Team Development Manual

Mike Woodcock

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2017
• ISBN:
  9781351895873
• Edition: 2
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Management
• Index: Business

In the modern organization most tasks are accomplished by teams. This bestselling manual brings together basic theory, a diagnostic instrument, descriptions of the key elements of effective teamwork and a detailed guide to sources of further information to help, both in the UK and overseas. A particularly valuable feature is the 'building blocks' questionnaire that allows the manager or trainer to identify specific weaknesses in his or her team and to decide an appropriate action for overcoming them. The companion volume 50 Activities for Teambuilding provides a unique collection of structured experiences for use with the manual. With its practical, down-to-earth approach, Team Development Manual will appeal to managers in every type of organization, as well as to personnel and training specialists and advisers - in short, to everyone with an interest in improving the way people work together.

Part I
Basic Theory

Part I contains eight sections:

1 What is a team? We start with a definition of a team and consider the various types of teams commonly found in organizations.

2 What is teamwork? Some of the symptoms of poor teamwork are described and the characteristics of effective teamwork are outlined.

3 The stages of team development. The four essential stages are described to help teams to understand team development.

4 The limitations of teambuilding. This is included to warn that teambuilding solutions may be applied inappropriately.

5 The role of the team leader. The unique but essential role of the team leader is explained, priorities for effective team functioning are given and the characteristics of effective teambuilding are stated.

6 Action planning. A simple form of planning to help you take teambuilding decisions in a logical and sensible order.

7 Groundrules for team development. Some basic 'do's and don'ts' about teambuilding presented as a checklist which you can use to guide all of your teambuilding efforts.

8 Designing teambuilding events. To help you in planning tailor-made teambuilding events, some guidelines for designing events are included together with the principles of adult learning and their implications for teambuilding. Examples of how the theory and activities in this book can be used to form the basis of learning events are also given.

By using these eight sections you will avoid one of the serious problems of development - the potential gap between theory and practice.

1 What is a team?

Over the years that I have been working as a management consultant and writing about management topics many 'management' fashions have come and gone. Some have had little effect on the thinking of managers but others have left their mark. In 1979 when I wrote Team Development Manual little had been written about the subject but since then more and more has been written and more and more managers have become alive to the possibilities of improved performance through effective Teamwork. Team development is now fashionable!

The reasons are not difficult to see. As the world becomes more and more one economy so international competition becomes more severe. Opportunities are greater and so are threats. Business problems become more complex and it becomes increasingly necessary for people to work together to solve those problems. Organizations become larger as economies of scale dictate that only the biggest can take on the international competition. As they become larger so they become more complex and the necessity for people to work effectively together, often across national boundaries, becomes greater. It is those organizations which can harness the abilities of people that survive and succeed. Teamwork is the vehicle for making that happen.

A team is 'A group of people who share common objectives and who need to work together to achieve them^'. Teams can be found on the sports field, in non-profit making social organizations or in commerce and industry. The primary focus of this book is team development in the working environment but the concepts and ideas can be applied wherever a group of people share common objectives and need to 'work' together in order to achieve them. They do not need to be paid to work together.

A team is not a social gathering where people meet lor the purpose of enjoyment, neither is it an 'audience' of people who are assembled to listen or to learn. The House of Commons is not a team as its members do not share common objectives. Committees are not usually teams because they comprise people who represent different interest groups. Often they share concerns but they lack a unified commitment to action.

Teams can provide unique opportunities, they can make things happen which would not happen if the team did not exist.

• Like a family, they can provide support and help to their members.
• They can co-ordinate the activities of individuals.
• They can generate commitment.
• They can provide a 'place to be' so meeting a basic human need to belong.
• They can identify training and development needs.
• They can provide learning opportunities.
• They can enhance communication.
• They can provide a satisfying, stimulating and enjoyable working environment.

There can be many types of team in an organization.

Top teams

They set key objectives and develop the strategy of the organization. Because they have a broad task, they need a broad membership representing all aspects of the organization. Sometimes they may have temporary members who join them to contribute a particular expertise at a particular time.

Management teams

They set more detailed objectives and co-ordinate and control the work of others. They provide the day-to-day leadership in organizations. They need to be able to relate to the main body of members of the organization. They allocate resources and plan operations, devise development strategies and manage the boundaries between different functions.

Operator teams

These are the people who get the job done. They may work on machines or assembly lines. They may deliver goods or services. They may serve people in shops, in restaurants or on aeroplanes. They are the people who perform the primary task of the organization. They transfer inputs into outputs.

Technical teams

These are the people who set the standards in the organization. They may be technical standards, production standards or service standards but they ensure that there is a uniform approach. As organizations become larger the need for standardization becomes more apparent.

Support teams

These teams generally exist outside of the normal work flow of the organization. They provide the indirect support which is needed to enable those who 'get the job done' to operate efficiently. Often they enable control to take place.

A Further Word About Top Teams

We all know that water flows downhill. Almost all organization development efforts are best started at the top. Not only will ideas flow more freely downwards than upwards but people are more likely to take the possibilities of change more seriously if they can see that those at the top are committed to it.

For many reasons trainers are reluctant to start at the top, often because access may be difficult, because trainers do not occupy a sufficiently central or senior role, because time pressures tend to be more severe at the top or simply that the trainer does not feel qualified to address top management issues. However, it is often the case that top teams are ignorant of the possibilities of team development and they are often grateful for team building interventions. Top teams are an area where many organizations choose to use external consultants who are free of day to day internal politics.

The main roles of the top team are to:

Develop strategy

• To analyse the environment and decide on the direction of the organization.
• To assess the competition and to identify business opportunities.
• To 'envision' what the future will look like, a...