Teamwork: key success factors. How to prove to an employer that you can work in a team Working in a team group
Any leader strives to create a coherent and well-functioning team. To do this, you need to be able to correctly place emphasis, smooth out conflicts, and plan events correctly. It is believed that teamwork on a project can bring more profit than working alone. Meanwhile, it is the first that in practice causes many concerns and negative reactions. This is mainly due to the inability to properly organize such activities. Let's look further at the principles of teamwork.
General information
What is teamwork? It is worth saying that not every group of specialists can become a friendly and highly professional team. A team is a small number of employees with complementary skills, united by a common plan, striving for common goals and bearing equal responsibility for their implementation. In such a team, individual interests are relegated to the background. Each group member must have a high professional level, the ability to make decisions and interact with other members. Teamwork presupposes the dependence of specialists on each other. In this regard, there is a constant exchange of information within the group.
Specifics of the organization
Well-coordinated teamwork is the result of competent management activities. The team must go through several stages:
- Adaptation. At this stage, mutual information and assessment of the assigned tasks are carried out. Group members communicate with each other carefully, and threes or pairs are formed. During the adaptation process, people in some way test each other and determine mutually acceptable behavior patterns. The effectiveness of teamwork at this stage is very low.
- Grouping. At this stage, people agree on interests and likes. In this case, discrepancies between individual motivation and the goals of team work are revealed. Group members can resist demands. This determines the degree of permissible emotional reaction. For example, a secretary throws papers and evaluates the reaction of others to this action.
- Cooperation. At this stage, group members realize the desire to work on the task at hand. Constructive and open communication begins, the pronoun “we” appears for the first time.
- Work rationing. At this stage, interaction patterns in the team are created. At this stage, trust appears and moves to a higher level.
- Functioning. At this stage, constructive decisions are made regarding the task at hand. Each participant has their own role. The team openly expresses and eliminates conflicts. This is where true teamwork begins. A favorable climate is formed within the group. All participants understand the value of planned indicators and take actions aimed at achieving them. Teamwork at this stage is considered the most successful.
Phenomena
Psychologists have described some of the effects that occur when working in a team. Among them it is worth noting:
- Volume phenomenon. The result of teamwork will depend on the number of group members.
- The phenomenon of quality composition. The tasks of teamwork will be implemented most successfully if the group members are of different ages and genders, but with almost the same social characteristics.
- Conformism. Changes in members' beliefs or behavior are caused by perceived or real group pressure. The value of public opinion is quite high for each member. Accordingly, all participants respect the norms developed jointly.
- Deindividuation. It involves a loss of self-awareness and the emergence of a fear of evaluation in conditions of anonymity that do not focus on a specific individual.
- Risk shift effect. In a group, the least or most risky decisions are made in comparison with those that would be developed by the participants individually.
- "Rounding" thinking. The group members are looking for a solution that would suit everyone. In this case, quite realistic options are discarded.
- Social laziness. When responsibility is divided equally among all participants, they begin to worsen their performance indicators all together.
Signs
Teamwork involves continuous discussion between participants. It aims to improve cooperation. All specialists feel part of the working community. They feel competent, perform certain actions independently and are responsible for the consequences. Each participant freely proposes the ideas he has and criticizes the others. Group members are aware of the tasks of others and have a certain understanding of each person's abilities and talents. This means there is mutual respect and interest among all participants. At the same time, all group members strive for open dialogue. Information flows quickly, continuously and purposefully from one participant to another.
Common Mistakes
Teamwork skills are developed over time. You cannot immediately create a successful and friendly team from a group of specialists. A special role in this belongs to the leader. The effectiveness of the team largely depends on him. Meanwhile, in practice, managers make serious mistakes when organizing collective activities. They significantly reduce work efficiency. Among the most common are the following:
- Inconsistency between the leader, the team and the type of task assigned to people.
- Poor choice of specialists to create a group.
- Lack of a clearly defined goal or criteria for its implementation.
- Unfavorable socio-psychological climate.
conclusions
All of these mistakes can be completely avoided. Almost every person is motivated to work by three components: pay, interest and social significance. The first two components are given quite a lot of attention in practice. At the same time, the social significance of a person is often forgotten. Meanwhile, group members must be sure that they are implementing an important project that will bring profit to the company.
