Teams in Contemporary Organizations - Essay Example

 Teams in Contemporary Organizations Introduction The present global business environment is extremely dynamic in nature. Globalization, increase in demand of high-quality products, dynamic business environments, need for higher employee satisfaction and productivity along with cost-reductions and advances in technology have resulted in a paradigm shift in the structure of the organizations (Shonk, 1992). Organizations now are moving to a flexible organizational structure from the old closed organizational hierarchy which had one-way communications only. To survive in the current business scenario, it is necessary that organizations perform their operations around teams. This approach enables them to be flexible and provide quicker and better responses to the unexpected scenarios. Their importance has been widely accepted in literature. “Not finance. Not strategy. Not technology. It is teamwork that remains the ultimate competitive advantage, both because it is so powerful and so rare” (Lencioni, 2002). Most of the Fortune 500 companies employ some form of teams (Dumaine, 1994; Kirkman, Gibson and Shapiro, 2001). In the recent times, teams have taken various forms such as project teams, virtual task forces, quality circles, self-directed team, standing committees etc. The concept of teams, their role in organizations and their effectiveness has widely been researched in the field of Human Resource and Organizational Behavior. The importance of teams has made it necessary for the organization to evaluate their effectiveness and achieving maximum benefits out of teams. The objective of this essay is to evaluate the roles of the teams in contemporary organizations. We will also assess their effectiveness in achieving the goals they have been set for. The next section of the essay will be covering the various types of teams and the situations in which each type of team is applicable. This will be followed by assessing the role teams play in modern organizations. This will be followed by an analysis of the effectiveness of teams and the ways in which this effectiveness can be increased. The essay will then be ending with the conclusion. Teams: Definition and Types Team: Definition A team can be defined as “two or more people who must coordinate their activities to accomplish a common goal” (Plvnick, Fry and Rubin, 1975). The members of team are essentially responsible for their independence tasks and have the collective responsibility of achieving team goals. An important aspect of a team is that each team member is dependent on others for success of the project (Schotes et al., 2003). Teams are more suitable for tasks that are more complex in nature and can be decomposed into several interdependent subtasks. Team members have essentially complimentary skills and create positive synergy through working together. Team members help each other and encourage other team members to realize their potential and achieve remarkable feats. Teams can be of various sizes depending upon the task at hand. Irrespective of the size, an essential feature of a team is homogeneity and heterogeneity. The homogeneity of the team members will result in more cohesiveness amongst employees whereas the higher the heterogeneity, higher will be the room for creativity and conflict. In order to achieve the end goals, team members normally assume different roles with specific tasks and duties assigned to each role. Life-Cycle of a Team Teams often go through a process of evolution before they start yielding results. The most significant work in this field was done by Bruce W Tuckman (1965). He suggested that all teams go through five stages during their development. These stages are shown in the diagram below: Figure 1: The five stages of Team Development Forming: In the initial stages, team members are generally reserved. Because each member feels the need to be accepted in the group, he/she avoids conflict. Team members are mostly excited about the opportunity but at the same time can also be nervous about the future. This phase also involves setting up of team rules and the team members discover ways to work together. Storming: As team develops, team members are more open about their opinions. This may lead to conflicts. This stage also sees members competing for roles, goals, positions and influence. Norming: As roles and responsibilities become clearer, the cooperation amongst team members increase. Members reach agreements on expectations for behavior. Performing: Here, the team members are more clearer of the objective of the team. Disagreements and conflicts if any can be resolved in a smaller time frame. Members assume flexible roles and create maximum synergy. Adjourning: As the project ends and with the achievement of the team goal, the team is dismantled. This stage is also reached in case of organizational changes such as sales, mergers or acquisitions. Types of Team Teams can be distinguished on the basis of the objectives they are set to achieve. The four most common types of teams in organizations are: Problem Solving Teams: These types of teams consist of 5 to 12 members generally and are generally responsible for finding ways to improve quality and efficiency. These teams are often used to solve organizational problems. Problem solving teams have often been used in organizations in the areas of quality circles. Such teams meet regularly on a periodic basis, analyze quality issues, the problems, the recommended solutions and suggest corrective actions. Self - Managed Teams: These teams generally comprise of about 10 to 15 members. These members collectively take the responsibilities of their former supervisors. In such teams, the members themselves are responsible for control on: amount of work, roles and responsibilities of each team member, break rules and inspection procedures. Members in such a team are selected by the teams themselves and performance is measured by peer measurement. Cross-Functional Team: These teams are generally composed of members at the same hierarchical level but