tuánduì hézuò: 团队合作 - Teamwork, Collaboration

• Keywords: tuandui hezuo, 团队合作, Chinese teamwork, collaboration in Chinese, team spirit Chinese, tuánduì hézuò meaning, Chinese business culture, collective effort
• Summary: Learn the essential Chinese term 团队合作 (tuánduì hézuò), meaning “teamwork” or “collaboration.” This page breaks down its cultural significance in Chinese business and society, contrasting it with Western concepts. Discover practical examples, common mistakes, and related terms to master how to discuss teamwork like a native speaker.

• Pinyin (with tone marks): tuánduì hézuò
• Part of Speech: Noun
• HSK Level: HSK 4 (both characters “团队” and “合作” are HSK 4)
• Concise Definition: The collaborative effort of a group of people to achieve a common goal; teamwork.
• In a Nutshell: 团队合作 (tuánduì hézuò) is more than just “working together.” It's a core value in Chinese culture that emphasizes collective success over individual glory. It implies a group that is tightly-knit, harmonious, and where each member understands their role in contributing to the shared objective. The focus is on the group's achievement as a single unit.

• 团 (tuán): Meaning “group,” “regiment,” or “ball.” The character's enclosure radical (囗) suggests a boundary or something contained, while the inside part, 专 (zhuān), originally depicted a tool for spinning thread. Together, it evokes the image of things being gathered or wound into a single, unified group.
• 队 (duì): Meaning “team” or “row.” The left-side radical “阝” (fù) is a pictograph of a mound or hill, often associated with groups of people or settlements. The right side represents people following one another. Thus, 队 (duì) means a line or team of people.
• 合 (hé): Meaning “to combine,” “to join,” or “to suit.” This is a pictograph of a lid (亼) fitting perfectly onto a container or mouth (口). It beautifully illustrates the concept of joining things together so they fit perfectly.
• 作 (zuò): Meaning “to do,” “to make,” or “to work.” The left-side radical “亻” (rén) means “person.” The character shows a person actively doing or creating something.

When combined, 团队 (tuánduì) means “team” or “group,” and 合作 (hézuò) means “to cooperate” or “collaboration.” Put together, 团队合作 (tuánduì hézuò) literally translates to “team collaboration,” a direct and powerful term for teamwork.

In Chinese culture, 团队合作 (tuánduì hézuò) is a deeply ingrained value, heavily influenced by the philosophy of collectivism (集体主义, jítǐ zhǔyì). This stands in contrast to the emphasis on individualism often found in Western cultures. While an American company might celebrate a “star player” who single-handedly closes a big deal, a Chinese company is more likely to praise the entire team's coordinated effort. The ideal is not for one person to shine, but for the group to succeed harmoniously. Sacrificing personal ambition for the good of the team is seen as a virtue. This concept is similar to Western “teamwork,” but the cultural weight is different. In the West, teamwork is often a strategy for efficiency; in China, it's a fundamental principle of social and organizational harmony. Failure to demonstrate 团队合作 can be seen as a moral failing, suggesting one is selfish or unable to integrate into the group.

This term is ubiquitous in professional and educational settings.

• In Business: Job descriptions almost always list “良好的团队合作能力” (liánghǎo de tuánduì hézuò nénglì - good teamwork ability) as a key requirement. During interviews, you will likely be asked to provide examples of your teamwork skills. In performance reviews, it's a critical metric for evaluation.
• In Education: Teachers constantly encourage 团队合作 in group projects (小组项目, xiǎozǔ xiàngmù). The ability to work well with classmates is considered as important as academic knowledge itself.
• Connotation and Formality: The term carries a very positive connotation and is a highly praised quality. It is used in formal contexts like business meetings and reports, but it's also common in more casual conversations about sports, group activities, or even family chores.