Team leader
He has a special role. In addition to direct leadership, planning and control, a leader must be able to motivate and organize a team, and develop the basics of self-government in it. Due to the human factor, it can be quite difficult to implement these tasks in practice. The key criterion for choosing a leader is his idea of the organization of the team’s activities. The main tool of influence will be positive and negative feedback. Effective teamwork will largely depend on personal He will represent the team in interaction with others, eliminate external obstacles.
Reducing the number of conflicts
As mentioned above, in the initial stages, working in a team is accompanied by a certain tension. Conflicts often arise. The head of the enterprise needs to take into account their likelihood and treat the group members with a certain degree of loyalty during this period. You can reduce tension by using various trainings and working on creative tasks, during which the group will feel like one organism. In addition, it is important to pay attention to the development of clear rules of conduct. Moreover, they must be formulated and accepted directly by the group members themselves. It is also necessary to establish responsibility for their violations.
Nuances
Usually a team feels like a team when it achieves its first success. The manager of the enterprise must take this into account. The first task for the team should be difficult, but at the same time completely achievable in a relatively short period. In some cases, it happens that the group becomes overly immersed in its activities and loses touch with the real world. This can have negative consequences. To prevent this phenomenon, the manager should organize the flow of external information to the participants and the outflow of information from them. This helps maintain the tone of the team. It is impossible to learn and apply all the subtleties of the process. Any teamwork involves the presence of weaknesses. In successful teams, they are compensated by the strengths of the participants.
It assumes both the independence of thinking of the employees included in it and the involvement of employees in the overall work to solve the tasks assigned to the team. The team makes it possible to implement projects that are beyond the power of one person. The team as a whole is responsible for everything it does and does not do. What are the features and key factors of successfulteamwork ?
Refers to the category of special cases of delegation of authority and responsibility. In a traditional structure, the task and associated authority are assigned to the owner of the job. The combined competence of team members must ensure the solution of problems and achievement of goals that are determined by the range of powers assigned to the team.
The team can consist of employees of the same or different levels and divisions of the company. While working as part of a team, all its members have equal rights and fulfill the responsibilities arising from the goals and objectives of the team. For team work, it does not matter what position the employee holds in the enterprise. Within the team, all employees have equal positions.
The rights and responsibilities of team members serve, on the one hand, as the basis for organizing work within the team, and on the other, as the basis for assessing the participants’ abilities for this form of work.
Team Member Responsibilities
The rights of a team member follow from these responsibilities.
Team member rights
Responsibility when working as a team
The team as a whole is responsible for everything it does and does not do.
The team agrees that all team members share responsibility, even if they initially expressed doubts. They cannot distance themselves from the team's decision by citing their objections.
If the team fails to reach unity on a particular issue, then the decision is made by majority vote. In this case, the minority can add a “dissenting opinion” to the protocol. In the future, it submits to the majority and works on the basis of the decision made. In this case, these persons, although not responsible for the decision made, are responsible for further general results of work obtained on the basis of this decision. The disagreement of individual members with a general decision does not relieve them of responsibility for possible consequences.
If a team, by majority vote, makes a decision that individual members consider an unacceptable mistake for which they do not want to be held responsible, then they must clearly communicate this to the team. In this case, the “chief” of the team is informed, who makes a decision on the possible exclusion of the corresponding person from the team or on the recruitment of a new team.
In practice, things often come to the so-called “crossroads” - a situation when it is necessary to decide in which of two directions it is necessary to move forward. If the team itself is unable to find a way out, then the “boss” must either decide which of the two paths to take, or form two teams to work in each direction.
The team leader is responsible for the results of the work to the same extent as any ordinary team member. For the correct organization of the work that he does as part of his activities in the team, he is responsible to its team. A leader's dual responsibility to the team and the customer would be contrary to the essence of his position within the team.
To solve problems that go beyond the normal process of collegial cooperation within the existing organizational structure, a senior manager or company management is required to create an appropriate team and document this. Such a team, created on a permanent basis, should be considered as a new unit. It cannot be formed by one of the leaders. Making the appropriate decision is within the competence of the company’s management or its subordinate body.
A specially created team is disbanded as soon as it completes its assigned tasks. If we are talking about a team organized by the management of the company or another competent body, then they must disband it.
Benefits of Teamwork
Disadvantages of team
Along with the positive features,teamwork It also has negative sides.
Key success factors for effective teamwork
Teamwork is a special case of delegation of authority and responsibility. In a traditional structure, the task and associated authority are assigned to the owner of the job. The combined competence of team members must ensure the solution of problems and achievement of goals that are determined by the range of powers assigned to the team.
