Creating and Leading Effective Teams
Introduction
Several organizations consolidate their staffs in effective teams. The team is developed through categorizing two or more individuals who will work together. The use of teams in an organization gives an inclusive means of approaching the employees. Besides, teams provide an alternative means in which the chain of command can occur in an institution. According to (Herrmann & Herrmann-Nehdi, 2015) effective teams enhance employee’s motivation which further improves the productivity of the organization. Teams also provide teamwork in the organization that enables the employees to combine their efforts to achieve greater things in the team.
Proper team’s characteristics
Effective teams have various characteristics that are very crucial when developing and organizing teams. For a team to be effective it should have a minimal size with a limited number of team members to avoid conflicts in the team due to a large membership. According to (Robbins et al, 2013) the members should have the correct mixture of expertise among the members to enhance the achievement of goals and objectives of the organization. Besides, effective teams have a clear purpose and open communication among the members. The team leader should ensure that the members understand the purpose of the team. Also, the members should value the importance of open communication among the team members to enhance freedom of sharing ideas among the team members.
Thirdly a team should have accountability and fairness in decision making. The members should be responsible for every member and the activities they are involved in the team. Besides, the team members should work hard to ensure the attainment of decisions through consensus and in a situation where the team fails to reach consensus the members should strive to use a fair decision-making procedure to reach their agreement.
Team structures
The cross-functional team is one of the teams where the employees in an organization but from diverse functional area are laid-back to form a team that will help in achieving the organizational goals and objectives. The members of such a team use their power of expertise from the various areas to achieve their common goals.
A virtual team is another type of team structure that is currently used because of its focus on the increase in internet use and technologies in the world business. The members of the team come from different places far from each other but they are working towards the achievement of a common goal (Robbins et al, 2013). The team members work together online and at times participate in the video conferences and are always easy to manage such teams. In virtual teams, it is difficult for the members to be motivated because of the lack of direct contact and communication among the team members.
The bureaucratic team is another type of team structure whereby the teams are formed but are highly monitor through the use of rules and regulations. In such a type of structure, the process of decision making trails a particular chain of command. Besides, the activities performed by the members of the team are highly specialized.
Factors for team success
For a team to be successful, proper and effective leadership that enhance the buildup of confidence among the team members is required. The team should have a leader who is fair to every individual and treat individuals with equality. Secondly, the team should have enough resources needed for the attainment of the team’s goals and objectives (Levi, 2016). Sufficient resources act as a motivation to the team members thus enabling them to toil towards the accomplishment of set common goals. Thirdly, a team should provide incentives, this ensures that the performance of the employees is frequently evaluated and the results are providing within the shortest time to ensure the reinforcement of the employee’s commitment. Lastly, is the identification of the composition of the team to ensure a balance between the abilities and expertise of the members. Identification of individual skills helps in the allocation of roles and responsibilities in the team.
Executive teams
Some of the things that an individual should consider when leading an executive team include the leadership skills and team-building skills which enable a leader to identify the skills of the members and allocate them according to their expertise. Secondly is the control of the management functions of the organization. Nadler. (2015) argues that a leader and a manager have the responsibility to manage the functions of the organization; therefore it is crucial to consider such a factor. Thirdly, is to consider the competence and the interdependence of the leaders in the executive committee to help in enhancing the achievement of the organizational goals without much follow up on the leaders.
Appropriate members of the team
Identification of appropriate members of the team is a crucial activity in the launching of the teams. Some of the features that should be considered in pinpointing the team members include the diversity of the members, communication, the definition of the purpose and the leadership (HR Council, 2016). Besides, it is very critical to consider the culture that is oriented on the results, unity in commitment and collaboration between the team members.
Important factors
Some of the most crucial team dynamic factors include information processing, building trust, communication network and climate (Levi, 2016). The organization needs to put in place strategies for evaluating teams’ functions and productivity. Through performance reviews, the organization will be able to build knowledge, skills, and experience of teams which will ensure optimal performance. Functions of teams are measured by the ability of the staff to complete the assigned tasks.
Compassion skills
I would employ two strategies to empower my team. First, I would compassionately promote diversity. The membership of the team should compromise of people from different backgrounds and have different skills, experience, and abilities. Secondly, I would promote the principle of equality.
References
Herrmann, N., & Herrmann-Nehdi, A. (2015). The Whole-Brain Business Book: Unlocking the Power of Whole Brain Thinking in Organizations, Teams, and Individuals. McGraw Hill Professional.
Levi, D. (2016). Group dynamics for teams. Sage Publications.
Robbins, S., Judge, T. A., Millett, B., & Boyle, M. (2013). Organizational behavior. Pearson Higher Education AU.
HR Council. (2016). Workplaces that Work. Retrieved from HR Council Canada: http://hrcouncil.ca/hr-toolkit/workplaces-teams.cfm
Nadler. (2015). Teamwork at the Top. Retrieved from Nadler Advisory Services: http://nadler-leadership-advisory.com/NAS-White-Papers/3_Teamwork-at-the-Top.pdf
