Effective Teams

Effective Teams .... Some Guidelines

Terry R. Dettmann

Introduction
There is no question that todays emphasis on teams is more than just a management fad. Research in organizational effectiveness has repeatedly validated the view that teams are valuable to an organization. However, teams can be done right or they can be done wrong. When done well, teams can bring a lot of good things to an organization. When done poorly, they can sap motivation out of an organization faster than almost anything else. Ineffective teams are a bad sign for the future of an organization. If were going to do them, we need to do them right. This paper is a summarization of my own experiences, both good and bad with teams over the years and current results from the literature on organizational development about what it takes to make a successful team. The primary references for many of the summary lists here was Fogg (1994).

Benefits of teams
Effective teams bring a lot of good things to an organization. Some of the more important include: Collaboration Communication Commitment Realism A Doable Pace Accountability

What the team members get out of it

The organization isnt the sole beneficiary of a teaming environment. Team members who participate in successful, effective teams may actually get more in the long run. Among the many things people find they get in teams are: Trust Creativity Strategic Thinking A Broader Perspective

Types of teams
There are four basic types of teams present in the workplace: 1. 2. 3. Business and functional management teams - these are long lasting teams such as the Executive Committee. Formal Program Teams - these are formal teams set up with specific objectives and a definite life cycle. Informal Program Teams - these teams come together informally to solve particular problems.

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Effective Teams 4. Ongoing Work Teams - these are the self-directed work teams which we see so much in popular writings about teams.

What Makes an Effective Team

Effective teams are characterized by a number of factors. While a number of studies have come up with different lists, a quick look shows that there is considerable overlap in them. Ive selected three representative lists:

Fogg, Team based Strategic Planning

Considerable discussion Open communication Debate, even conflict, on key issues Decision by consensus whenever possible Monitoring, measuring, and correcting of the own team behaviors

McGregor, The Human Side of Enterprise

The task or objective of the group is well understood The atmosphere is informal/relaxed There is a lot of pertinent discussion Members listen to each other There is disagreement/conflict Criticism is constructive, frank, frequent, and relatively comfortable

Dyer, Team Building

Goals and values are clear; they are understood and accepted by everyone. People are oriented to goals and results. People understand their assignments and how their roles contribute to the work of the whole The basic climate is one of trust and support among members Communications are open. People are willing and have an opportunity to share all data relevant to the goals of the team and the organization. People are allowed to participate in making decisions. They make free, informed decisions - not decisions they think the power people want. Everyone implements decisions with commitment. Leaders are supportive of other s and have a high personal performance standards. Differences are recognized and handled, not ignored or brushed over lightly. The team structure and procedures are consistent with the tasks, goals, and people involved.

The bibliography gives references to a lot of other work in the area. Feel free to follow-up on it if youre interested. Two critical success factors which are basic to all of the others are first that everyone on the team knows what their goals are. The team has to be launched with a clear understanding of what its supposed to do. Second, teaming is not something which just happens. It requires skills which are unfortunately not terribly common in our culture. This was one of the big failures of TQM efforts over the last ten years, that teams were imposed on people assuming that the teaming environment would automatically generate effective teams. Teams require special skills. Japanese culture values many of these skills, but American culture in general does not. Teams need special training in team skills and professional facilitation to get started properly.

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Effective Teams

What Makes an Effective Team Member

Effective team members need very special skills to succeed in a team environment. Not everyone has these skills. Most people can learn these skills with a combination of training and practical experience. Some people either cant or wont learn them and must be gotten rid of as soon as possible. The basic skills are: an ability listen well the ability to participate and contribute able to represent their own area of expertise gives up turf issues for the sake of the whole takes a multifunctional perspective on the issues can set aside his or her own ego is flexible, secure, competent, and inclusive

In addition to these basic skills, a good team member must develop good meeting skills as well: Stand up meeting facilitation Consensus building Probing and questioning for information and clarification Restating and clarifying issues Summarizing concepts and meeting segments Framing concepts and issues Identifying issues and solving problems Giving and receiving feedback supportively Generating ideas Observing and processing team effectiveness

Starting Teams
Successful teams sometimes just happen, but not usually. Where successful teams recur frequently, the team is carefully picked for success. This is particularly important when first moving into the teaming environment. If the first teams arent carefully picked for success, they can slow down the transition to an effective teaming environment. The first major choice for a successful team is the team leader. The team leader has to be able to take on a number of tasks for the team: Facilitating the team Developing the team and building the team culture Managing the company hierarchy Coordinating team member efforts outside of meetings Performing functional tasks Sharing leadership

In addition to the characteristics of good team members, leaders also need to have: Experience in leading teams or the capability to learn Functional expertise in one or more areas important to the project Respect from peers

Team members have to be chosen just as carefully. There will generally be two types of team members, 1) permanent members who will be there from start to finish, and 2) temporary members who are brought in for

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Effective Teams a period because of their ability to help the team deal with its problems. Permanent team members should have the following qualifications: Functional and technical expertise that contributes to the program Time taken from their regular jobs to devote to the team Authority to commit resources from their functional areas or the ability to get them quickly Potential to be team players and to develop team skills.