having different functional expertise. Such types of teams are responsible for achieving a specific task and are dismantled after the accomplishment of the same. Such teams can be used in scenarios where organizations want to better their product or service; or they want to develop new designs; co-ordinate in completing a complex project; or foster innovation. Virtual Teams: The members in these teams are geographically dispersed and the members make use of computer and communication technologies to collaborate and achieve the set objective. Such teams have gained significant importance in light of globalization. Such teams differ from other types of team in the way that virtual teams lack the presence of non-verbal cues as against the other types. These teams also have advantage over other team types in terms of space and time constraints. Role of Teams in the contemporary organizations With the change in the business environment in the last two decades, organizations around the world have changed the way they operating by adopting team-oriented structure. Most of the tasks needed to be carried out are too complex in nature, have less time and are more global in nature. These tasks can’t be carried out by a single individual and are done by teams. Some of the prominent examples of team can be: a team of airplane crew members in an airline; a team of production engineers in a manufacturing plant; a team of R&D personnel to perform research and development of the organization and so on. Teams are often used in organization to address issues in the area of quality and process improvements; initiatives to innovate and develop new products; and mostly to handle special projects such as a new unit. Teams in the contemporary organizations comprise of not only the internal stakeholders but also members from other parties such as the client or the suppliers. With increased geographic dispersion of organizations, virtual teams are the most popular team type that is being used by organizations. Effectiveness of Teams Although teams are often used in various settings in organizations, it is important to study if the usage of teams is the best way to achieve the objectives. Literature Review The area of effectiveness of team has gained significant interest in the research community. Although researches suggest evidences both in favor as well as against the use of teams, the findings generally tend to converge on a verdict that recommends use of teams. It has been found that teams may be ineffective in achieving their objectives sometimes, but variables like absenteeism, turnover and employee complaints have been found to significantly decrease by the use of more group-centered methods (Rayner, 1996; Sundstrom et al., 1990, 2000; Woodman & Sherwood, 1980). Various case studies done in organizations have also indicated that the use of teams has been effective (Applebaum and Blatt, 1994). A case in example is Texas Instruments which witnessed increase in productivity when it adopted a team based structure, built team cohesiveness, and establish clear roles and objectives (Bass and Ryterband, 1979). Sundstrom et al. (2000) in their field studies advocated the use of groups and team developments. However, teams may not always be successful. Teams may fail to achieve their goals if the members of the team do not strive for high productivity. Besides, some forms of team-building interventions have been found to be more effective than others. Interventions that increase team members’ control and involvement in work will be more effective than those which focus on moral boosting or envisioning goals (Cotton, 1993; Levine & D’Andrea Tyson, 1990). Devine et al. (1999) in their study concluded that teams will be ineffective and perform poorly if team members can’t go beyond personality conflicts and tension. Success of team also depends on training the team members in developing the necessary skills needed to work in a team. Team Effectiveness Models In order to completely understand the effectiveness of teams, it is necessary that we understand the various factors that affect team effectiveness. There have been many models by various researchers that have studied the way teams work and suggested models of team performance. While some modes suggest group structure and interpersonal dynamics as the most important variables, others indicate the importance of talent and motivation of individual team members. Some models on the other hand indicate the importance of external factors such as company’s culture on the effectiveness of teams. The most remarkable models that have been developed are: T7 model by Lombardo and Eichinger (1995) Rubin, Plovnick, and Fry (1977) Katzenbach and Smith (1993). LaFasto and Larson (2001) Hackman (2002) T7 model Lombardo and Eichinger developed the T7 model by identifying the seven factors that have the maximum influence on the performance of teams. Five out of these factors are internal while two are external in nature. The five internal factors are: Thrust: The clarity of the team goals amongst the team members Trust: Trust in other team members Talent: Possession of complementary skills to accomplish the tasks Teaming Skills: Working together efficiency as a team Task Skills: The skills to execute the required tasks. The two internal factors: Team-Leader Fit: The extent to which the leader is able to meet the needs of team members Team support from the organization: The degree to which the organization leadership enables and supports the team Rubin, Plovnick, and Fry Model—The GRPI Model of Team Effectiveness The GRPI model developed by Rubin, Plvnick and Fry in the year 1977 is amongst the oldest model. The authors suggest that the important factors that are needed for a team to be effective are the presence of Goals, Roles, Processes, and Interpersonal Relationships. A team shall always begin with the presence of a goal at team level. This shall be followed by defining the roles and responsibilities of the members. Team members then redefine the roles as they progress in the development of the team. This redefinition