... In the contemporary world, teamwork has been an important way in organizational practice. It is applied to over 80 percent of Fortune 500 companies (Joinson, 2000) and widely used in most of countries at present. A team is described as “a small number of people with complementary skills who are committed to a common purpose, set of performance goals, and approach for which they hold themselves mutually accountable” (Katzenbach and Smith, 1993: 113). In the teamwork, the concerted efforts of its members can generate positive synergy (Robbins and Judge, 2006) and improve organizational performance (Delarue et al, 2008). However, some negative aspects of teamwork also impact on the performance and behavior of a team (Mullins, 2006). This essay will discuss both negative and positive effects of teamwork via several contemporary examples, and conclude that positive aspects outweigh the negative aspects in the perspective of its impact on the whole team. Negative Effects of Teamwork Some researchers argue that teamwork has certain negative effects on performance and behavior of a team (Mullins, 2006). Social loafing and groupthink are two of the adverse aspects that result from teamwork. Social loafing is the phenomenon that individuals exert less effort in teamwork than they do alone (Karau and Williams, 1993). The reason is that the contribution of each member cannot measure accurately in a team, so individuals tend to hide inside a team and reduce their efforts (Robbins...
Words: 1343 - Pages: 6
...International Journal of Management Reviews (2008) doi: 10.1111/j.1468-2370.2007.00227.x Teamworking and organizational performance: A review of survey-based research Teamworking xxx 2007 Publishing Ltd ORIGINAL Journal of Ltd 2007performance XXX UK Publishing Management Reviews © Blackwell 1460-8545 International and organizational IJMR Oxford, Blackwell ARTICLES Anne Delarue,1 Geert Van Hootegem, Stephen Procter and Mark Burridge This paper presents a review of recent survey-based research looking at the contribution of teamwork to organizational performance. In particular, it focuses on empirical studies in which both teamwork and performance are directly measured in a quantitative way. The paper begins by identifying four interrelated dimensions of teamwork effectiveness: attitudinal, behavioural, operational and financial. The first two represent transmission mechanisms by which organizational performance can be improved. The latter two provide direct measures of organizational outcomes. The review shows that teamworking has a positive impact on all four dimensions of performance. It also reveals that, when teamwork is combined with structural change, performance can be further enhanced. The paper concludes by highlighting some important research gaps that future studies could address. Introduction Teamwork has emerged in recent years as one of the most important ways in which work is being reorganized (Osterman 1994; Waterson et al...
Words: 11643 - Pages: 47
...Importance of teamwork 1. Introduction As organisations continue to strive towards competitive advantage and increasingly high performance standards, collaboration and team-oriented project management are increasingly providing the flexibility and innovative potential necessary to excel. Yet in spite of the dynamic characteristics of teams in practice, many organisations fail to recognise the core determinants of a team-oriented framework, instead grouping employees into non-linked, non-dependent, individually-driven models. This group-based approach is distinct from team-specific initiatives and fails to meet the rigorous determinants of dynamism and effectiveness necessary in the modern marketplace. The following sections will draw distinctions between teamwork and group work, highlighting the opportunities associated with team-driven performance. Further, several theoretical models of teamwork will be introduced, demonstrating underlying benefits of optimised team management and goal setting. Through this discussion, a framework of organisational implications will be introduced, focusing on team-generated performance and the importance of effective team outcomes in meeting organisational goals. 2. The Teamwork Paradigm In spite of their seeming interoperability, Fritz (2014:1) emphasises that the terms ‘team’ and ‘group’ hold practical distinctions when represented in the context of enterprise management. A group, in theory, represents three or more individuals who...
Words: 2524 - Pages: 11
...Teamwork There are two ways of spreading light : to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it GOOSE - G is for GOAL The sense of a goose! The sense of a goose! People who are part of a team and share a common direction get there quicker and easier because they are traveling on trust of one another and they support each other all the way. GOOSE - O is for ORGANISED If we have as much sense as a goose we will stay in formation and share information with those who are headed the same way we are going. The sense of a goose! The sense of a goose! GOOSE - O is for OPTIMUM The sense of a goose! The sense of a goose! It pays to share leadership and take turns during hard jobs GOOSE - S is for SUPPORT The sense of a goose! The sense of a goose! If we have the sense of a goose, we will stand by each other when things get rough The sense of a goose! The sense of a goose! GOOSE - E is for ENCOURAGE Words of support and inspiration help energize those in the front line through the day to day pressures Message from a Goose It is a reward, a challenge, and a privilege to be a contributing member of a TEAM The sense of a goose! The sense of a goose! What is the difference between A Team Committed to shared goals Contributes to procedures Climate of cooperation Open and honest with each other Conflict is constructive and A Group Committed to individual goals Waits for procedures Climate of competition Careful and cautious...
