POPULARITY AND PROBLEMS OF TEAMS

Krishnaindu K S

Team An Overview
Few trends have influenced employee jobs as much as the massive movement to introduce teams into the workplace. The shift from working alone to working on teams requires employees to cooperate with others, share information, confront differences, and sublimate personal interests for the greater good of the team.

DEFINITION
A team is any group of people organized to work together interdependently and cooperatively to meet the needs of their customers by accomplishing a purpose and goals.

Teams are created for both long term and short term interaction.

Long Teams Example

Product development team Executive leadership team Departmental team Operational groups

Small Teams Examples

Employee on boarding process teams
Annual company party planning team Specific customer problem or complaint.

Characteristics of a good Team

Freedom Autonomy

Opportunity to utilize different skills and talents

Ability to complete a whole and identifiable task or product Doing work that has a substantial impact on others

Cont
Individuals with technical expertise Problem-solving skills

Decision-making skills
Interpersonal skills Personality characteristics of extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, and emotional stability.

Why Have Teams Become So Popular?

The current popularity of teams seems based on the evidence that teams typically outperform individuals when the tasks being done require multiple skills, judgment, and experience.

As organizations have restructured, they have turned to teams to better utilize employee talents.
The motivational properties of teams is a huge factor. The role of employee involvement as a motivatorteams facilitate employee participation in operating decisions.

 Teams typically outperform individuals.

Teams use employee talents better. Teams are more flexible and responsive to changes in the environment. Teams facilitate employee involvement. Teams are an effective way to democratize and organization and increase motivation.

Problems Of Teams
Absence of team identity
Difficulty making decisions Poor communication Inability to resolve conflicts.

Cont
Lack of participation Lack of creativity Groupthink Ineffective leadership

Reference
Harvard Business Review (2010). HBR Answers Exchange. Retrieved from http://answers.hbr.org/ Workplacepsychology.net humanresources.about.com