Teamwork and Team Performance
Teams are worth the work Study Questions• What is a the nature of teams and
teamwork?(Types of Teams/The nature of Teamwork/Diversity and Team Performance )
• What is team building?(How team building works/Approaches to team building)
• How does team building improve performance?(Entry of New Members /Task and maintenance leadership/Roles and Roles Dynamics/Positive Norms/Team Cohesiveness)
• How do teams contribute to the high-performance workplace?(Problems-Solving teams/Cross-Functional teams/Virtual Teams/Self Managing Teams)
What is the nature of team and teamwork?• Team
– small group of people with complementary skills, who work actively together to achieve a common purpose for which they hold themselves collectively accountable
Team Versus Group: What’s the DifferenceComparing Work Groups
and Work TeamsDifference between work groups and teamsWhat is the nature of team and teamwork?Types of Teams• Major challenge of an organization is to
turn formal groups to high performance teams in the following settings:-– Teams that recommend things
• Established to study specific problems and recommend solutions to them(task force, ad hoc committees, project teams)
– Teams that run things• Have formal responsibility for
leading other groups(individual work team-top management team)
– Teams that make or do things• Functional groups that perform
ongoing tasks(Marketing ,Manufacturing-should have solid operating systems-external support)
Types of TeamsTypes of Teams (cont’d)Types of Teams (cont’d)What is the nature of team and teamwork?Nature of Team Work• Teamwork
occurs when group members actively work together in such a way that all their respective skills are well utilized to achieve a common purpose
• Special characteristics of high performance teams
-First strong core values-acts as internal control system
-Second turn a general sense of purpose into specific performance objectives(reducing the time )
-Right mix of skills-Technical skills,decision making skills and interpersonal skills
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What is the nature of team and teamwork?• How to Create a High-
Performing Team– Communicate high-performance
standards– Set the tone in the first team
meeting– Create a sense of urgency
– Make sure members have the right skills
– Establish clear rules for team behavior
What is the nature of team and teamwork?• How to Create a High-
Performing Team– As a leader, model expected
behaviors– Find ways to create early
“successes”– Continually introduce new
information– Have members spend time
together– Give positive feedback
What is the nature of team and teamwork?Diversity and Team PerformanceMembership diversity is an
important group input• Homogeneous teams
– Members are similar with respect to such variables as age, gender, race, experience, ethnicity, and culture
– Potential benefits for group dynamics
– Easy to build social relationship-engage in interaction needed for team work
What is the nature of team and teamwork?• Heterogeneous teams
– Members are diverse in demography, experiences, life styles, and cultures-they also have potential benefits
– Membership diversity offers a rich pool of information, talent and varied perspectives that can help improve team problem solving and increase creativity
– Difficulties –early in the teams life or stage of development
– Problems may occur as interpersonal stresses and conflicts that emerge from heterogeneity
– Can slow group development and impede relationship building, information sharing and problem solving
What is team building?• Teamwork doesn’t always happen
naturally in a group
• It must be nurtured and supported• Team members and leaders must
continuously work hard to achieve it• Most Work Team encounter problems-
insufficient teamwork at different points in time
• Process known as teambuilding is important
• Team building – sequence of planned activities
designed to gather and analyze data on the functioning of a group and to initiate changes designed to improve teamwork and increase group effectiveness
The teambuilding processHow team building worksWhat is team building?Approaches to Team Building• Formal retreat approach
– Team building occurs during an offsite “retreat”
– Lasts for one to several days(group members work intensively on a variety of assessment and planning tasks)
– Help of consultants from within or outside-examine accomplishments and operations
• Continuous improvement approach– The manager, team leader, or group
members take responsibility for ongoing team building
• Outdoor experience approach– Members engage in physically
challenging situations that require teamwork
How does team building improve performance?Improving Team Processes• Entry of New Members• Task and Maintenance
leadership
• Roles and Role Dynamics• Positive Norms• Team Cohesiveness
How does team building improve performance?Improving Team Processes New work place –increased emphasis
on teams and teamwork-major challenge for people used to traditional ways of working
Team leaders and members alike must be prepared to deal positively with issues such as:
Introducing new members Handling disagreements on goals and
responsibilities Resolving delays and disputes when
making decisions Reducing friction and interpersonal
conflicts
How does team building improve performance?Entry of New Members• Special difficulties are likely to occur
when members first get together in a new group or work team ?
• Participation-Will I be allowed to participate ?
• Goals-Do I share the same goals as others ?
• Control-Will I be able to influence what takes place ?
• Relationships-How close do people get ?• Processes – Are conflicts likely to be
upsetting?
