Understanding and Managing People - Essay Example

Introduction Coca Cola is a team driven enterprise where individual employees share the drive for success and build on individual achievements to help employees grow. However, being the official supplier of the 2010 Olympics, Coca Cola has the potential to further improve its team based structure by way of introducing self managed work teams (SMWT), virtual teams as well as matrix teams as going to be illustrated below. In order to gain a clear understanding of the concept of team work, it is imperative to begin by defining what teamwork is. According to Robbins et al (2001), teamwork is where individuals participating collectively, work together towards the attainment of certain goals as well as objectives within a given organisation. Real learning which forms the basis of teamwork takes place in teams where team members learn from each other, learn from their achievements and mistakes, and continuously learn to optimise their efforts and contribution towards the achievement of organisational goals. From this assertion, it can be noted that the underlying principle towards the success of teamwork is sharing of ideas and the willingness to learn from other team members among the team. Employees are the backbone of every organisation and Coca Cola is aware of this fact the reason why it treats all the employees as valuable assets. However, the development of the employees can be achieved through the effective use of teamwork where they learn through sharing of ideas. Developments in team based working Self managed work team (SMWT) A team is a group of people that has been formed to work together in common, cooperate their action towards the achievement of an outcome for the benefit of the group. The goal of the team should be synergy, in other words, the sum of the individual efforts in the team is greater than the sum of the individual inputs (Schultz 2003). In this case, self managed teams are responsible for determining their own specific work tasks, schedule, process quality control and reward structure. This is characterised by a large degree of freedom in the process of accomplishing goals. Team based organisations like Coca Cola often rely on the use of self directed teams to perform their work. Tuckman-Jensen model (1977 as cited in Robbins 2001) suggests mainly five stages involved in team development and these are forming, storming, norming, performing and adjourning. SMWT is effective in that the members in the organisation share a common vision and goals and they clarify these in line with the organisational strategy. The members also have strong influence when setting their goals and they can accomplish their tasks and solve problems without supervision. The development of SMWT is also characterised by the members having the autonomy to make decisions about work and internal distribution of tasks using consensus. Virtual teams The development of these teams is centered on the use of intranet communication systems which links colleagues working in a team from different parts of the country or the globe (Maritz 2000 as cited in Schultz 2003). Members are selected for the best talent globally and this is pooled into a specific project group where the aim is to allow the skilled members to share their ideas. Matrix teams “Matrix teams include work groups, cross functional teams, task forces, problem solving teams, committees, special project teams for instance and they are normally composed of a small number of people from different departments, functions, or organizations who have banded together to solve a common problem or achieve a goal through collaboration,” (http://www.nwlink.com/~donclark/leader/leadtem2.html). The development of the team is influenced by complimentary skills where there is synergy of skills among members. Development of the team is also driven by common purpose and performance goals which ought to be shared among the team members. Advantages and disadvantages of different forms of teamwork in Coca Cola There are different advantages and disadvantages for each type of team as going to be illustrated below. The main advantages of SMWT include the following: There are high levels of trust among the members of the team. Decision making can be done quickly and there is mutual understanding since there are no bureaucratic structures that can inhibit decision making. The major disadvantage of this type of team is that levels of freedom and autonomy to make decisions can be overemphasized where members can be at liberty to do whatever they want which can negatively impact on the overall performance of the team. The advantages of virtual teams include the following: The ability to connect people and share knowledge through communication systems and advanced technology is an important aspect of sustaining competitive advantage Maritz 2000 as cited in Schultz 2003). Concepts of time and space are removed as more employees can work offsite through the use of technology such as e-mail, chat rooms, video conferencing, as well as cell phones. The major disadvantage is that it is difficult to create cohesion and trust through shared goals and relevant feedback. Lastly, the advantage of matrix teams is that various departments get involved at an early stage of planning and they work together for the duration of the project. The disadvantage is that there is likely to be a tendency to cross functional lines which is tantamount to duplication of tasks. Recommendation The introduction of self managed teams is ideal in this case if it has not been in existence at Coca Cola. This organisation is a big multinational organisation and it operates in various countries across the globe. At each station, there are various departments which need concerted effort of various individuals in order to smoothly run them. Self managed teams are ideal in this case in that different teams would be responsible for the attainment of set goals in each department towards the overall attainment of the organisational goals as a whole. Self managed teams are also a source of motivation among the workers which affect their performance. Benefits of the above recommendation Where there is mutual understanding in a team and the members have the autonomy to make decisions, they would have a sense of belonging to the organisation as a whole since they would be motivated to positively contribute towards its success. Basically, motivation is loosely defined as the incentive or motivator given to employees to improve their performance as a way of encouraging productivity and ultimately growth of the company. Some motivators often reflect the content of the job where no superior person in the management can dispense them upon individuals. Content theories of motivation in this case, posit to the effect that there is no individual who can give the other person satisfaction that is related with accomplishing especially a challenging job, but it is self derived (Carrell et al 1995). On the other hand process is concerned with turning around the fortunes of the company. It can thus be seen that motivation is the enthusiasm the workers have for their job which inspires them to put maximum performance in their operations. An employee must be encouraged, persuaded or inspired to do the job (Kleynhans et al 2006). However, the major drawback that can be encountered is that if there are no measures in place to check or monitor the decisions made at team level, they may affect the overall performance of the whole organisation if they are not compatible with its goals and objectives. Whilst there is need to give the employees the autonomy to make decisions as a way of motivating them, there is need to constantly check these decisions by the senior management to ensure that they do not violate the goals set for the whole company. Coca Cola is a multinational company operating in different parts of the globe but it has major goals that characterise its operations. This must always guide its operations at international level though there is need to empower employees working in different goals to make decisions with regards to their operations though they will be shaped by the goals of the organisation. Over and above, it can be noted that the understanding of issues related to management and its role in enhancing performance in an organisation is very important particularly during the contemporary period where it can be noted that the business environment is dynamic and it is constantly changing hence the need for management to keep pace with these changes in order to ensure that the workers are also constantly motivated. Teamwork in a renowned organisation like Coca Cola must be encouraged as a way of influencing the employees to contribute meaningfully to their tasks. Bibliography Carrell, R. et al (1995). Human Resources Management: Global Strategies for managing a diverse workforce. 5th Edition. NY. Prentice Hall. Hackett P. (1996). Success in Managing people. London. John Murray. Kleynhans R. et al (2007), Human Resource Management: fresh perspectives, Prentice Hall SA Matrix teams (N.D.). Available at: http://www.nwlink.com/~donclark/leader/leadtem2.html Accessed on 6 May 2010 Robins S.P., Odendaal A.& Roodt G. (2001), Organisational Behaviour, Pearson Education Robbins, S.P.(2003). Organisational Behaviour. Cape Town. Pearson Education. Schultz et al (2003). Organisational behaviour. CT. Van Schaik Publishers. Susan EJ & Randal S (2000), Managing Human Resources: A Partnership Perspective, South Western College Publishing. Read More