
Hear how Esade Business School uses Belbin in their induction for MSc students to derive better academic outcomes and course experiences. Belbin raises students’ awareness of their strengths and personal brand, and the importance of teamwork and employability skills.
University of Liverpool Management School: Beacon Project
Dr Jenny Johnson and Dr Denise Preece from the University of Liverpool Management School, discuss their Beacon Project: Developing Team Skills to Enhance University Group Work and Student Employability.
"Students suggested that as a result of reflections, their Belbin Individual report (with 360 feedback) and the interactive training day there were positive changes including enhanced employability skills; increased self-awareness and self-affirmation; increased confidence and heightened awareness of Team Roles and how to work in a high-performing team"
Case Study
How Belbin transformed a cohort of chemical engineers at the University of the Basque Country
In 2018, Asier Aranzabal, Eva Epelde and Maite Artetxe, professors at the Faculty of Science and Technology at the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), identified several problems with team selection in the project-based elements of their chemical engineering course.
The professors sought a reliable and valid method for forming teams, with a view to improving performance and engagement, and incorporating learning around teamwork.
They used the Belbin methodology to assign students to teams and measured a number of key outcomes, including project and exam scores, and individual accountability (via the Individual Accountability Factor or IAF).
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We are proud to be a Corporate Member of the Chartered ABS, and Conference Supporter at the Learning, Teaching & Student Experience 2023 conference
The Belbin reports
Our personalised behavioural reports focus on the nine key clusters of behaviour (Team Roles) needed for team success. It all starts with the Belbin Individual report. This details someone's Team Role 'fingerprint' and gives in-depth advice and guidance on how they can articulate and promote their strengths to best effect. But it doesn't end there. Once you have a set of Individual reports, you can generate a suite of additional Belbin reports, most of which require no additional input.
Your gold standard and ours
We know you want to provide the best to your students. Like you, we value academic endeavour, ideas and intellectual property.
That's why our purpose-built application rigorously analyses and norms the results from the Belbin Self-Perception Inventory (SPI) and incorporates peer feedback for a full picture of the individual's Team Role profile.
This is the only sanctioned method for completing a Belbin questionnaire and obtaining Team Role results.
The full suite of Belbin reports
Take a look at some of the Belbin reports - from Individual to Teams - that are currently being used by students worldwide.
"Students are always positive about completing their Inventories – we’ve been using Belbin for nearly 20 years – the Global MBA Programme students started back in 2002! Belbin continues to be relevant and students always value their Reports and the Belbin process."
Barbara Kemp, Oxford Brookes University
How we use Belbin: Project-based learning and Innovation
"Presently, we can see that the use of the Belbin report can help to produce a more unique and personal reflective account of project-based learning.
Particularly, in the context of more fast-paced innovation ‘sprint’ projects, where utilising Team Roles effectively is crucial to achieve project success.
Innovation projects often involve interdisciplinary teams. This makes innovation work more challenging and complex as it requires teams to build new and generative relationships and team dynamics. Innovation teams need to develop a shared identity, common goals and cohesive team actions from during early stages of team development in order to become high performing project teams.
Belbin enables this process and it can help individual team members to develop new skills and capabilities based on reflecting on their own ways of working and interacting with to others.
For our students, Belbin helps to make them more aware of critical issues and teams and helps them to develop new skills that make them ‘innovation ready’ and fit for future project work with industry."
Dr Thor Roser
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