The team can consist of employees of the same or different levels and divisions of the company. While working as part of a team, all its members have equal rights and fulfill the responsibilities arising from the goals and objectives of the team. For team work, it does not matter what position the employee holds in the enterprise. Within the team, all employees have equal positions.
The rights and responsibilities of team members serve, on the one hand, as the basis for organizing work within the team, and on the other, as the basis for assessing the participants’ abilities for this form of work.
Team Member Responsibilities
Each team member is obliged to direct his strength, knowledge and capabilities to achieve the goals set for the team. At the same time, he should not, following selfish considerations, hide ideas and solutions needed by the team for their subsequent use at the main place of work.
Each team member is obliged to freely express his thoughts on problems that have arisen, without regard to the obligations that bind him to the manager at his main place of work.
None of the teamwork participants should make their activity dependent on the group’s attitude to his recommendations. Moreover, each team member must be willing to submit to the decision of the majority, even if this decision contradicts his own ideas.
The exception is the case when, in the opinion of one of its members, a special situation has arisen in the team for which he does not want to be held responsible. In this case, the “dissenting opinion” must be reflected in the protocol.
Each team member should be loyal to his colleagues. He must not inform outsiders about the content of the team's discussions and decisions or use these decisions for personal gain.
Each team member must treat other team members as equal partners. He must objectively analyze their ideas and express his point of view on them.
Tolerance and mutual respect are the most important conditions for successful teamwork.
Each team member is responsible for informing others of everything they need to know to complete the team's tasks.
None of the team members can interfere with the cooperation of its members because of their own likes and dislikes.
In order to increase the effectiveness of cooperation, each team member should try to establish good working relationships with the rest of the team members.
The rights of a team member follow from these responsibilities.
Team member rights
Freely express your opinion and demand its verification.
Require the establishment of confidential, non-public trust relationships. The thoughts he expressed while working in the team should not become known to third parties. An employee cannot be put in danger because of ideas expressed while working in a team.
Receive objective and complete information from other team members.
Require that thoughts expressed by him be used by other team members outside only if this does not harm the accomplishment of the tasks assigned to the team or if special permission has been obtained for this.
Require that the principles of correct behavior be observed during team work.
Responsibility when working as a team
The team as a whole is responsible for everything it does and does not do.
The team agrees that all team members share responsibility, even if they initially expressed doubts. They cannot distance themselves from the team's decision by citing their objections.
If the team fails to reach unity on a particular issue, then the decision is made by majority vote. In this case, the minority can add a “dissenting opinion” to the protocol. In the future, it submits to the majority and works on the basis of the decision made. In this case, these persons, although not responsible for the decision made, are responsible for further general results of work obtained on the basis of this decision. The disagreement of individual members with a general decision does not relieve them of responsibility for possible consequences.
If a team, by majority vote, makes a decision that individual members consider an unacceptable mistake for which they do not want to be held responsible, then they must clearly communicate this to the team. In this case, the “chief” of the team is informed, who makes a decision on the possible exclusion of the corresponding person from the team or on the recruitment of a new team.
In practice, things often come to the so-called “crossroads” - a situation when it is necessary to decide in which of two directions it is necessary to move forward. If the team itself is unable to find a way out, then the “boss” must either decide which of the two paths to take, or form two teams to work in each direction.
The team leader is responsible for the results of the work to the same extent as any ordinary team member. For the correct organization of the work that he does as part of his activities in the team, he is responsible to its team. A leader's dual responsibility to the team and the customer would be contrary to the essence of his position within the team.
To solve problems that go beyond the normal process of collegial cooperation within the existing organizational structure, a senior manager or company management is required to create an appropriate team and document this. Such a team, created on a permanent basis, should be considered as a new unit. It cannot be formed by one of the leaders. Making the appropriate decision is within the competence of the company’s management or its subordinate body.
A specially created team is disbanded as soon as it completes its assigned tasks. If we are talking about a team organized by the management of the company or another competent body, then they must disband it.
Benefits of Teamwork
A team makes it possible to solve problems that are beyond the power of one person.
Creating a team ensures that the interests of all parties are taken into account when developing a solution.
As a result of cooperation in a team of specialists from several departments, unilateral influence by one of the higher authorities becomes impossible.
