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Teamwork

Teamwork is the concept of people working together cooperatively as a team in order to


accomplish the same goals/objectives.

A general dictionary defines teamwork as a "Cooperative or coordinated effort on the


part of a group (sociology) of persons acting together as a team or in the interests of a
common cause, unison for a higher cause, people working together for a selfless
purpose, and so on."

Applied to workplaces teamwork is a method that aligns employee mindsets in a


cooperative and usually selfless manner, towards a specific business purpose. Today
there is no business or organization that does not talk about the need and value of
teamwork in the workplace. While the concept of teamwork and its benefits are well
known and talked about, it is very rare to see it being practiced truly in reality. And you
may have often noticed what appears outwardly as teamwork is not really teamwork
internally. Some things cannot be accomplished by people working individually. Larger,
more ambitious goals usually require that people work together with other people.
Because of this, teamwork is a desired goal of many businesses and organizations
today. Projects often require that people work together in order to accomplish a common
goal. Although critics often argue that in the corporate world teamwork has become an
empty buzzword, or a form of corporate-speak. Effective collaborative skills (knowledge)
are necessary to work well in a team environment. As businesses and organizations
become larger or more sophisticated. Many employers attempt to enhance their
employees' collaborative efforts through training, cross-training, and workshops in order
to help people effectively work together in a cohesive group and accomplish shared
goals.

Human beings are fiercely independent animals and we will always have our own
opinions and independent methods of doing something. This is the way our minds are
hardwired by nature. Except for a very small percentage of us, sharing and collaboration
with others is not exactly programmed inside each and every one of us. This is because
each person is mainly concerned about his or her rewards, appreciation, need for power
over others, and so on. But teamwork is a different ballgame that aligns mindsets in a
cooperative and usually selfless manner towards a specific business purpose. And it
involves sacrifices, sharing of rewards, sharing the blame and punishments, true
uniformity, suppression of personal opinions, etc., which is not very palatable to many. It
is always, "What is in it for me" rather than "What is in it for us.

In order for teamwork to succeed one must be a team player. A Team player is one who
subordinates personal aspirations and works in a coordinated effort with other members
of a group, or team, in striving for a common goal. Businesses and other organizations
often go to the effort of coordinating team building events in an attempt to get people to
work as a team rather than as individuals.

A 2003 national representative survey, HOW-FAIR, revealed that Americans think that
'being a team player' was the most important factor in getting ahead in the workplace.
This was ranked higher than several factors, including 'merit and performance',
'leadership skills', 'intelligence', 'making money for the organization' and 'long hours'.
“The old structures are being reformed. As organizations seek to become more flexible
in the face of rapid environmental change and more responsive to the needs of
customers, they are experimenting with new, team-based structures” (Jackson &
Ruderman, 1996).

Teamwork skills

Aside from any required technical proficiency, a wide variety of social skills are desirable
for successful teamwork, including:

• Listening - it is important to listen to other people's ideas. When people are allowed to
freely express their ideas, these initial ideas will produce other ideas.
• Discussing It is important to discuss your ideas with your teammates until you agree.
• Questioning - it is important to ask questions, interact, and discuss the objectives of the
team.
• Persuading - individuals are encouraged to exchange, defend, and then to ultimately
rethink their ideas.
• Respecting - it is important to treat others with respect and to support their ideas.
• Helping - it is crucial to help one's coworkers, which is the general theme of teamwork.
• Sharing - it is important to share with the team to create an environment of teamwork.
• Participating - all members of the team are encouraged to participate in the team.
• Communication - For a team to work effectively it is essential team members acquire
communication skills and use effective communication channels between one another
e.g. using email, viral communication, group meetings and so on. This will enable team
members of the group to work together and achieve the team's purpose and goals.

The forming-storming-norming-performing model takes the team through four stages of


team development and maps quite well on to many project management life cycle
models, such as initiation - definition - planning - realisation.

As teams grow larger, the skills and methods that people require grow as more ideas are
expressed freely. Managers must use these to create or maintain a spirit of teamwork
change. The intimacy of a small group is lost, and the opportunity for misinformation and
disruptive rumors grows. Managers find that communication methods that once worked
well are impractical with so many people to lead. Specifically, leaders might encounter
difficulties based on Daglow's Law of Team Dynamics: "Small teams are informed. Big
teams infer."

Team Roles

The approach to Team Role analysis was first introduced by Meredith Belbin in 1981 to
inform management consulting practices and for training. (Belbin Team Roles are not
designed for high stake employment decisions.)

Belbin proposed nine team roles required for successful teams:

Coordinator

This person will have a clear view of the team objectives and will be skilled at inviting the
contribution of team members in achieving these, rather than just pushing his or her own
view. The coordinator (or chairperson) is self disciplined and applies this discipline to the
team. They are confident and mature, and will summarize the view of the group and will
be prepared to take a decision on the basis of this.