How does team building
improve performance?• Edgar Schein identifies three behaviour
profiles
• Tough battler – frustrated by a lack of identity and
may reject authority• Friendly helper
– insecure, suffering uncertainties of intimacy and control
• Objective thinker – anxious about how personal needs
will be met in the group
How does team building improve performance?Task and maintenance
Leadership• Distributed leadership
– sharing of responsibilities for
contributions that move a group forward
• Task activities – various things members do that
directly contribute to the performance of important group tasks
How does team building improve performance?• Maintenance activities
– support the social and interpersonal relationships among group members
Task and maintenance leadership in group team dynamicsHow does team building improve performance?
• Groups members should avoid the following disruptive behaviors:– Being overly aggressive toward
other members– Withdrawing and refusing to
cooperate with others– Horsing around when there is
work to be done– Using the group as a forum for
self-confession– Talking too much about
irrelevant matters– Trying to compete for attention
and recognitionHow does team building improve performance?Roles and Role Dynamic
• Role– set of expectations associated
with a job or position on a team• Role ambiguity
– occurs when a person is uncertain about his or her role
How does team building improve performance?• Role overload
– occurs when too much is expected and the person feels overwhelmed with work
• Role underload – occurs when too little is
expected and the person feels underutilized
How does team building
improve performance?• Role conflict
– occurs when a person is unable to meet the expectations of others
– Forms of role conflict• Intrasender role conflict(same
person sends conflicting expectations)
• Intersender role conflict(different people signal conflicting and mutually exclusive expectations)
• Person-role conflict(Ones personal values and needs come into conflict with role expectations
• Interrole conflict-expectations of two or more roles held by the same individual become incompatible(work and family)
How does team building improve performance?• Norms
– represent beliefs about how group or team members are expected to behave
– rules or standards of conduct
Managers, task force heads, committee chairs and team leaders should help their groups adopt positive norms that support organizational goals
How does team building improve performance?Seven Steps to positive norms• Act as a role model• Hold meetings to agree on goals• Select members who can and will
perform• Provide support and training for
members
• Reinforce and reward desired behaviors
• Hold meetings for performance feedback
• Hold meetings to plan for improvement
How does team building improve performance? A Key norm in any setting is the
performance norm which conveys expectations about how hard group members should work
Types of group norms that operate with positive and negative implications for groups and organizations:-
• Ethics norms-ethical decisions• Organizational and personal pride
norms-stand up for company when others criticize)
• High-achievement norms-Team members always work hard)
• Support and helpfulness norms-(dog-eat dog save your skin-Negative)
• Improvement and change norms-(In our department people are always looking for better ways of doing things-positive)
How does team building improve performance?• Cohesiveness
– the degree to which members are attracted to and motivated to remain a part of the team
How does team building improve performance?• High team cohesiveness
occurs when:– Members are similar in age,
attitudes, needs, and backgrounds
– Group size is small
– Members respect each others’ competencies
– Members agree on common goals
– Members work on interdependent tasks
– Groups are physically isolated from others
– Groups experience performance success or crisis
How cohesiveness and conformity to norms affect group performanceHow to influence CohesivenessHow do teams contribute to the high-performance workplace?
• Employee involvement team – applies to a wide variety of
teams whose members meet regularly to collectively examine important workplace issues
• Quality circle– small group of persons who
meet periodically to discuss and develop solutions for problems relating to quality and productivity
How do teams contribute to the high-performance workplace?• Cross-functional teams
– Consist of members representing different functional departments or work units
How do teams contribute to the high-performance workplace?• Functional silos problem
– occurs when members of functional units stay focused on matters internal to their function and minimize their interactions with members dealing with other functions
– also called functional chimneys problem
How do teams contribute to the high-performance workplace?• Advantages of virtual teams
– Cost-effectiveness and speed where members are unable to
meet easily face-to-face– Computer power fulfills typical
team needs for information processing and decision making
How do teams contribute to the high-performance workplace?• Disadvantages of virtual
teams– The lack of personal contact
between team members– Group decisions are made in a
limited social contextHow do teams contribute to the high-performance workplace?• Self-managing teams
– small groups empowered to make the decisions needed to manage themselves on a day-to-day basis
– also called self-directed work teams
Organizational and management implications of self managing teamsHow do teams contribute to the high-performance workplace?A self managing team -5 to 15
members-members should have
substantial discretion in determining work pace and in distributing tasks
• Multiskilling – team members are trained in
performing more than one job on the team
How do teams contribute to the high-performance workplace?• Advantages of self-
managing teams– Productivity and quality
improvements– Production flexibility and faster
response to technological change
– Reduced absenteeism and turnover
– Improved work attitudes and quality of work life
How do teams contribute to the high-performance workplace?• Disadvantages of self-
managing teams– Structural changes in job
classifications and management levels eliminate the need for first-line supervisors
– Managers must learn to deal with teams rather than individuals
– Supervisors who are displaced by self-managing teams may feel threatened
How do teams contribute to the high-performance workplace?
• Should all organizations operate with self –managing teams?
• Answer is –
• Great potential –need - High involvement, participation
and empowerment-must be consistent with the values and culture of the organization