When a team works, the risk of making an erroneous decision and the danger that some important facts will not come into view is reduced. The well-known proverb is quite applicable to team work: “One head is good, but two are better.”
The team helps fight industrial blindness. What one worker does not notice out of habit is seen by another, who, in turn, does not notice certain problems in his own area of work.
Teamwork enhances the willingness and ability of managers at all levels to collaborate.
An employee who has worked in a team will have fewer difficulties in the future when interacting with colleagues or other departments of the company.
The team has a positive influence on the development of qualities that are important for collegial cooperation. It encourages tolerance, order, recognition of other people's opinions and correct discussion, overcoming selfish views. These factors go beyond teamwork and impact the overall success of the firm.
The enterprise implements ideas that would not arise within the normal organization of work. This is explained by the fact that an individual employee does not have the opportunity to find starting points in his workplace in solving a problem that goes beyond his immediate activities.
The team provides both an individual employee and an entire team with the opportunity to maximize creative potential and its practical implementation.
For large firms, the team allows them to more rationally use the capabilities of their specialists who work on solving problems that go beyond the scope of their job responsibilities.
For medium and small companies, teamwork allows full use of the abilities, knowledge and skills of employees. The team can replace the work of specialists whom the company cannot invite to work for financial reasons.
Disadvantages of Teamwork
Along with the positive features, working as a team also has negative aspects:
Working as a team, unlike regular work, may require additional time investment. The initial period when team members get used to each other can be quite long. It also takes some time to find an appropriate form of collaboration.
Team work is often slow. This is especially noticeable with a large team size and when working part-time in a team. Difficulties encountered in assembling team members at the appointed time have a negative impact on the progress of work.
A friendly and well-functioning team is the dream of any manager, since organizing teamwork takes up a large percentage of his time. However, this often does not save the company from tension, conflicts and, as a result, a decrease in the quality of work. The main criterion for organizing successful teamwork is, of course, a high-quality solution to work problems.
The effectiveness of any activity is assessed using the following formula: productivity * quality * resource costs * reliability. It is believed that teamwork is more effective than working alone. However, at the same time it causes much more negativity and fear. This phenomenon is not associated with the shortcomings of teamwork as such, but with the inability to organize it. Therefore, in this article we tried to collect the most interesting and important information that reveals the principles of successful teamwork.
What is a team?
Organizing effective teamwork starts with organizing a good team. But not every group of people working together can be called a team. A team is a small number of people with complementary skills, bound by a common vision, striving for common goals and sharing responsibility for achieving them.
In a team, everyone's interests are secondary. Each team member must have a high professional level, be able to make decisions and interact effectively with other people.
Team members depend on each other, or rather, the work of one depends on the work of the other. Therefore, there is equality and constant exchange of information in the team. Team members share responsibility for achieving the goal with each other. There is such a phenomenon as team accountability - these are certain promises that generate trust and guarantee the achievement of results.
To the great regret of managers, it is impossible to immediately assemble a good team. To do this, a group of people working together must go through a number of important stages in their development. Here's how a team is organized:
- Adaptation – mutual information and analysis of tasks occurs. People communicate with each other carefully, pairs and triplets are formed. They seem to test each other and develop norms and principles of mutually acceptable behavior, which results in some wariness in the team. The effectiveness of teamwork at this stage is low.
- Grouping – small subgroups are created based on likes and interests. Discrepancies between personal motivation and teamwork goals are identified. Team members can resist task demands, thereby determining the level of emotional expression allowed. For example, a secretary throws papers and sees how they react to it.
- Cooperation – team members are aware of their desire to work towards solving a problem. This open and constructive communication first appears with the pronoun “we”.
- Standardization of activities - norms and principles of interaction in the team are developed. There is a feeling of trust, interpersonal communication is at the highest level.
- Functioning is the decision-making stage for solving problems constructively. Everyone has their own role. The team openly expresses and resolves conflicts. Now we can talk about a true team that has common goals for all members of the team, joint activities to achieve these goals, the presence of a good and adequate organizational structure, and a good psychological climate. The organization of effective teamwork at this stage can be considered successfully completed.
Psychologists describe a number of phenomena that occur in groups and are related to the effectiveness of teamwork:
- volume effect - performance results depend on the size of the group (the effectiveness of a very small or very large group will be the least).
- effect of the qualitative composition of the group - the results of team work depend on the homogeneity and heterogeneity of the composition (a group whose members are of different gender and age, but almost identical in social characteristics, works best together).
