There is a universal magic in the art of building human towers, the so-called castells. Even though this tradition was born in the eighteenth century in Camp de Tarragona, southern Catalonia,its key elements are so related to transversal core valuesthat nowadays we can find colles castelleres (human tower building teams) in cities such as Madrid, London and Guangzhou. In fact, castells have been declared Global Intangible Cultural Heritage by UNESCO.
The colla (team) of Viladecans, a little city near Barcelona, is a real start-up in the human towers landscape. It was founded in 2012 and today has nearly 100 associates. I teamed up with them recently in a corporate activity and I was amazed by their performance. Which technique of the castells can be applied to the corporate environment? We discuss this with David Hernandez and Joan Sanchez, members of the management team of Castellers de Viladecans.
- What does it mean to be a casteller (human tower builder) and what’s the shared purpose of the colla (team)?
To me, being a casteller means being part of the same family. Of course, each team member, regardless of gender, age, role in the human tower building process, origin, culture, religion or political views, is a casteller and everyone is welcomed within the colla. We all have a common goal which is to build castells, the higher and the more sophisticated the better. Castells mean teamwork, mutual trust, effort, courage and energy. And they also mean friendship, family, community.
- What are the steps in a castell building process? What’s the role of each one of the individuals who participate in it?
Usually castells have 3 big sections which require different ways of working. The so-called pinya is the foundation of the castell. Here, the main part of the castellers of the colla gather to create a solid base to successfully build our castell. The so-called tronc is the visible part of the tower, its central part. It’s made by nimble castellers who keep a very good balance to hold the whole structure. What we call la canalla are our youngest members, our children. Brave, quick girls and boys who crown our castells.
- Who is in command when the castell is being executed and how do you do it?
We have the role of Cap de Colla (team leader) who in both rehearsals and events is the main person responsible for the technical side of human tower building. However, quite often the Cap de Colla is part of the castell structure, which means that, then, someone else from the technical expertise team will take the leading role (what we call “cantar” –sing- castells). We follow a very clear flow. The Cap de Colla checks that everyone, from the ones who build the base of the tower to the kids who climb to the top of it, are in the right and safe position. The team leader also makes sure that the castell is built at the right pace. That’s why the leader commands from the ground, because it is the only way to get a complete perspective.
- What similarities can we find between Agile mindset and castellers culture?
A lot! When the season begins, our technical leader sets our goals, i.e. which are the most sophisticated towers we are planning to build that year. These will be our “product” and it will be shared amongst all the colla members, so that we all have our common purpose. But before this final product is delivered, we will iterate during the different casteller gatherings of the season. We will start with simple towers at the beginning of the season and throughout it we will evolve towards more complex structures, which will be our final product.
There is no strictly predetermined plan about how the evolution has to be done. Evolution will be defined by the continuous learning and the personal contribution of each member of the colla.
In order to make the product evolve, castellers work in clusters according to the different sections of the castell (pinya, tronc and canalla) to take each one of them to the next level. They do it rehearsal after rehearsal, event after event. Even if the functions are different according to each cluster, people can change from one cluster to another according to their skills to improve both individually and as a team. We all fight for a common purpose, but people always come first. People make the colla what it is.
- What’s the impact you create in your corporate team buildings?
At first, nobody believes it is possible for the team to build anything similar to a castell. But as the session develops, we see how the participants fight together to get over what they considered to be “impossible”. Here is when collaboration, teamwork, solidarity and mutual trust blossom. They need each other to build a tower and complicity is the key. We are all very happy when we see our participants celebrate the several achievements they make throughout the activity. When they build a tower, even the simplest one, it is a milestone which creates a very strong bond for them. This is a very positive learning they bring back to their day to day and that makes them grow as a team.
Many thanks for sharing with us your philosophy and passion, David & Joan!
