One of the great things about a pitch is  the  heightened sense of excitement. A challenge  outside day-to-day routine, the stimulus of competition, working  to meet  an impossible deadline and the anticipation of performing on the big day. All inspire teamwork.

However achieving teamwork is not the problem. Being seen to be a team can be and that matters.

 The rational evaluation of track record, proposed solution, fee strucure and so on, is not what dictates most decisions.  It is the emotional judgement of three questions, all of which are an instinctive response to the pitch team. How hungry are they? Do I like them? Do they like each other?

It is this last question that is often overlooked. Just because a team has burnt the midnight oil together does not mean they will be seen as a team in the pitch. A succession of well learnt, well scripted  set pieces, each relevant to individual roles can be seen as just that. A collection of individuals rather than a team.

The solution is simple. Rehearse as a team working on spontaneuos interaction, introduce  story telling that informally sends out team signals. Have an observer in rehearsals  charged only with seeing you as a team.