- conformity - the behavior or beliefs of group members change as a result of real or perceived group pressure. The role of public opinion is very high for each team member, and everyone respects the principles developed by common efforts.
- Deindividuation – loss of self-awareness and fear of evaluation in situations of anonymity that do not focus attention on a specific person.
- risk shift phenomenon - a group makes either the most or least risky decision than its members would make individually.
- “grouping” of thinking - all members of the group are exclusively engaged in searching for a solution that suits everyone and discard fairly realistic options.
- social laziness - if responsibility is divided among group members, then everyone starts working “carelessly.”
We can talk about some signs of organizing a good team. In it, participants consider themselves part of a working group. There is a balance between effective teamwork and collaboration. Group members feel competent, perform tasks independently, and are responsible for their completion. There is continuous discussion between them to improve collaboration and enhance teamwork efficiency. Each person freely offers his ideas and criticizes others.
Team members are aware of each other's assignments and have an understanding of each other's talents and abilities, which means they have interest and respect for each other. There is an atmosphere of open and constructive communication in the air, everyone is open to open dialogue. Information is constantly, quickly and purposefully transmitted to each other. There is openness to the outside world and the organization of constructive cooperation with other teams.
Who are you - an inspirer or a critic?
In a good team, each member feels there is a fit between what he gives to the group and what he receives from it. This is achieved due to the fact that each person takes his optimal place in the team. Performing his function in this place, he feels a balance between what he can and what he wants.
Research has proven that for the most effective teamwork to occur, nine roles must be present in a group. They do not necessarily have to be played by nine people - some team members can combine the performance of certain functions, playing not one role, but two or more. These are the roles:
- "Worker Bee"
He is a disciplined and very reliable person. He is conscientious in interpersonal commitments due to constant internal control. He is practical, trusting and tolerant of his colleagues, conservative and internally conflict-free. Works for the team without focusing on his own goals. Acts on the principle: “work is a moral duty.” It is the “worker bees” who turn the decisions made and teamwork strategies into specific tasks - they sort the goals and build the logic for achieving them. But the principles of organizing effective teamwork are such that teams consisting entirely of “worker bees” (even if they have a very high level of intelligence) do not achieve above average results, because They do not have valuable ideas and are not flexible - they get stuck when changes are needed.
- "Supervisor"
This is an emotionally stable, calm and self-confident person. It is characterized by organizing the development of a strategic vision, integrating and coordinating the team's efforts to achieve goals. Able to find an appropriate role for everyone in the team. He can listen, consider and evaluate the merits of all proposals without prejudice, resulting in the formation of the opinion of the entire group. Instead of creative thinking, he has a strong character.
He is highly motivated to achieve results, has an average level of intelligence (116-132), because... people who have too much intelligence become overly reflective. He sees well the strengths and weaknesses of others, is a good communicator, and knows how to listen. His disadvantages include the fact that he tends to be influenced by other people or may be inflexible in his assessments. He does not know how to inspire enthusiasm and leads effectively only in stable conditions.
- "Motivator"
This is a very energetic, “hopping” person. He doesn't get along well with managers, and when he gets bored, he gets eaten by his boss. He is restless, dominant, dynamic, has the drive and courage to overcome obstacles (they tone him up). For him, life is a challenge. If a manager is a social leader of teamwork, then a “motivator” is a target leader responsible for a separate project. He quickly absorbs information, lacks shyness and timidity, and is prone to disappointment. Disadvantages include his irritability, impatience, and tendency to dissatisfaction.
- "Idea's generator"
This is a creative person, gifted with a rich imagination, capable of solving complex problems. He is more concerned with the image as a whole than with its details. He is in charge of organizing the development of new projects, but others will develop the ways to implement these projects. Such people are gullible and unprotected from attacks from society.
They can make stupid mistakes because they spend a lot of time on creative energy, ideas, but do not take into account the needs of the group or do not contribute to achieving the team's goals at all. He needs management support. If the “idea generator” is criticized, he may refuse to cooperate altogether. This is his drawback - he is not too concerned about organizing effective cooperation.
- "Supplier"
This is a resource explorer, an extrovert, full of enthusiasm. He is sociable, develops contacts well and uses other people to his advantage, skillfully directing a business conversation to a conclusion that is useful for himself. He leaves the group and brings information, ideas, materials needed for the group.
