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 Difference

Work Group

A group that interacts primarily to share information and to make decisions to help each group member perform within his or her area of responsibility.

Work Team

A group whose individual efforts result in a performance that is greater than the sum of the individual inputs.

Comparing Work Groups and Work Teams

Difference between work groups and teams

Group Team

Strong clearly focused leader Has shared leader

Individual accountability Individual and mutual accountability

Work group’s purpose same as organization’s

Team has specific purpose

Has individual work products Has collective work products

Runs efficient meetings(financial performance of the overall business)

Team measures performance directly by assessing collective work -products

Work group discusses ,decides and delegates

The team discusses ,decides and does real work

What 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 TeamsProblem-Solving Teams

Groups of 5 to 12 employees from the same department who meet for a few hours each week to discuss ways of improving quality, efficiency, and the work environment.

Self-Managed Work Teams

Groups of 10 to 15 people who take on the responsibilities of their former supervisors.

Types of Teams (cont’d)

• Task forces

• Committees

Cross-Functional Teams

Employees from about the same hierarchical level, but from different work areas, who come together to accomplish a task.

Types of Teams (cont’d)

Team Characteristics1. The absence of paraverbal and nonverbal cues2. A limited social context3. The ability to overcome time and space constraints

Virtual Teams

Teams that use computer technology to tie together physically dispersed members in order to achieve a common goal.

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-

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 works

What 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 dynamics

How 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 recognition

How 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 norms1. Act as a role model2. Hold meetings to agree on goals3. Select members who can and will perform4. Provide support and training for members5. Reinforce and reward desired behaviors6. Hold meetings for performance feedback7. 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 workTypes 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 performance

How to influence Cohesiveness

How 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 context

How 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 teams

How 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