In addition, they must have the following characteristics: good communication skills collegial open to questions and conflict willing to work out compromises with other functions honest direct

In summary, the major success factors in building effective teams are: 1. 2. 3. 4. Give the team a clear charter Choose the team members carefully Train the team members Provide professional facilitation

What Can Go Wrong with Teams

More than most people realize, there are a lot of things which can go wrong with teams. Ill-conceived teams thrown together with little thought to the factors which make teams successful are likely to result in a whole host of problems. Some thrown together teams will be successful, but usually only through the random matching of factors needed for success. Most such teams will suffer from a number of potential problems.

Root Causes of Problems

Most team problems, when carefully analyzed, boil down to one of three root causes. These are: 1. 2. 3. Impatience Conflicting Job Demands Frustration of Working in a New Environment

Avoiding Conflict
In order to avoid conflicts at the organizational level which can lead to problems, we need to: Agree on how long the team will operate and how much time is needed from each team member Back-fill the team members regular job if necessary Reward team results separately from regular job performance but including both in team members appraisals Make functional bosses responsible for their subordinates team performance by including effective team performance in the bosss performance objectives

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Effective Teams

Typical Team Problems

Certain types of problems recur so frequently in teams having problems that its worthwhile to lis t them: Bosses or non-team members meddle The boss is on the team Some team members dont or wont contribute A team member is incompetent There are time conflicts with other jobs The team lacks control over resources needed Members lack team and facilitation skills There are personality/style conflicts Members carry negative baggage from prior jobs

The Teams Environment

Successful teams have been able to cope with bad environments, but again its the exception and not the rule. Two major environmental factors affect teams more than any other: 1) the organizations buy-in to the team and its purpose, and 2) the supervision the team receives.

Organizational Buy-In
The organization creates the environment in which the team operates. A supportive environment which is genuinely interested in the results the team is going to produce can energize a team to perform beyond anyones expectations. A hostile environment can doom a team to failure no matter how good the people are in it. A supportive environment is more than just interest in the team though, its a whole culture which values teams and teaming. Its characterized by informal teams forming and unforming in response to the needs of the organization.

Supervising Teams
Proper supervision, neither too loose nor too tight, also contributes to team success. Supervisors need to be involved enough to know what the teams needs and to provide it. But supervisors must never meddle in the teams functioning. Supervisors have four primary roles in a teaming environment: to resolve conflicts that cannot be resolved by the team to give direction and functional expertise to the team and to members needing help to find the needed resources to judge the performance of the team and its individual members

Team Building
Team building is a long-term process which involves much more than simply bringing a bunch of people together in a room and declaring them to be a team. A long term team, such as an executive committee may take several years to gel into an effective team. Teams with short term goals need professional facilitation to jump start the team building process as well as training in effective team skills. Team building is also needed

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Effective Teams in teams which currently exist, but arent successful in getting done what they need to do. Teams exist to accomplish something. Even if all the other factors like high motivation, openness, and communication are present, a team is not successful if it doesnt DO something.

Basic Team Building Process

A basic model for the development of a team under the guidance of a skilled facilitator, involves four steps: discuss how well the team does or does not function in accomplishing its job identify barriers to the teams effective functioning decide how to change team behavior, structure, and process to make the team function more effectively critique the style and contributions of team members and suggest ways for individuals to improve how they serve the team learn team management and process skills to be more effective personally and to train their subordinates in those skills

Dimensions of Effective Teams

Coordination Communication Probing and Listening Conflict and Disagreement Meeting Quality Participation Planning Objectives and Expectations Decision Making/Problem Solving Facilitation Representation of the Team to the Organization Candor/Feedback Execution/Follow-up

Models for Team Building

Four Step Model: 1. 2. 3. 4. Team members do pre-session work prior to attending a team building session Members attend a one- to three-day, professionally facilitated team-building meeting where they share ratings of the team and agree on strengths and weaknesses Members share ratings of each other on all of the dimensions of effective teams The team agrees on a continuing process.