Words: 1494 - Pages: 6
...0989681 ID number: 0955679 TERM PAPER - AUTONOMY vs TEAMWORK IN SALESPERSON`s FUTURE PERFORMANCE - Hand-in date: 21.11.2015 Campus: BI Oslo Examination code and name: GRA 6441 Sales & Sales Force Management Programme: Master of Science in Strategic Marketing Management CONTENT Problem definition................................................................................................3 Literature review..................................................................................................4 Teamwork.............................................................................................................4 Autonomy.............................................................................................................8 Conclusions – our opinion..................................................................................12 References...........................................................................................................18 PROBLEM IN “Measuring and Managing a Salesperson`s Future Value of the Firm” by V.Kumar, Sarang Sunder, and Robert P. Leone (2014 Journal of Marketing Research) Businesses are moving from a product-centric to a customer-centric view and from a backward looking to a forward-looking strategic perspective, so sales organizations must adapt to the ever-changing marketplace to maximize performance. Given the dynamic and extremely competitive nature of the market-place...
Words: 4715 - Pages: 19
...name Code+ course name Professor’s name University name City, State Date of submission Team work means ensuring that every employee in a working team understands their functions and feels valued. Teamwork entails the following; ensuring everyone gets to know their responsibilities and roles, providing constructive support and feedback, assigning tasks to people with the required skills and creating initiative and enthusiasm in a team. Employers want good teamwork skills since they want their employees to get along well with the existing workforce and have the capability to improve their productivity to the company. Excellent teamwork skills allow an employee to put aside his personal desires in order to produce good results for the company. Moreover, employers look for good team working skills because they want to enhance the competitiveness of the company. Team work also enhances effective utilization of labor, and efficiency is also achieved. It also improves productivity by making maximum use of the different skills and strengths of members of the team. Productivity is improved by assigning the order and allotment of duty to the team; thus avoiding bottlenecks in the company (outwaite 2013). Secondly, Organizations aim to achieve good team work skills since such skills are a key input required for quality improvement in any given organization. good team working improves quality and encourages product innovation (Stun & Walker 1995). Most companies’ top...
Words: 1687 - Pages: 7
...WE GO. Teamwork is cooperative or coordinated effort on the part of a group of persons acting together as a team or in the interests of a common cause or working in a team. Teamwork is often a crucial part of a business, as it is often necessary for colleagues to work well together, trying their best in any circumstance. Teamwork means that people will try to cooperate, using their individual skills and providing constructive feedback, despite any personal conflict between individuals. Teamwork can be likened to two compounds, almost essential to modern life. It’s the glue which keeps a team together, a bond which promotes strength, unity, reliability and support. Teamwork is also the oil that makes the team work. It can enable smoother movement towards targets, can prolong forward momentum, and can help teams to overcome obstacles. Teamwork has the potential to underpin so much of what is valuable in work. In fact, the benefits to be gained from teamwork synergies are essential for the effective management of resources. Teamwork matters because : MOTIVATION, You have a greater number of people working together in close proximity on the same goal. The motivation factor is going to be high especially when the team members understand each other, have a sense of healthy competition, are willing to help the others along and are big-hearted enough to take pride in each other’s successes. After all, what’s the fun in celebrating if you are going to do it alone? Regular team-bonding...
