Team Development Techniques

During the 1970’s, Dr Meredith Belbin and a team of researchers conducted research on a number of teams in an attempt to discover what aspects of a team’s dynamics can contribute towards the teams overall success or failure. They discovered that the success or failure of a team was not dependent upon the individual team members intellect but upon their behaviour. Following Belbin’s publication in 1981 of Team Role Analysis he concluded that there are nine key roles that are aligned to an individual’s behaviour that can contribute to the make up of a team. It is essential that as a leader I am able to understand the possible behavioural role that an individual may exhibit when

-Create an environment where team members can identify and solve problems on their own, delegating real power and responsibility - Demonstrate and articulate the values of the organization -Look for ways to use staff's interests and strengths in directly supporting people - Share decision making

Teamwork cannot be demanded. Everyone involved must discuss and understand what the goal is and what is required of them. Teams should have traits such as goals and objectives, empowerment, trust, authentic participation, innovation, creativity, risk taking and leadership. (Temme and Katzel, 1995)

Positive leadership is important for effective team performance. Everyone needs to work together and be focused by supporting each other to achieve shared goals. It is very important that each member of the team is clear on their roles and responsibilities. Staff should have respect and understanding for their manager. The manager needs to be aware of the skills and the weaknesses within the team and be able to provide support when necessary. Training and support improves staff performance and develops confidence and team spirit.

A successful team can be represented by various characteristics which include respect for one another, a sense of purpose, commitment to the aims of the team which are demonstrated every day by each team member and regular communication between team members.

A team is a type of organizational group with independent members. They share common goals and work together to meet these goals (Northouse, 2016). The organization where I work has teams at various levels for maximizing the success. These teams include, core teams, coordinating teams, patient aligned care team (PACT), contingency teams, ancillary teams, support and administration teams (Veterans Health Administration [VHA], 2015). Some of these teams have interdepartmental members while others have intradepartmental staff. Successful teams have a concrete blueprint and that contributes to their effective functioning. There are several factors that affect these teams irrespective of the level. The factors comprise the presence of a clear task, separation from non-team members, authority, and stability. The factors like working conditions, team process and bridging the gaps are concerns for the executive level. The complexity of the task, individual skills and their diverse specializations affect the selection of the team members. The team’s meaningful interactions decide their success. Independent teams can help promote friendly competition within the organization and lead to better staff performance. An efficient leader can design and launch an effective team through careful planning and selection of the right members. He/she keeps the factors that affect the success of the team in mind when designing the teams. The patient care units

Clear responsibilities and roles, the structure of the team, job descriptions, competencies, accountabilities, resources, tools and equipment should all be provided. Problem solving, communicating, managing conflicts, tasks, planning meetings, performance evaluation, managing change and decision making should follow clear procedures ensuring effective team working. Positive relationships, mutual respect and trust, continuing support and inclusion, valuing diversity and listening to feedback can overcome challenges to effective team performance. A strong credible leader with clear expectations can also overcome challenges to an effective team.

| “The top 10 features of an effective team are: * clear purpose; * open communication; * constructive conflict; * effective problem-solving and decision making; * defined roles, responsibilities and accountability; * strong relationships; * systems and procedures; * experimentation and creativity; * measurement and self-assessment; * shared leadership.” For a team to be effective, they need to have clear

Understand how these characteristics of team members can help contribute to the project and how they can best benefit the team.

When teams are performing at their best, you are likely to find that each team member has cleared responsibility. You’ll also see that every team member needed to achieve their own personal goals in order for the team’s goal to be fully met to an adequate level. Dr Mereditch Belbin studied team work for many years and he mainly observed that people in teams tend to assume different roles within the team. He defined a team role as a “tendency to behave,

In the workplace, teams play a very important role in goal achievement. With the help and support of a team leader, the organization can become very successful as long as the team is effective and cooperative. There are many different leadership styles/theories that make each leader unique and effective in their own way. It is not just the leader though that has to be effective. The team as a whole needs to come together and being efficient. Team building strategies are very helpful and effective to bring everyone together. Although working in a team is very effective in most cases, conflicts can still arise. In order to bring everyone back together again conflict resolutions need to be put into place such as the problem solving technique.

An effective and productive team doesn't just happen. It requires structures, support and processes that encourage development. Team building happens over time. When building and developing a cohesive, effective and productive team you need to determine how your team fits and the roles they play in the organisation. Does anything need to be changed? How and when can these changes be put into action? Organisational, strategic and operational plans need to contain suitable mechanisms for supporting team development.

You will work on your course project in teams of five or six. Your team will accomplish many tasks to successfully finish your project. You have some experience working on teams or with partners in previous courses. You may have been considering and planning whom you want to work with. How we select design teams in the course progression is important and worthy of comment. Increasingly, students participate in team selection to enhance their learning. Exposure to multiple perspectives, thinking styles, and peer interaction supports the ability to form and manage highly productive teams. In this course, we examine tools for developing effective teamwork to better support your design experience.

The personal style and personalities of each member in a group may be influence their team effectiveness. Individuals will tend to play an important role in a group and depend on their personality and working group style. To improve a team and effectiveness in project or working, each team member need to understand the role of every member in a group. With 3 contemporary theories of team roles to use in our group is:

How do these strategies apply to a team that you are or have been a participating member?