Techniques for Facilitating Teams

A Facilitator Must be Able to: get information from the group boil the information down to key issues and problems

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Effective Teams lead discussions to debate, further define, and clarify issues develop solutions to problems and conflicts gain consensus on issues and actions to be taken ensure that critical decisions are made even when there is conflict or no consensus test to see if the group process is working

One of the first things a facilitator should help a team adopt is a set of meeting rules. This is a sample set of such rules which might provide a good starting point for a team developing its own: Set the agenda in advance All team members attend unless exc used Be on time Review and agree on an agenda Stick to the agenda Agree on and stick to the timing No side conversations No interruptions, phone calls, or wandering in and out Team members use good meeting behavior Summarize results and action steps at the end, send them out in writing

Facilitators also need to have a grab bag of techniques they can use to advance group processes. These techniques should also become part of the groups toolkit as it develops and becomes able to work without the facilitator. Ill summarize ten tools which are used by effective teams to address their tasks:

Round-Robin Idea Generation

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Complete private prework, either before the meeting or in a reserved period at the start Use a Round Robin to solicit and record ideas with minimal explanation and clarification questions only Consolidate the ideas Discuss the ideas Gain consensus

Brainstorming
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Review brainstorming rules Frame the task Generate ideas randomly, feeding on each idea and each other, list them for all to see Cull the list and combine ideas Discuss, challenge, and explain the ideas Rank the ideas Assign the ideas for follow-up

Consensus
Method 1: List Voting
1. 2. Number the ideas Verbally summarize them

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Effective Teams 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Give each team member 3-4 votes Ask the team to vote privately Vote on each idea Re-rank the ideas Compile and record the final list

Method 2: Prepared Position

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Present the prepared position Discuss issues List opinion differences Prioritize differences Resolve differences by consensus or CEO discussion Summarize the changes

Random Idea Generation - list ideas

1. 2. Summarize what you believe to be consensus Ask for vote or head nod

Storyboarding
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Frame the issue or concept Do private prework - one card per word or phrase Serially: 1) wall the cards, 2) allow open observation, 3) facilitate consensus areas, divergences, 4) resolve divergences or assign and defer them Summarize Flesh out key words into statements either in small groups or assigned for later buy-in

Open Discussion
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Establish the subject or range of subjects that will and wont be discussed Define the discussions purpose Establish the time available Open discussion by soliciting inputs at random Facilitate discussion by:: 1) keeping it on the subject, 2) limiting air time. 3) sticking to the timing, 4) getting widespread participation, 5) summarizing frequently, 6) listing key points on a flipchart, and 7) summarizing the overall discussion Synthesize the discussion into conclusions and actions Close by getting agreement and consensus

6. 7.

Problem Solving
1. 2. 3. 4. Frame the problem and write it down Brainstorm the root causes Discuss them Assign impacts and classify them as major, moderate, or minor

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Effective Teams 5. 6. 7. Identify solutions by brainstorming, discussion, or round-robin techniques Develop implementation action plans Assign actions

Small-Group Techniques
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Frame the issue Establish: 1) Leader, 2) Recorder, 3) Presentation method, 4) Time, and 5) Suggested method Monitor and nudge the groups as needed Present the findings Discuss and contrast the results

Solution Development
1. 2. 3. 4. Do prework State the priority issue Create small groups with either single or multiple assignments Provide the assignment: 1) Frame the issue, 2) 1-, 3-yr objectives, 3) List all how ideas, 4) Condense and discuss the ideas, and 5) Review who, what, and when, the impact, and the coordination requirements

Fishbowling
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Present and discuss all sides of an issue Summarize the discussion Frame the issues to be decided Put a small decision-making team in front of the larger group with the rules: 1) Set time limits for debate, 2) No inputs from onlookers unless asked, and 3) Must come out with a decision Decision-making team facilitates own fishbowled meeting to final decision

Process Check
Discussion or Round Robin: 1) Whats been accomplished, 2) What could have been improved, and 3) Positive and negative team behaviors OR use a QC questionnaire later

There are lots of other techniques which teams can bring to bear. Teams should also be free to experiment with techniques, developing new ones or combining old ones to produce effective solutions to team problems.