His disadvantages: he is ineffective when working alone, he needs the admiration of others. May waste time on things not related to the goal. He is not able to work in monotonous and monotonous situations. That is why he often quarrels with the “worker bees”. It keeps teamwork from stagnating and gives the group a sense of reality.
- "Critic"
This is the person who monitors and analyzes what is happening. For him, the correct organization of work is more important, the task is more important than people. He is very prudent and reasonable, and predicts the situation well. His criticism does not offend people, since it is based on the principle of “nothing personal.” This is a strategically thinking and insightful person, he considers all options and draws unmistakable conclusions. Its main function is to evaluate ideas. He is able to justify his position and sees the strengths and weaknesses of any project.
- "Analyst"
Considers all factors and leads the team to make the right decision. His shortcomings are that he pays little attention to people and is not able to motivate; he lacks warmth and cordiality. Due to increased attention to detail, he may lose strategic purpose. “Analysts” do not show themselves clearly, so they should not be collected together. They interact best with a “leader,” a “motivator,” and a “idea generator,” so the organization of their work should go in this direction.
- "Mastermind"
This is the “soul of the company” person, a team player. Responsive, calm, receptive, diplomatic, able to listen to others. It prevents friction, regulates conflicts, calms down - in general, ensures good morale of the team. He is able to exert a delicate influence on those in conflict, find common ground for those arguing, and give the team additional strength in times of crisis.
It is easy for all team members to interact with him, because... The “masterminds” themselves attribute any problems to the costs of their work. Disadvantages include the fact that masterminds are indecisive, have poor ability to act, and are susceptible to the influence of other people. For them, the task is nothing, the main thing is the team. Unable to lead, they work best with a motivator.
- "Controller"
This is the closer, the “completer” of projects. He is organized, conscientious, disciplined, and cares about the result. He knows how to bring any task to completion. The “Controller” is capable of intense, effective work over a long period.
It’s bad if his activities are accompanied by perfectionism - then completion may be delayed for a long time. The “controller” can be picky towards others. He is reluctant to delegate authority. Works well with “suppliers”, “idea generators” and “motivators” - they propose ideas, and controllers bring them to life. They are respected by the “worker bees”. The worst interactions are with “analysts.”
- "Specialist"
This is a team member with rare knowledge and skills. An expert in a specific professional field. Needed by a team when solving a very specialized problem. Others perceive it critically, because seems boring. The organization of this person’s work is characterized by the fact that he can get carried away with small details to the detriment of the main goal.
All this does not mean that all nine people must be represented on the team. But depending on the problem being solved, a certain set of roles is needed, which will allow you to avoid competition between similar roles and achieve results with minimal costs.
How to make a team work effectively?
It is difficult to achieve high performance indicators even from one person. But what to do if you have a whole team under you and the effective organization of its work depends on you? There are a number of mistakes that reduce the effectiveness of a team:
- Inconsistency between the leader, the team and the type of problem being solved.
- Poor selection of employees for the team.
- Poor socio-psychological climate.
- Lack of a clear goal or criteria for achieving it
- Poor teamwork performance
These mistakes are the most common, but they can be avoided. The work motivation of almost any person consists of three components: payment, interest and social significance. And if everyone knows the first two elements, then the last one is often forgotten. But this is wrong - team members must be convinced that they are carrying out an important project, the implementation of which will bring significant benefits to the company. This should be repeatedly discussed and shown at meetings between management and the team.
And yet, the basis of any team is people. On the one hand, they must have quite extensive additional knowledge and skills necessary to achieve the goal. On the other hand, they must be easy to train, since teamwork itself is an educational process, during which the employee’s qualifications increase.
The team leader plays a special role among employees. A competent leader, in addition to management, planning and control, must organize and motivate the workforce for joint activities, as well as develop self-government in it. Due to the nature of the human factor, this is often more difficult than performing other duties: a machine works as much as it is programmed to, but a person always works differently.
The most important criterion when choosing a leader is his clear understanding of the organization of the team’s work. The main mechanism of influence is negative and positive feedback. In addition, he represents the team in interaction with others and removes external obstacles. A good leader is one whose work as a team member is not obvious to other members.
As mentioned above, at the initial stages of team formation, the psychological climate within it is characterized by increased conflict potential. Top management needs to take this into account and be loyal to the team in such a crisis period. You can reduce the number of clashes through training, brainstorming and working on interesting projects, during which the team will feel like a single whole.
