Teamwork Theory By Katzenback & Smith

Importance of teamwork is that when a team works well together they tend to understand their team members strengths and weaknesses. Strong teamwork can benefit from the team members and I say this because they become more capable at splitting up tasks so that they are accomplished by the members of the team that are more highly qualified. If businesses didn’t have strong teamwork within their business, it could make everything a lot harder for managers of the business to settle certain staff members, whom can fulfil tasks at their incomparable standard.

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)

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.

A team is something more than a collection of individuals. Teamwork is a group of people working together to achieve the same goal. The whole is more than a sum of the parts. A team can be identified by evidence of some or all of the following:

| “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

Hoegl & Gemuenden (2001) observed that the definition of teamwork is a social system including more than three people in an organization or context. These members identity others as one member of the team and they have the same goal. Robbins (2001) stated that the factors influencing teamwork are relation of leadership, roles, principles, status, size, composition and the power of agglomerate.

What is teamwork? Teamwork is defined as "a formal work group consisting of people who work together intensely to achieve a common group goal." (University of Phoenix, Apollo Library, 2007). A group becomes a team when members demonstrate a commitment to one another to reach a common goal. There is a high degree of cohesiveness and accomplishment in a team. Simply put two heads are often better than one. (University of Phoenix, Apollo Library, 2007). Teamwork can help us communicate in many ways.

Teamwork is the joint action by a group to complete a given task. This was displayed by group 20 as each member contributed their individual knowledge and skills towards the team as well as the course objective.

What is a team/group? A team/group is a group of people who form together to complete a mutual goal such as a presentation, paper, discussing a topic or creating a new design. How does a team/group become a high-performance group/team? A high-performance group/team comes from a knowledgeable group of individuals working together to complete a common goal or task. These group/team members must use the

Teamwork is the backbone of effective communication and the crucial cog that keeps the wheel of successful project management turning. The role of teamwork in enhancing problem solving skills, cohesion, learning, and productivity can no longer be ignored. Proper teamwork plays an integral role in promoting the effective implementation and fulfillment of shared goals in a team project in a manner that is better and quicker. Team work also provides a solid platform on which team members can take on different responsibilities and contribute in ways that together makes the entire team an effective unit.

While team dynamics and cohesion play a great role in the success of any team, we believe that external factors (situation, system) can profoundly affect behavior and performance. The importance of creating an environment that supports great people and encourages them to support one another so the whole is far greater than the sum of the parts is undermined by this statement. Even a great team can’t be guaranteed to fix a mediocre idea or come up with good ones every time. The system/environment have a big role in the success of a team.

Teamwork is defined in Webster's New World Dictionary as "a joint action by a group of people, in which each person subordinates his or her individual interests and opinions to the unity and efficiency of the group." This does not mean that the individual is no longer important; however, it does mean that effective and efficient teamwork goes beyond individual accomplishments. The most effective teamwork is produced when all the individuals involved harmonize their contributions and work towards a common goal.

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:

Commitment and involvement- the team should be able to understand the goals and should be committed in achieving them

A team is a group of people working together to achieve the same objectives. Katzenbach and Smith state in their report The Discipline of Teams (1993) that ‘the essence of a team is common commitment. Without it, groups perform as individuals; with it, they become a powerful unit of collective performance.’ Throughout this study, I will analyse the many different advantages and disadvantages of working in teams and its effects on team members and their performance and commitment within the team. I will consider many different aspects of team work and refer to certain established theories in