Words: 1593 - Pages: 7
...Importance of a Team Sara Marrow HCS 325 Monday August, 13, 2012 Dr. Robert Perdue Importance of a Team Background I work for a large healthcare organization. Within the organization I run a very busy call center. I feel that within the organization we need to create teams. These teams will help us stay organized with the ideas, goals and long term planning we are trying to work through. Objective As the manager of a busy call center, I have found that the volume of calls has doubled over the past year. We are suffering in our customer service and efficiency. I will propose that by adding the extra teams and with proper training we will increase our efficiency and customer service. We need to create teams to expand our call center. Goals I feel that teams are important in healthcare. The teams help us meet and be successful with the task at hand. Health care teams consisting of doctors, nurses, health educators, administrators, and various other professionals not including patients and consumers are effective in their own right. Another positive effect of working in teams involves learning opportunities for the health care professionals. Methods Members of a team must engage in both task work and teamwork processes to achieve their common goal. Task work is the component of the individual member’s performance independent of interaction with other members. Teamwork is the interdependent component of performance necessary to effectively...
Words: 1134 - Pages: 5
...the situation,resentment among team members escalated, why is because others were notcompetent enough to do the work (Mokate 2007).The members of the team should be tolled of their expected roles to play within thegroup or teamwork and team skills seems to be a stagnating point to solving issues andprogressing. Teamwork skills include the following as stipulated by Scarnati (2001:5)“lack of listening skills, lack of respect, sharing, helping and participation. As teams growlarger, the skills and methods that people require grow as more ideas are expressedfreely but the problem is other teams cannot keep up with the rapid growth of teams andoften experience the following problems: • Absence of trust – it develops from the teams unwillingness to be vulnerablewithin the group and team members are often not genuinely open with oneanother about mistakes and weaknesses and making it impossible to build afoundation for trust. • Fear of Conflict – teams that lack trust are incapable of engaging in unfilteredpassionate debate of ideas and instead the only solution is resort to veileddiscussions and guarded comments.The causes of teamwork failure is group size cause large groups less productivityand coordination losses is mostly to take place within that organization, meaninginefficiency that result from the group member’s inability to combine their resource in a maximally productive way. Social loafing is the other ingredient of factors inhibiting teamwork success, thus, relaxation that...
Words: 2527 - Pages: 11
...of effective teams: a literature review Characteristics of effective teams: a literature review SHARON MICKAN AND SYLVIA RODGER Sharon Mickan is a PhD student and Sylvia Rodger is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Occupational Therapy at The University of Queensland. Sharon holds a NH&MRC Public Health Postgraduate Research Scholarship. Abstract Effective healthcare teams often elude consistent definition because of the complexity of teamwork. Systems theory offers a dynamic view of teamwork, in which input conditions are transformed via optimum throughput processes into maximal output. This article describes eighteen characteristics of effective teams across input conditions and teamwork processes, which have been identified from the literature. Background Research into team effectiveness has traditionally searched for characteristics of effective teams. Quantitative evaluations of specific interventions have largely been inconclusive and emphasised the need for further research (Schwartzmann 1986). The complexity of team functioning precludes reducing teams to their least number of components. Rather, a systems theory approach recognises the relationships and interdependence between and within teams. Given the importance of teamwork to delivering healthcare, a better understanding of how teams function effectively will be invaluable for educating and developing teams. This article will summarise and evaluate characteristics that create and maintain teams in healthcare...
Words: 4003 - Pages: 17
...HR3010 Assignment 1: Literature Review What is the influence of 4 dimensions of Corporate Culture on Organizational Commitment on Organizational Commitment? Table of Content Introduction 3 Training and development 4 Teamwork 5 Employee/Organizational Communication 6 Emphasis on Reward 7 Corporate culture and organizational commitment 8 References 9 Introduction The employee attitude on organizational commitment has changed nowadays; they would no longer want to stay with a particular company for their whole working life. In the past, employees might be happy to remain in the organization where it could provide good job security. However, the competitive pressure from their competitors has made many organizations reluctant to focus on downsizing, restructuring therefore created less job security provided to employees. Many employees considered that their organization has broken the secure organizational bond and unhappiness might bring employees to tend to begin their new job search. With the idea of finding a new job, employees therefore might demotivate with their current job and underperform in the organization. It will become a huge issue for the organization to achieve their objectives as no organizations in fact, can survive in today’s competitive world unless their employees work effectively and are committed to the organization’s goals. Hence, organizations have no choice but have to consider maintaining their employees, especially...