Shaper

The shaper is full of drive to make things happen and get things going. In doing this they
are quite happy to push their own views forward, do not mind being challenged and are
always ready to challenge others. The shaper looks for the pattern in discussions and
tries to pull things together into something feasible, which the team can then get to work
on.

Plant

This member is the one who is most likely to come out with original ideas and challenge
the traditional way of thinking about things. Sometimes they become so imaginative and
creative that the team cannot see the relevance of what they are saying. However,
without the plant to scatter the seeds of new ideas the team will often find it difficult to
make any headway. The plant’s strength is in providing major new insights and ideas for
changes in direction and not in contributing to the detail of what needs to be done.

Resource investigator

The resource investigator is the group member with the strongest contacts and networks,
and is excellent at bringing in information and support from the outside. This member
can be very enthusiastic in pursuit of the team’s goals, but cannot always sustain this
enthusiasm.

Implementer

The individual who is a company worker is well organized and effective at turning big
ideas into manageable tasks and plans that can be achieved. Such individuals are both
logical and disciplined in their approach. They are hardworking and methodical but may
have some difficulty in being flexible.
Team worker

The team worker is the one who is most aware of the others in the team, their needs and
their concerns. They are sensitive and supportive of other people’s efforts, and try to
promote harmony and reduce conflict. Team workers are particularly important when the
team is experiencing a stressful or difficult period.

Completer Finisher

The Completer Finisher is a perfectionist and will often go the extra mile to make sure
everything is "just right," and the things he or she delivers can be trusted to have been
double-checked and then checked again. The Completer Finisher has a strong inward
sense of the need for accuracy, rarely needing any encouragement from others because
that individual's own high standards are what he or she tries to live up to. They may
frustrate their teammates by worrying excessively about minor details and refusing to
delegate tasks that they do not trust anyone else to perform.
Monitor evaluator

The monitor evaluator is good at seeing all the options. They have a strategic
perspective and can judge situations accurately. The monitor evaluator can be
overcritical and is not usually good at inspiring and encouraging others.

Specialist

This person provides specialist skills and knowledge and has a dedicated and single-
minded approach. They can adopt a very narrow perspective and sometimes fail to see
the whole picture. (Note: the specialist is not considered a team role).

Team Building

Team Building, or Team Development, is a coverall term given to methods of developing


an effective team.

The methods of doing this vary widely, and include

• Simple social activities - to encourage team members to spend time together


• Group bonding sessions - company sponsored fun activities to get to know team
members
• Personal development activities - personal change applied on a group level, sometimes
physically challenging
• Team development activities - group-dynamic games designed to reveal how
individuals approach a problem and how the team works together
• Psychological analysis of team roles, and training in how to work better together

Team building generally sits within the theory and practice of organizational
development.

Critiques of team working

There is a range of debates concerned with the negative features of team working. The
move to teamwork in industry and services has led to a greater amount of peer pressure,
performance management, and stress. Management control is seen by critics to be
reinvigorated by transferring the disciplinary dimension of management to employees
and team members themselves.

There are studies showing how team members pressure each other into working harder.
The literature goes into questions of bullying and of surveillance. (See Phil Garrahan and
Paul Stewart The Nissan Enigma Chapter 4 published by Mansell in London - 1992).
This had led to a debate on the regulation of team working and the need to establish
rules and procedures regarding its development and boundaries.
The Five Dysfunctions of a Team
The Five Dysfunctions of a Team is a bestselling business book by consultant and
speaker Patrick Lencioni. It describes the many pitfalls that teams face as they seek to
"row together." This book explores the fundamental causes of organizational politics and
team failure.

Summary
The five dysfunctions are:

Absence of Trust

The first of the dysfunctions, absence of trust, stems from teams unwillingness to be
vulnerable within the group. Team members who are not genuinely open with one
another about their mistakes and weaknesses make it impossible to build a foundation
for trust.

Fear of Conflict

This failure to build trust is damaging because it sets a tone for the second dysfunction:
fear of conflict. Teams that lack trust are incapable of engaging in unfiltered passionate
debate of ideas. Instead, they resort to veiled discussions and guarded comments.

Lack of Commitment

A lack of healthy conflict is a problem because it ensures the third dysfunction of a team:
lack of commitment. Without having aired their opinions in the course of passionate and
open debate, team members rarely, if ever, buy in and commit to decisions, though they
may feign agreement during meetings.

Avoidance of Accountability

Because of this lack of real commitment and buy-in, team members develop an
avoidance of accountability, the fourth dysfunction. Without committing to a clear plan of
action, even the most focused and driven people often hesitate to call their peers on
actions and behaviors that seem counterproductive to the good of the team.

Inattention to Results

Failure to hold one another accountable creates an environment where the fifth
dysfunction can thrive. Inattention to results occurs when team members put their
individual needs (such as ego, career development, or recognition) or even the needs of
their divisions above the collective goals of the team.

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