• Example 1:
  • 我们公司非常重视团队合作。
  • Pinyin: Wǒmen gōngsī fēicháng zhòngshì tuánduì hézuò.
  • English: Our company places great importance on teamwork.
  • Analysis: A common sentence used to describe a company's culture. 重视 (zhòngshì) means “to value” or “to place importance on.”
• Example 2:
  • 这个项目的成功归功于我们出色的团队合作。
  • Pinyin: Zhège xiàngmù de chénggōng guīgōng yú wǒmen chūsè de tuánduì hézuò.
  • English: The success of this project is credited to our excellent teamwork.
  • Analysis: 归功于 (guīgōng yú) is a formal way to say “is attributed to” or “is thanks to.” This is a great phrase to use when giving credit to a group.
• Example 3:
  • 招聘要求上写着：应聘者必须有良好的团队合作精神。
  • Pinyin: Zhāopìn yāoqiú shàng xiě zhe: yìngpìnzhě bìxū yǒu liánghǎo de tuánduì hézuò jīngshén.
  • English: The job advertisement says: applicants must have a good spirit of teamwork.
  • Analysis: This example introduces the related term 团队精神 (tuánduì jīngshén), or “team spirit,” which is often used interchangeably with 团队合作 in this context.
• Example 4:
  • 没有团队合作，我们不可能按时完成这个任务。
  • Pinyin: Méiyǒu tuánduì hézuò, wǒmen bù kěnéng ànshí wánchéng zhège rènwù.
  • English: Without teamwork, it would be impossible for us to complete this task on time.
  • Analysis: This sentence uses a negative structure (没有…不…) to emphasize the necessity of teamwork.
• Example 5:
  • 篮球是一项需要高度团队合作的运动。
  • Pinyin: Lánqiú shì yí xiàng xūyào gāodù tuánduì hézuò de yùndòng.
  • English: Basketball is a sport that requires a high degree of teamwork.
  • Analysis: Shows the term's application outside of a business context. 高度 (gāodù) means “a high degree” or “highly.”
• Example 6:
  • 他这个人喜欢单干，缺乏团队合作意识。
  • Pinyin: Tā zhège rén xǐhuān dāngàn, quēfá tuánduì hézuò yìshí.
  • English: He as a person likes to work alone and lacks an awareness of teamwork.
  • Analysis: This is a critical sentence. 缺乏…意识 (quēfá…yìshí) means “to lack awareness of…” and 单干 (dāngàn) means “to work alone.”
• Example 7:
  • 领导在会议上反复强调了团队合作的重要性。
  • Pinyin: Lǐngdǎo zài huìyì shàng fǎnfù qiángdiào le tuánduì hézuò de zhòngyàoxìng.
  • English: The leader repeatedly emphasized the importance of teamwork at the meeting.
  • Analysis: 反复强调 (fǎnfù qiángdiào) means “to repeatedly emphasize.” This highlights how central the concept is in a hierarchical workplace.
• Example 8:
  • 高效的团队合作可以极大地提高工作效率。
  • Pinyin: Gāoxiào de tuánduì hézuò kěyǐ jí dà de tígāo gōngzuò xiàolǜ.
  • English: Efficient teamwork can greatly improve work efficiency.
  • Analysis: This sentence links teamwork directly to a desired outcome: 效率 (xiàolǜ), or “efficiency.”
• Example 9:
  • 在我们的文化里，团队合作比个人英雄主义更受推崇。
  • Pinyin: Zài wǒmen de wénhuà lǐ, tuánduì hézuò bǐ gèrén yīngxióng zhǔyì gèng shòu tuīchóng.
  • English: In our culture, teamwork is more esteemed than individual heroism.
  • Analysis: This sentence explicitly states the cultural value comparison. 个人英雄主义 (gèrén yīngxióng zhǔyì) is “individual heroism.”
• Example 10:
  • 为了培养大家的团队合作能力，我们来玩一个游戏吧。
  • Pinyin: Wèile péiyǎng dàjiā de tuánduì hézuò nénglì, wǒmen lái wán yí ge yóuxì ba.
  • English: In order to cultivate everyone's teamwork ability, let's play a game.
  • Analysis: 培养 (péiyǎng) means “to cultivate” or “to foster,” often used for skills or habits. This shows a practical application in team-building activities.

• False Friends: “Cooperation” vs. “Teamwork”

While `合作 (hézuò)` by itself means “to cooperate,” `团队合作 (tuánduì hézuò)` is more specific. You can `合作` with a rival company on a single project, which is temporary cooperation. `团队合作` implies a deeper, more integrated, and long-term collaboration within a single, unified team where members have defined roles and a shared identity.

• Common Mistake: Overusing it for simple tasks.

For a very simple, two-person task, using the formal term `团队合作` can sound overly dramatic or bureaucratic.

• Incorrect: 我们团队合作把这张桌子搬过去吧。(Wǒmen tuánduì hézuò bǎ zhè zhāng zhuōzi bān guòqù ba.) - “Let's teamwork this table over there.”
• Correct and Natural: 我们一起把这张桌子搬过去吧。(Wǒmen yìqǐ bǎ zhè zhāng zhuōzi bān guòqù ba.) - “Let's move this table over there together.”
• Reason: `一起 (yìqǐ)` - “together” - is sufficient for simple, joint actions. Save `团队合作` for describing the quality of collaboration on a project or the general ability to work in a team.

• 团队精神 (tuánduì jīngshén) - Team spirit. The morale, enthusiasm, and sense of belonging within a team. Often used alongside 团队合作.
• 合作 (hézuò) - To cooperate; cooperation. The core action of working together. It can be used as a verb or a noun and is more general than 团队合作.
• 集体主义 (jítǐ zhǔyì) - Collectivism. The foundational cultural philosophy that prioritizes the group over the individual.
• 配合 (pèihé) - To coordinate with; to act in concert. This focuses on the smooth synchronization of actions between team members. Good `配合` is a key part of good `团队合作`.
• 分工 (fēngōng) - Division of labor. The act of assigning different tasks to different people within a team.
• 单干 (dāngàn) - To work alone; to go it alone. The opposite of working in a team, often carrying a slightly negative connotation of being uncooperative.
• 个人主义 (gèrén zhǔyì) - Individualism. The contrasting cultural value, often seen as the opposite of 集体主义.
• 效率 (xiàolǜ) - Efficiency. A primary goal and benefit of effective teamwork.
• 凝聚力 (níngjùlì) - Cohesion; cohesive force. Describes how tightly-knit and unified a team is. A team with strong `凝聚力` will have excellent `团队合作`.