Teamwork Relationships - Essay Example

Term Paper This semester I had had an opportunity to working in a team. Though I was a new my team leader, Khalied selected me for a team event. He did ask me about my background and about my outdoor activities in leisure time. He also selected two other persons in the team so in all, our team was formed of total four members. It is not that this was my first experience of participating as a member of the team; previously also, a couple of times, I have worked as a member of the team but not with clear understanding about the roles. From my past experiences, I knew that team events are organized to fulfill certain tasks in the given time frame meaning some sort of a discipline behavior is necessary. When my team leader assigned me the task, I became utterly conscious about it to complete as I never wanted my team to suffer. The very thought of working as a team inculcated a sense of responsibility in me to complete the task to the best of my ability. I interacted with Ahmed and Lam, the other two members of my team under the guidance and leadership of Khalied and discussed how we can support each other and accomplish each task in time. Lam due to his preoccupation in study and illness in the family was little reluctant to devote sufficient time; however, I and Ahmed decided to partially share Lam’s task as and when necessary. Lam in turn assured us that he would also reciprocate the gesture and share the responsibility when any of us would need him in our dire time. Khalied also agreed with the arrangement. With the procedural instruction received from the team leader, task progressed in right direction and we achieved 50 percent completion of the project but then due to perception differences or lack of clarity, subsequent steps of the task took diversion. This led to the duplication of the work; however, due to our frequent interactions we could soon realize this lapse in our understanding of the task and corrected ourselves. Since that day we decided to put everything in black and white so that such lapses could be avoided. We communicated and began giving briefing to each other through emails and instant messaging so that no communication gaps prevail. Due to Sam’s infrequent participation, Ahmed and I were sharing his share of work with good understanding. We assessed the task once again and discussed among ourselves how we need to go ahead for the remaining project so that lost time is recovered and the task is completed before deadline. In the beginning, project milestones were not set but once we reached the halfway and duplication of the work started, we began monitoring each activity diligently. At this juncture, we crossed over to share responsibility of some more tasks as our objective was to finish the task at least a day before keeping some time for other eventualities. One thing that I realized from this experience is that the correct assessment of required members in the team to complete the task before deadline should be assessed diligently and systematically. The task is never said to be completed if it is not done in time. In our given task, I realized that there has to be minimum four members in the team – other than team leader, so that finer point of the task are not missed as well as the task gets completed in stipulated time. Further, it is required that members are drawn from diverse backgrounds that include their ethnicity and culture (Hong, L., Page, S.E., Baumol, W.J.(2004). Groups of Diverse Problem Solvers Can Outperform Groups of High-Ability Problem Solvers. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA. 101 (46). 16385–16389. The individual skill sets of the members should complement each other so that the resultant team is self-sufficient in itself. Such a team can generate a variety of ideas and ways to complete the task without any possibility of fumbling because in conflicting situations members not only face them with positive attitude but accept the challenge upfront. Members may have different perceptions about the complexity of the issues that may arise; however, their constant interactions with each other lead to most optimal solution. What I observed is that conflict defuses fast if ideas of others are respected and careful considerations are given. It was also evident that the coordinated teamwork not only enhances team effectiveness but also improves relationship among members (Cohen, S.G., and Bailey, D. E. (1997). What Makes Teams Work: Group Effectiveness Research from the Shop Floor to the Executive Suite. Journal of Management, 23(3), 239-290). Certain factors affect team performance significantly. When a member is unable to contribute to his part of the task then it affects team performance as a whole. The team performance is also affected if a clear memorandum on task responsibilities is not drawn in the beginning itself. Division of responsibilities must be associated with the skill sets of the members with all clarity on the milestones to be attained in the given timeframe. When one member lags behind then it often derails others from the task. My team event has clearly established that members of the team are interdependent while they strive hard to complete the task. During the team event, in the initial stages, some procedures were orally described and communicated. While undertaking certain procedures to complete the task, some criteria must be in place to assess the deviation so that corrective measures can be taken. Moreover, before the task reached halfway, instructions to modify the procedures were verbal; written instructions at start of the task were necessary not only for the sake of clarity but also to avoid communication