Words: 3562 - Pages: 15
...A Plan for Positive Influence Teamwork is defined as an action performed by a group of people to develop goals and achieve a mission (Robbins & Judge, 2011). Working in teams is an advantage because the productivity of diversified people, working on the same task, is always greater than one person. For years, organizational leaders have recognized the value of having employees work in teams (Robbins &Judge, 2011). Companies who have choose teamwork, have expressed that the performance and work production have increased. Team work can improve job satisfaction and achievement for employees. An example of this, working in teams improves employees’ performance and also makes the work enjoyable to them. The biggest advantage of working in teams is the workload is shared among the team members. Team members will create a plan for positive influence. This plan will discuss the differences in attitudes, emotions, personalities, and values as well as how these differences influence behavior positively in a business setting. The plan will also adopt a plan for increasing motivation, satisfaction, and performance in a team. Attitudes, emotions, personalities, and values are different with each team member. Recognizing the strengths, weaknesses, values, and personalities can help in determining what each team member can provide and how each team member can motivate each other to complete the task. Motivation, satisfaction, and performance are necessary in a business setting...
Words: 894 - Pages: 4
...New training and mentoring program Interclean Cassandra Settles University of Pheonix Training and Mentoring Needs Due to the reorganization of the sales team and the shifting focus of the sales force, it is important that the team be educated with the necessary tools required and be prepared to take on this challenge. The new sales team will consist of members from InterClean, as well as members from EnviroTech and they are going to need training to learn how to tackle the changes that are occurring. The current sales team is made up of three members from EnviroTech, who have excellent customer service skills with some sales experience. They are used to creating relationships with the customer and for the most part, are knowledgeable in customer service skills. They are also used to working in a diverse team environment. Although these employees have great customer appreciation, they could use some training in sales strategies. The rest of the team is made up of employees from InterClean. These employees have excellent sales strategies and are aggressive in meeting and exceeding sales goals. They are not, however, used to working in a team environment and could use some training on their customer service skills. By training the team in customer service, they will learn how to serve their customers and by doing so, will hopefully help to form business relationships with the customers and increase the rate of returning customers. With the amount...
Words: 1486 - Pages: 6
...Due to the reorganization of the sales team and the shifting focus of the sales force, it is important that the team be educated with the necessary tools required and be prepared to take on this challenge. The new sales team will consist of members from InterClean, as well as members from EnviroTech and they are going to need training to learn how to tackle the changes that are occurring. The current sales team is made up of three members from EnviroTech, who have excellent customer service skills with some sales experience. They are used to creating relationships with the customer and for the most part, are knowledgeable in customer service skills. They are also used to working in a diverse team environment. Although these employees have great customer appreciation, they could use some training in sales strategies. The rest of the team is made up of employees from InterClean. These employees have excellent sales strategies and are aggressive in meeting and exceeding sales goals. They are not, however, used to working in a team environment and could use some training on their customer service skills. By training the team in customer service, they will learn how to serve their customers and by doing so, will hopefully help to form business relationships with the customers and increase the rate of returning customers. With the amount of competition in the market today, it is important to be able to repeated customers. Casio stated, “the ability to solve problems...
Words: 1432 - Pages: 6
...Running Head: EFFECTIVE TEAMWORK AND MOTIVATION 1 Effective Teamwork and Motivation Teboney D. Torrence Strayer University Business 520 Leadership and Organizational Behavior Dr. Keith A. Graves November 14, 2014 EFFECTIVE TEAMWORK AND MOTIVATION 2 Introduction Ford Motor Company, General Motors, and Nike, all of these companies have a common goal. That goal is to produce a valuable product that consumers will buy. In order to do that each of these companies must have an effective and capable workforce. A company is only as good as its weakest link. If employees perform well, then the products that they produce will reflect that. The question for any CEO of a manufacturing firm must ask themselves is how they can motivate employees to perform to the best of their ability in order to produce an effective product. After working with a small group of people and running our own “mock” company, we evaluated together the best way to successfully motivate employees in a work environment. This paper will seek to evaluate these methods and the possible outcomes of each. A Plan to Motivate Employees What is exactly that motivates employees? Is it money, benefits packages, prestige, or power? To effectively answer what would motivate a human employee, it is important to understand human behavior. Effective motivational plans first understand the human before implementing...
Words: 1667 - Pages: 7