In order to reduce the number of conflicts, the team needs clear rules and operating principles. Moreover, these conventions must be formulated and accepted by the team itself from within. Violation of these rules should be punished, and not “put on the brakes.”
As a rule, a team first feels like a team only when teamwork brings the first success. Therefore, the most optimal first goal for a team would be a goal that is complex, but achievable in a relatively short period of time. This will significantly improve team spirit.
It happens that a team, overly immersed in working on a project, loses touch with reality, which can negatively affect the effectiveness of its activities. To prevent this from happening, the manager must organize the flow of external information to and from the team. This will help its participants stay on their toes.
As already written above, the organization of group interaction in teamwork plays a special role. Intense personal contact between team members requires time and a place where the team can calmly work and communicate. Meetings outside of work hours can also be useful, especially in a crisis situation.
Thus, to maintain effective teamwork, the following is necessary: determining the requirements for a team leader and searching for him based on these requirements, knowledge and consideration of the principles of forming a highly effective team, understanding the stages of team development and taking into account the limitations of teamwork.
It is often impossible to take into account all the subtleties. Every teamwork has weaknesses, and only a successful team has these weaknesses compensated by strengths. In any case, working in a team is a risk. But whoever does not take risks does not drink champagne and does not reach the highest peaks.
Working as a team presupposes both the independent thinking of the employees included in it and their involvement in the overall work. The team makes it possible to implement projects that are beyond the power of one person. The team as a whole is responsible for everything it does and does not do. What are the characteristics and key factors of successful teamwork?
Teamwork is a special case of delegation of authority and responsibility. In a traditional structure, the task and associated authority are assigned to the owner of the job. The combined competence of team members must ensure the solution of problems and achievement of goals that are determined by the range of powers assigned to the team.
The team can consist of employees of the same or different levels and divisions of the company. While working as part of a team, all its members have equal rights and fulfill the responsibilities arising from the goals and objectives of the team. For team work, it does not matter what position the employee holds in the enterprise. Within the team, all employees have equal positions.
The rights and responsibilities of team members serve, on the one hand, as the basis for organizing work within the team, and on the other, as the basis for assessing the participants’ abilities for this form of work.
Team Member Responsibilities
- Each team member is obliged to direct his strength, knowledge and capabilities to achieve the goals set for the team. At the same time, he should not, following selfish considerations, hide ideas and solutions needed by the team for their subsequent use at the main place of work.
- Each team member is obliged to freely express his thoughts on problems that have arisen, without regard to the obligations that bind him to the manager at his main place of work.
- None of the teamwork participants should make their activity dependent on the group’s attitude to his recommendations. Moreover, each team member must be willing to submit to the decision of the majority, even if this decision contradicts his own ideas.
- The exception is the case when, in the opinion of one of its members, a special situation has arisen in the team for which he does not want to be held responsible. In this case, the “dissenting opinion” must be reflected in the protocol.
- Each team member should be loyal to his colleagues. He must not inform outsiders about the content of the team's discussions and decisions or use these decisions for personal gain.
- Each team member must treat other team members as equal partners. He must objectively analyze their ideas and express his point of view on them.
- Tolerance and mutual respect are the most important conditions for successful teamwork.
- Each team member is responsible for informing others of everything they need to know to complete the team's tasks.
- None of the team members can interfere with the cooperation of its members because of their own likes and dislikes.
- In order to increase the effectiveness of cooperation, each team member should try to establish good working relationships with the rest of the team members.
The rights of a team member follow from these responsibilities.
Team member rights
- Freely express your opinion and demand its verification.
- Require the establishment of confidential, non-public trust relationships. The thoughts he expressed while working in the team should not become known to third parties. An employee cannot be put in danger because of ideas expressed while working in a team.
- Receive objective and complete information from other team members.
- Require that thoughts expressed by him be used by other team members outside only if this does not harm the accomplishment of the tasks assigned to the team or if special permission has been obtained for this.
- Require that the principles of correct behavior be observed during team work.
Responsibility when working as a team
The team as a whole is responsible for everything it does and does not do.
The team agrees that all team members share responsibility, even if they initially expressed doubts. They cannot distance themselves from the team's decision by citing their objections.
If the team fails to reach unity on a particular issue, then the decision is made by majority vote. In this case, the minority can add a “dissenting opinion” to the protocol. In the future, it submits to the majority and works on the basis of the decision made. In this case, these persons, although not responsible for the decision made, are responsible for further general results of work obtained on the basis of this decision. The disagreement of individual members with a general decision does not relieve them of responsibility for possible consequences.
