Belbin’s Team Roles

So…There were four characters in a team. Everybody was asked to do it. Everybody was sure that Somebody would do it. Anybody could have done it. But Nobody did it. Somebody got angry because it was Everybody’s job.

Nobody realised that Everybody wouldn’t do it.  Everybody thought that anybody could do it.   Nobody realised that Everybody wouldn’t do it. It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody when actually Nobody blamed Anybody.

What do you make out of this story?

A functioning team has ROLES Key of a good team is delegating work according to skills and ROLES

What is a team role? A team role as defined by Dr Meredith Belbin is: "A tendency to behave, contribute and interrelate with others in a particular way."

Team Roles The Plant The Coordinator The Resource Investigator The Monitor Evaluator The Shaper The Team Worker The Completer-Finisher The Specialist The Implementer

Belbin's Team Roles

The Plant The Plant is creative and innovative. Responsible for the production of ingenious new ideas and novel strategies. Are not very ‘team orientated’, though their contribution to the team is very likely to improve the team's success

The Co-Ordinator The Co-ordinator's role is to direct the group Stops the discussion from becoming uncontrolled & draws other team members back to the intended purpose The Co-coordinator’s enthusiasm tends to be goal orientated. Co-ordinator tends to be tolerant and will demonstrate that they have faith in their team members.

The Resource Investigator Has a critical role to play in the team's new innovations Is skilled interpersonally Facilitates liaisons Looks into every corner for some valuable piece of information, which may facilitate improvisation

The Monitor Evaluator Is intelligent, discerning objective and free from influence of emotional factors. Takes a back-seat role, but will come into prominence when a crucial decision is to be made. Is very good at weighing up the facts, carefully considering the pros and cons of each option, and finally coming to a well considered decision. Shows little enthusiasm or personal commitment to teams goals.

The Shaper Is highly motivated. Has a high degree of nervous energy and a great need for achievement. The Shaper may lead the team, is single minded and critical. Tends to be an aggressive extrovert and as such may elicit an aggressive response from other team members. Can create interpersonal problems as a result of his open criticism of others.

The Shaper May lack the interpersonal understanding and warmth The Shaper's directive approach is more orientated towards achieving objectives than towards the stable maintenance of the team. Shapers are excellent when it comes to sparking life into a team but not useful in a team that is functioning well.

The Team Worker Is a good communicator, trusting, sensitive, caring and not dominant. Is perceptive and diplomatic not critical of other team members. The presence of a Team Worker may contribute greatly to the team's success simply by allowing better co- operation amongst team members. Places the group's objectives and the smooth running maintenance of the group itself before their own personal ambition.

The Completer - Finisher Are hard working and conscientious. Are concerned to ensure that the detailed aspects of a project, such as testing, trialing and general administrative matters, are planned into schedules. Have great self-discipline and thus reflect discipline and orderliness in others Is reluctant to let a matter go unfinished.

The Specialist Specialists have specialized knowledge in a particular area Their job within the team is to be an expert in the area, and they commit themselves fully to their field of expertise. This may limit their contribution, and lead to a preoccupation with technicalities at the expense of the bigger picture

The Implementer Is concerned with detail. Is an excellent implementer of schemes which others have devised. Is a good organizer, and capable of directing subordinates. Tend to be well controlled emotionally, and have a preference for orderliness and routine. Is driven by their identification with the organisation, together with a set of principles

The Role Role description How They Behave PLANT A source of ideas for the group; introverted but intellectually dominant and imaginative.  Contributing ideas.  RESOURCE INVESTIGATOR Popular, sociable, extrovert, relaxed; source of new contacts but not an originator.  Introduces ideas from outside; Negotiating.  SHAPER Extrovert and passionate about the task itself; highly strung and dominant.  Shaping roles and objectives; Pushing the group towards agreement.  MONITOR-EVALUATOR Analytically (rather than creatively) intelligent; dissects ideas, spots flaws; possibly aloof.  Analysing the situation; Assessing the contributions of others.  CO-ORDINATOR Presides and co-ordinates; balanced, disciplined and good at working through others. Stating objectives; Helping to establish roles; Summing up group achievements.  IMPLEMENTER Practical organizer, turning ideas into tasks through scheduling and planning; not a leader but a strong administrator.  Transforming discussion into practical steps; Considering what is possible.  TEAM WORKER Most concerned with team maintenance; supportive, understanding, diplomatic; popular but uncompetitive.  Giving support to others; Seconding another persons ideas; Drawing quieter people into the discussion.  COMPLETER-FINISHER Finisher 'Chivvies the team to meet deadlines, attends to details and follows things through; not always popular.  Emphasizing the need to meet the deadline; Looking for errors and oversights; Getting others to take the necessary actions.

Doing and acting Implementer Shaper Completer/Finisher Thinking/Problem-solving Plant Motivator/Evaluator Specialist People Oriented/Feelings Coordinator Team worker Resource/Investigator

Video clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-efhOLVgEvM

Which role do you think you have in your team? ...take team role test (see team role skills explained on moodle): https://www.123test.com/team-roles-test/