Personal Intervention
Facilitators sometimes have to personally intervene when problems come up. This should be done minimally when it needs to be done. Long term, effective teams can usually deal with these issues directly, and they should be encouraged to. However, new teams or teams which are having problems will need this sort of personal attention to get over problems they arent ready to cope with. Some of these problems are:

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Effective Teams Organizational problems with structure or overall discontent and confusion Dysfunctional teams Critical unsurfaced issues Bad decisions CEO style Managerial style or conflict Performance or competence problems Resourcing

Bibliography
This bibliography attempts to pull together current references of interest to anyone who wants to work in or with teams. Many of these books give specific prescriptions for successful teams (Fogg, 1994). Others discuss cultural issues which are general to groups of people who work together (Argyris, 1990). Others deal with skills which are useful for groups (Senge, 1994 or Schein, 1987). Argyris, Chris, Knowledge for Action, Jossey-Bass Publishers, San Francisco, Ca. 1993. Argyris, Chris, Overcoming Organizational Defenses, Allyn and Bacon, Needham Heights, Ma. 1990. Beer, Michael, Organization Change by Development, Goodyear Publishers, Santa Monica, Ca., 1980. Burleson, Clyde W., Effective Meetings, John Wiley & Sons, New York, 1990. Clark, Neil, Team Building, McGraw Hill, London, 1994. Covey, Stephen R., First Things First, Simon & Schuster, New York, 1994 Covey, Stephen R., Principle Centered Leadership, Summit Books, New York, 1991 Daft, Richard L., Organization Theory and Design, 3rd Ed., West Publishing Co., St. Paul, Mn, 1989. Daniels, Aubrey C., Bringing Out the Best in People, McGraw Hill, New York, 1994. Doyle, Michael and David Straus, How to Make Meeting Work, Jove Books, New York, 1976. Dyer, William G., Contemporary Issues in Management and Organization Development, Addison-Wesley, Reading, Ma., 1983. Dyer, William G., Team Building, Addison-Wesley, Reading, Ma., 1995. Fallon, Howard, How to Implement Information Systems and Live to Tell About It, John Wiley and Sons, New York, 1995. Fogg, C. Davis, Team Based Strategic Planning, American Management Association, New York, 1994. Forsyth, Donelson R., Group Dynamics, Brooks/Cole Publishing, Pacific Grove, Ca., 1990. Gordon, Judith R., Organizational Behavior, 2nd Ed., Allyn and Bacon, Boston, Ma., 1987. Hall, Richard H., Organizations: Structures, Processes, & Outcomes, 5th Ed., Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, NJ, 1991. Handy, Charles, Understanding Organizations, Oxford University Press, New York, 1993. Hanna, David P.., Designing Organizations for High Performance, Addison-Wesley Publishing, Reading, Ma., 1988. Hersey, Paul and Kenneth H. Blanchard, Management of Organizational Behavior, Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, NJ, 1993. Joiner, Brian L., Fourth Generation Management, McGraw Hill, New York, 1994. Kline, Peter and Bernard Saunders, Ten Steps to a Learning Organization, Great Ocean Publishers, Arlington, Va., 1993. Leavitt, Harold J., Managerial Psychology, 4th Ed., University of Chicago Press, Chicago, Il.,1978. McGregor, Douglas, The Human Side of Enterprise, McGraw Hill, New York, 1960. Parker, Glenn M., Team Players and Teamwork, Jossey Bass Publishers, San Francisco, 1991. Reece, Barry L. and Rhonda Brandt, Effective Human Relations in Organizations, 4th Ed., Houghton Mifflin, Boston, Ma., 1990. Schein, Edgar H., Process Consultation, Vol I: Its Role in Organization Development, 2nd Ed., AddisonWesley Publishing, Reading, Ma., 1988.

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Effective Teams Schein, Edgar H., Process Consultation, Vol II: Lessons for Managers and Consultants., Addison-Wesley Publishing, Reading, Ma., 1987. Schwarz, Roger M., The Skilled Facilitator, Jossey-Bass Publishers, San Francisco, Ca., 1994. Senge, Peter M., Charlotte Roberts, Richard B. Ross, Bryan J. Smith, and Art Kleiner, The Fifth Discipline Fieldbook, Doubleday, New York, 1994. Senge, Peter M., The Fifth Discipline, Doubleday, New York, 1992. Szilagyi, Andrew D. and Marc J. Wallace, Organizational Behavior and Performance, 5th Ed., HarperCollins Publishers, New York, 1990. Thompson, LeRoy, Mastering the Challenges of Change, American Management Association, New York, 1994. Tjosvold, Dean and Mary M., Psychology for Leaders, John Wiley & Sons, New York, 1995. Tobin, Daniel R., Re-Educating the Corporation, Oliver Wright Publications,Essex Junction, Vt., 1993. Wood, Jane and Denise Silver, Joint Application Development, John Wiley and Sons, New York, 1995.

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