If a team, by majority vote, makes a decision that individual members consider an unacceptable mistake for which they do not want to be held responsible, then they must clearly communicate this to the team. In this case, the “chief” of the team is informed, who makes a decision on the possible exclusion of the corresponding person from the team or on the recruitment of a new team.
In practice, things often come to the so-called “crossroads” - a situation when it is necessary to decide in which of two directions it is necessary to move forward. If the team itself is unable to find a way out, then the “boss” must either decide which of the two paths to take, or form two teams to work in each direction.
The team leader is responsible for the results of the work to the same extent as any ordinary team member. For the correct organization of the work that he does as part of his activities in the team, he is responsible to its team. A leader's dual responsibility to the team and the customer would be contrary to the essence of his position within the team.
To solve problems that go beyond the normal process of collegial cooperation within the existing organizational structure, a senior manager or company management is required to create an appropriate team and document this. Such a team, created on a permanent basis, should be considered as a new unit. It cannot be formed by one of the leaders. Making the appropriate decision is within the competence of the company’s management or its subordinate body.
A specially created team is disbanded as soon as it completes its assigned tasks. If we are talking about a team organized by the management of the company or another competent body, then they must disband it.
Benefits of Teamwork
- A team makes it possible to solve problems that are beyond the power of one person.
- Creating a team ensures that the interests of all parties are taken into account when developing a solution.
- As a result of cooperation in a team of specialists from several departments, unilateral influence by one of the higher authorities becomes impossible.
- When a team works, the risk of making an erroneous decision and the danger that some important facts will not come into view is reduced. The well-known proverb is quite applicable to team work: “One head is good, but two are better.”
- The team helps fight industrial blindness. What one worker does not notice out of habit is seen by another, who, in turn, does not notice certain problems in his own area of work.
- Teamwork enhances the willingness and ability of managers at all levels to collaborate.
- An employee who has worked in a team will have fewer difficulties in the future when interacting with colleagues or other departments of the company.
- The team has a positive influence on the development of qualities that are important for collegial cooperation. It encourages tolerance, order, recognition of other people's opinions and correct discussion, overcoming selfish views. These factors go beyond teamwork and impact the overall success of the firm.
- An employee who performs well as part of a team receives additional qualifications that are valuable both to him and to the company.
- The enterprise implements ideas that would not arise within the normal organization of work. This is explained by the fact that an individual employee does not have the opportunity to find starting points in his workplace in solving a problem that goes beyond his immediate activities.
- The team provides both an individual employee and an entire team with the opportunity to maximize creative potential and its practical implementation.
- For large firms, the team allows them to more rationally use the capabilities of their specialists who work on solving problems that go beyond the scope of their job responsibilities.
- For medium and small companies, teamwork allows full use of the abilities, knowledge and skills of employees. The team can replace the work of specialists whom the company cannot invite to work for financial reasons.
Disadvantages of Teamwork
Along with the positive aspects, working as a team also has negative aspects.
- Working as a team, unlike regular work, may require additional time investment. The initial period when team members get used to each other can be quite long. It also takes some time to find an appropriate form of collaboration.
- Team work is often slow. This is especially noticeable with a large team size and when working part-time in a team. Difficulties encountered in assembling team members at the appointed time have a negative impact on the progress of work.
- Discussions that arise when working as part of a team take a lot of time, especially if individual employees do not know how to conduct them. Serious disagreements are possible.
- Working as a team can lead to delays in decision making, as the different views of the participants are summarized only after lengthy discussions.
- The anonymity of the work results of individual team members can negatively affect the desire to work. Any team member who has shown insufficient performance can “hide” behind an active participant in teamwork. When working as a team, there is no incentive for a sense of ambition, since the individual worker does not receive personal rewards for results.
- If an employee performs work as part of a team as an addition to his main activity, then it may be too much of a burden for him. Therefore, it is necessary in each specific case to consider whether this load is feasible, what tasks and to what extent should be abandoned while working in a team.
- There is a well-known expression: “A camel is a horse drawn by a team.” However, to claim that working as a team leads to an ineffective waste of time is just as wrong as demanding that all decisions be made collectively.
Team: main success factors for effective work
- clear setting of goals and objectives;
- correct selection of team composition;
- having a well-thought-out system for team members;
- Team members' ability to work collaboratively.