gap between members. Also, certain minimum numbers of members in the team are necessary to accomplish the task in stipulated time; however, it largely depends upon the nature of task undertaken. The higher numbers help if the task is complex in nature and time consuming. In such cases, a different kind of team approach is necessary that involves dividing main tasks into several subtasks with each subtask is handled by one subgroups. For example, if 20 people are involved to accomplish some major tasks then the task can be subdivided into 5 sub-tasks and each subtask is allocated to a subgroup having four members in each group. That is how responsibility and accountability is transferred to each subgroup. Frequent interaction among members is necessary to understand which member is failing in its efforts. This will help not only in reallocating the task but will also help in taking timely corrective measures. In the event when team is large and different subgroups are formed, all subgroups need to work in liaison with other groups and communicate with each other frequently. Members chosen to work with the team must have diverse and varied competencies, skills, and knowledge. Apart from varied skills, diverse ethnicity and cultural background of the members will bring novelty in ideas and ways to complete the task. Trust among members is crucial for team performance. Without building trust, members would not help each other and voice their questions. People share information and ideas when they trust each other fully (Ferda, E., Janset, O., Nuray, A., (2003). "The relationship between trust and team performance", Work Study, 52(7), 337 – 340. While building trust is a slow moving process, effective communication and continuous interaction can accelerate it significantly. Similarly, the team event necessitates that all members develop their skills through personal interaction and be ready for role changing as and when needs arise. Individual learning process accelerates significantly when members work in a team. Supportive team climate is essential for overall success of the project. Conflict situation need to be resolved through discussions or role changes. While performing the task, multiple issues are likely to crop up; however, problem solving capacity within the team will help resolve the issues quickly. I also realized that leader must be able to take multiple roles of motivating and inspiring team members by leading them from the front. Whether team is small or large, only verbal communication is not adequate. Key points must be communicated in writing to maintain clarity on instruction. Team leader must ensure whether every member of the team is following the procedures laid down for the tasks to be completed. Moreover, role of each member and subgroup must be well-defined and there should not be any overlapping as far as possible in their roles otherwise, there are every chance that task will not be completed. Summary of Learning The course has helped me to consolidate and enhance my individual strengths that include not only organizing and managing team efforts but also in learning why effective communication skills are crucial to motivating team members. I have also learned how cohesive working of all team members can increase synergy to creating much improved outcomes. Diversity among team members is beneficial for enhanced results. This means that members of diverse ethnicity and culture in the team can generate surfeit of innovative ideas through constant interactions and discussion among them resulting into a most plausible solution to the problem. Conflict between members arises due to diverse views, opinions and understanding about the issues. Each conflict can be resolved through positive attitude of all members and that is where problem solving capacity and effective leadership comes into play. Team gains strength when each member of the team reposes trust on each other. I also learned some important leadership lessons from my team leader. Leadership position offers several challenges that include selecting right members for the team that have diverse skills, knowledge, and capabilities. The true leader will constantly work towards enhancing skills of each member so that they can be rotated when need arises. A true leader will not only develop an effective team but constantly work towards creating and maintaining a supportive climate within the team. Team working has also imparted me the insight that any arduous task can be accomplished by segregating it into several small subtasks and then assigning each subtask to the right person of the team equipped to accomplish it. The experience that I gained in the team event would immensely help me the next time when I would lead a team in future. Most events in life are accomplished through team work. Team achievements are significantly much more than sum total of individual achievements or successes. Trust, close interaction and communication among members are the basic ingredients for team success. In this event, though many things worked well and many did not yet the kind of experience that I gained would always guide me in the years to come. References Cohen, S.G., and Bailey, D. E. (1997). What Makes Teams Work: Group Effectiveness Research from the Shop Floor to the Executive Suite. Journal of Management, 23(3), 239-290 Ferda, Erdem, Janset, Ozen, Nuray, Atsan, (2003). "The relationship between trust and team performance", Work Study, 52(7), 337 – 340. Hong, L., Page, S.E., Baumol, W.J.(2004). Groups of Diverse Problem Solvers Can Outperform Groups of High-Ability Problem Solvers. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA. 101 (46). 16385–16389. Read More