Ch. 2 Teamwork in Business

Self-managing teams (self-directed teams)

A manager or team leader may determine overall goals, but the members of the self-managing team control the activities needed to achieve those goals.

Cross-Functional Teams

A team designed to take advantage of the special expertise of members drawn from different functional areas of the company

Relationship-building roles

Addressing challenge number two. This role includes activities that improve team chemistry," from empathizing to confronting.

Decision-making and problem-solving skills

Because every task is subject or problems, and because handling every problem means deciding on the best solutions. It's good to have members who are skilled in identifying problems. Evaluating alternative solutions, and deciding on the best options.

Interpersonal skills

Because teams need direction and motivation and depend on communication, every group benefits from members who know how to list, provide feedback, and resolve conflicts.

Lack of managerial support

Every team requires organizational resources to achieve its goals, and if management isn't willing to commit the needed resources - say, funding or key personnel - a team will probably fall short of those goals.

Similarity

Everyone shares the same attitudes and experience. People usually get along better with people like themselves.

Unwillingness to cooperate

Failure to cooperate can occur when members don't or won't commit to a common goal or set of activities.

Working Group

Go about their jobs independently and meet primarily to work towards a shared objective.

Success

Initial success helps to motivate people towards achieving a higher goal.

Virtual Team

Members can participate from any location or at any time of day, and teams can "meet for as long as it takes to achieve a goal of solve a problem.

What are some factors of effective teamwork?

Members depend on each other. When team members rely on each other to get the job done, team productivity and efficiency tend to be high. Members trust one another. Members work better together than individually. When team members perform better as a group than alone, collective performance exceeds individual performance. Members become boosters. When each member is encouraged by other team members to do his or her best, collective results improve. Team members enjoy being on the team Leadership rotates.

Competitive

Membership is valued more highly when their is motivation to achieve common goals and outperform other teams.

Group Cohesiveness

Refers to the attractiveness of a team to its members. High Cohesiveness means membership is quite satisfying to its members. Low cohesiveness, members are unhappy with it and may try to leave.

Failure of managers to delegate authority

Team leaders are often chosen from the ranks of successful supervisors. First-line managers give instructions on a day-to-day basis and expect to have them carried out. This may not work well in a team where individuals are need to make there own decisions.

Size

The bigger the team, the less satisfied members tend to be. A few dominate team activity and conflict becomes more likely.

Exclusiveness

The harder it is to get into a group, the happier the people who are already in it. Team status also increases members' satisfaction.

Manager-Led Teams

The manager is the team leader and is in charge of setting team goals, assigning tasks, and monitoring the team's performance.

Groupthink

The tendency to conform to group pressure in making decisions, while failing to think critically or to consider outside influences.

Team

a group of people with complementary skills who work together to achieve a specific goal.

Task-facilitating roles

address challenge number one-accomplishing the teams goals.

Technical skills

because teams must perform certain tasks, they need people with the skills to perform them.