2-1 Defining Team Success Chapter 2

2-2 Nature of Team Success Managers and team members may see success differently Hackman’s three primary definitions of success relate to:  The task  Social relations  The Individual

2-3 Nature of Team Success Completing the Task  Group completes its task or reaches its goals  Measuring performance may be difficult No alternatives to teamwork Unclear which solutions are best  Project success does not mean team success Was a team necessary or beneficial for the task? Many benefits of a team occur in the long run

2-4 Nature of Team Success Developing Social Relations  Social relations, group maintenance, viability A successful team performs its task and then is better able to perform the next assigned task  Cohesion and communication necessary Example: Computer development team (Kidder)

2-5 Nature of Team Success Benefiting the Individual  Teamwork personally rewarding due to: Social support Learning new skills Rewards from organization

2-6 Conditions for Team Success Group Composition  Individuals possess knowledge, skills & abilities that match the task  Members representative of the organization who have the power to implement group decisions  Members must have the necessary group process skills to operate effectively

2-7 Conditions for Team Success

2-8 Conditions for Team Success Characteristics of the task  McGrath (1984) Generate Choose Negotiate Execute  Steiner (1972) ways efforts can be combined: Added together Limited by last member Averaged Selected Combined  Task should be: Motivating, identifiable, meaningful

2-9 Conditions for Team Success Group Process  Effective teams: Organize themselves to perform tasks Develop social relations to support their operations Assign leaders to provide direction and facilitate team operations  Typically engage in two types of activities: Making decisions Performing tasks

2-10 Conditions for Team Success

2-11 Conditions for Team Success Organizational Context  Culture of the organization Supportive cultures  Support for teams Clear goals, well defined tasks Adequate resources Reliable information Technical and group process assistance  Evaluation and reward systems Feedback necessary

2-12 Characteristics of Successful Teams Note: Factors important for success are different for production, professional, and managerial teams

2-13 Using Teams in the Workplace Benefits of Teamwork  Improve efficiency and performance  Improvement in job satisfaction and quality of work life  Teamwork training improves employee’s technical and interpersonal skills

2-14 Using Teams in the Workplace Problems of Teamwork  Mixed results of success  Implemented with little consideration for applicability  Improved performance in short run only  Norms and cohesiveness  Implementing work teams can be difficult

2-15 Using Teams in the Workplace Teams as a Fad  Overemphasis of the value of teams due to psychological benefits  Use of teams beyond where appropriate  What is needed? Understanding of where/when teams should be used Understanding how to use teams effectively

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