1 Building the Team Team v Group

Castle College, Nottingham2 ‘ “ The joy of working harmoniously with small groups of people who are dedicated to something bigger than themselves, and are completely loyal to each other, counts in my experience as one of the most rewarding things in life,” a senior manager told me. Most of us would agree with him.’ - John Adair (1987), Effective Teambuilding, Pan

Castle College, Nottingham3 Lecture Objectives Team vs Group What is a team? Comparing, Benefits Culture, Climate

Castle College, Nottingham4 Team vs Group Concise Oxford Dictionary: ‘A Group is a number of persons or things located close together, or considered or classed together’ Does this define a team?

Castle College, Nottingham5 Activity – What is a Team? Which ones in the list are teams? The runners in a marathon race A group of volunteers staffing a charity shop The members of two families attending a wedding Eight nurses working on a hospital children’s ward, not always on the same shift All the stewards and stewardesses of an airline A group of children sharing a ride on a fairground roundabout In groups, write a definition for a team p.4 - read

Castle College, Nottingham6 Self-managed work teams ‘Self-Managing Work Teams offer a radical alternative – one which allows individuals to grow beyond their wildest expectations, and at the same time allows unprecedented levels of output and quality improvement. This is more than just a restructuring, more than simple quality improvement, more than creating a learning organisation – it is a completely different way of life’ - Graham Wilson (1995), Self Managed Team Working

Castle College, Nottingham7 Comparing Teams Factors used to compare teams Type of work* Size of the team* Type of organisation (e.g. government v private) Team’s background and history* Technology* Organisational culture (Team Culture) Formal or Informal working relationships

Castle College, Nottingham8 Benefits of teams Activity – what do you think are the benefits of being in a team? Benefits –Companionship, –sense of purpose, –support, –sense of belonging, –assistance with problems

Castle College, Nottingham9 What do teams need? Activity – what do you think teams need? Teams need: –Clear objectives and terms of reference –Support from management, and adequate resources –A base – a ‘territory’ of its own

Castle College, Nottingham10 Personal Qualities Dependability / Reliability LoyaltyIntegrityFairnessDetermination

Castle College, Nottingham11 Interpersonal Skills Ability to Inspire OpennessEmpathyFirmnessFlexibilityHumour Interest in people* Emotional Intelligence Developing a culture of trust

Castle College, Nottingham12 Activity – Ideal team 1.Working on your own list 8 factors that would be found in your ideal team in priority order – most important first, or use numbers (5 min) 2.Working in pairs repeat the exercise and come up with an agreed top 5 list (10 min) 3.Working as a whole group repeat the exercise and come up with an agreed top 5 list (20 min) Talkback - Notes

Castle College, Nottingham13 What is Culture? The conventional behaviour of people in an organisation that encompasses beliefs, customs, knowledge and practices The set of spoken or unspoken rules and values that form over time and guide organisational behaviour Individual leaders cannot easily create or change culture

Castle College, Nottingham14 Organisational Culture ‘In organisations, there are deep-set beliefs about the way work should be organised, the way authority should be exercised, people rewarded, people controlled… What combination of obedience and initiative is looked for in subordinates? Do work hours matter, or dress, or personal eccentricities?… Do committees control, or individuals? Are there rules and procedures or only results? These are all parts of the culture of an organisation’ - Charles Handy (1990), Understanding Organisations, 4 th edition, Penguin (pp )

Castle College, Nottingham15 What is climate? People’s perceptions, expectations and feelings about their working environment The atmosphere of the work place which influences and is influenced by individual and group patterns of behaviour The personality and behaviour of leaders creates a climate that influences everyone in the organisation

Castle College, Nottingham16 Culture and Change People depend on culture as it gives them stability, security, understanding and the ability to respond to given situations For what reasons do people fear change? What is the role of the leader in change?

Castle College, Nottingham17 Activity – Building Trust In small groups decide if the factors listed are conducive to building or destroying trust. RapportSarcasmRespect Eye contactUncertainty AcceptanceBelonging One-way communicationListening Shared humourCriticism ConfidentialityInnuendo ConsistencyCrossed wired Constructive feedbackAccusation OpennessFault finding Understanding

Castle College, Nottingham18 Building Trust Well developed communication and interpersonal skills Consistency Honesty / integrity Loyalty to your team Respect for others Treating everyone fairly Confidentiality Setting a good example Setting & maintaining performance standards

Castle College, Nottingham19 Right mix of Team Roles Team Maintenance Roles Team Blocking Roles Team Building Roles

Castle College, Nottingham20 Role of the Team Leader Achieve the Task Build the Team Support & Develop Individuals

Castle College, Nottingham21 In conclusion Building Teams Comparing, benefits, structure, leading Culture, Climate Questions?