enables members to adjust processes. In the process, team members develop interpersonal relationships with other members and the team leader. Katzenbach and Smith Model Katzenbach and Smith (1993) proposed that people by psychology have a resistance to move beyond individual roles, and responsibilities. Employees do not want themselves to be responsible for the performance of others. The authors proposed three goals which are the basics of team work. They said that a team will be effective if its team members have the following three elements: Commitment, skills and accountability. LaFasto and Larson model The model “Five Dynamics of Team Work and Collaboration” was developed by LaFasto and Larson in the year 2001 after studying 600 teams in a range of industries. They suggested five elements that shall be actively managed to make sure that the team is effective. The authors proposed that for a team to be effective, the members shall have these four basic necessary behaviors: Openness, Supportiveness, An Action orientation and a Positive personal Style. Hackman Model of Team Effectiveness Hackman (2002) said that team effectiveness can be measured by providing products or services that go beyond fulfilling customer expectations. He further suggested that the following four conditions are necessary for a team to be effective: It should be a real team rather than a team in name only The team should have a compelling direction It should have enough support structure that facilitate teamwork The organizational culture is supportive of the team The team members have been given ample coaching in teamwork Conclusion In order to function effectively and efficiently, it is necessary that all the team members shall be flexible, have faith and trust in the other members, support every member and shall be sincerely dedicated towards achieving the common goal. A team is as strong as its weakest link. The role of a team leader is of prime importance in team's efficiency: Build team commitment and align the team members towards the common goal. Handle conflicts within the team members fairly and objectively. Use the creativity of the individual team members to solve problems innovatively Use appropriate amount of praise and rewards to measure member performance and growth. One of the major issues that can hinder the progress of a team towards its goal is “ineffective communication”. In order to avoid this pitfall, it is necessary that the team leader establishes clear communication standards and norms. Various collaboration tools can be used in order to foster clear and accurate communication amongst team members. Another pitfall that may affect the deficiency of the team is “disproportionate praise and publicity”. Although praise and rewards are an effective mechanism to boost team members' morale, these may have an adverse effect when used inappropriately. Disproportionately rewarding a member may lead to a 'me versus him' attitude in the team which may stop the team from achieving its goals. To conclude, teams are an effective system to reach a set objective. When managed properly, teams can often lead to extraordinary results. Developing a high performing team that is able to achieve its objectives require much effort and times. They need proper guidance from the team leader. The organizational culture shall be conducive enough for teams to foster. References Applebaum, E., & Blatt, R. (1994). The new American workplace. Itacha, NY: ILR. Bass, B.M., & Ryterband, E. C. (1979). Organizational Psychology, 2nd ed. Boston: Allyn and Bacon. Cotton, J.L. (1993). Employee Involvement. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Devine, D.J., Clayton, L.D., Philips, J.L., Dunford, B.B., & Melner, S.B. (1999). Teams in organizations: Prevalence, characteristics, and effectiveness. Small Group Research, 30, 678-711. Dumaine, B. (1994, September 5). The trouble with teams. Fortune, pp. 86-92. Hackman, J. R. (2002). Leading teams: Setting the stage for great performances. Boston: Harvard Business School Press. Katzenbach, J. R., & Smith, D. K. (1993). The wisdom of teams: Creating the high-performance organization. Boston: Harvard Business School Press. Kirkman, B. L., Gibson, C. B., & Shapiro, D. L. (2001). “Exporting” teams: Enhancing the implementation and effectiveness of work teams in global affiliates. Organizational Dynamics, 30(1), 12-39.\ LaFasto, F., & Larson, C. (2001). When teams work best: 6000 team members and leaders tell what it takes to succeed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Lencioni, P. (2002). The five dysfunctions of a team: A leadership fable. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Levine, D.I., & D’Andrea Tyson, L. (1990). Participation, productivity, and the firm’s environment. In A.S. Blinder (Ed.), Paying for productivity (pp 183-237). Washington, DC: Brookings Institute. Lombardo, M. M., & Eichinger, R. W. (1995). The Team Architect® user’s manual. Minneapolis, MN: Lominger Limited. Plovnivk, M., Fry, M., and Rubbin, I. (1975), “New Developments in O.D.Technology: Programmed Team Development,” Training and Development Journal. Rayner, S.R. (1996). Team Traps. New York: Wiley. Rubin, I. M., Plovnick, M. S., & Fry, R. E. (1977). Task oriented team development. New York: McGraw-Hill. Scholtes, P.R., Joiner, B.L., and Streibel, B.J. (2003). The Team Handbook. 3rd illustrated edition. Oriel Incorporate. Shonk,J.H.(1992), “Team-Based Organizations: Developing a Successful Team Environment”, Business One Irwin, Homewood, Illinois 60430. Sundstrom, E., McInyre, M., Halfhill, T., and Richards, H. (2000). Work Groups: From the Hawthorne studies to work teams of the 1990s and beyond. Group Dynamics, 4, 44-67. Sundstrom, E., De Meuse, K.P., and Futrell, D (1990). Work Teams: Applications and Effectiveness. American Psychologist, 45, 120-133. Tuckman B W. Developmental sequence in small groups. Psychol. Bull. 63:384-99, 1965. Woodman, R.W., and Sherwood, J.J. (1980). The role of team development in organizational effectiveness: A Critical review. Psychological Bulletin, 88, 166-186. Read More