The Importance Of Team Work

Management Essay
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The essay begins with an attempt to define the nature of teams and groups and
considers the differences between the two. This is followed by a discussion of why
teamwork is important to contemporary organisations. After which, the conditions
necessary for effective team working is discussed drawing on Tuckman (1965) model
of group development. Then a discussion of group processes that lead to ineffective
teamwork are considered. Finally, the impact of technology is considered on the
effect of teams and the rise of virtual teams before a conclusion is made.

Defining Groups and Teams

A definition of a team may assume that the team has, or is working towards a
common goal (Pynadeth and Tambe, 2002). A team can be defined as "groups of
people embedded in organisations, performing tasks that contribute to achieving the
organisation's goals. They share overall work objectives. They have the necessary
authority, autonomy and resources to achieve these objectives" (West, 2004, p.18).
The difference between a group and a team is that members of a team "share a
common goal they are pursuing collaboratively. Moreover, they can only succeed or
fail as a whole, and the members of that team share the benefits and costs of success
or failure. In contrast, the members of a (psychological) group may share a number
of common features....but each has his or her own individual goals" (Buchanan and
Hyczynski, 2007, p.379).

Importance of Teamwork
In a contemporary organisations, "what were once competitors are now
collaborators, what were once outsiders are now stakeholders, what were once stark
boundaries are now fuzzy fences. Organisations have now discovered the value of
collaboration, both inside and outside" (Brooks, 2006, p.115).

Teamwork has been linked to economic advantages, higher output, lower

absenteeism and increased employee satisfaction (Steijn, 2001; Brooks, 2006;
Buchanan and Hyczynski, 2007). It has also been shown to lead to less stressful
work, reduced alienation and improved working relationships (Katzenback and
Smith).

Effective Team Working

Certain conditions are necessary for effective teamwork (Buchanan and Hyczsynski,
2007). Several models of team working have been developed, however Tuckman's
Model of Group Development (1965) is one of the most widely used (Murray et al.,
2006, Buchanan and Hyczynski, 2007).
Tuckman (1965) model depicts four stages of group development, which represents a
logical sequence of stages of group development of which every team must go
through in order to work as a cohesive and effective team (Tuckman, 1965; Murray et
al., 2006).
The first stage is forming. Forming is about orientation, socialisation and developing
relationships. Discovering what is acceptable behaviour, focusing on objectives.
Discovering the nature and boundaries of the task, developing team behaviours
The second stage is storming this is about confrontation and conflict and the struggle
for power and influence. At this stage the "group structure shifts towards hostility
and conflict, as members express their individuality and resistance" (Murray et al.,
2006, p.314). During this stage there is conflict over individuals desires to express
their own opinions, which often results in the polarisation of opinions (Buchanan
and Hyczynski, 2007).
The third stage is norming, in this stage groups develop a cohesive approach,
whereby harmonious relations replace conflict and disagreement. During this stage,
communication becomes more open and people are more comfortable with
expressing their opinions, even if it is different to others without fear of
repercussions or thoughts of deviant behaviour (Buchanan and Hyczynski, 2007).
Members begin to develop social interactions that enhance the overall performance
of the group (Murray et al., 2006).
Performing is the final stage of group development, in which teams are finally able to
work as a cohesive unit. This is about team collaboration and the focus is on getting
the task at hand completed and reaching the shared goals of the team. By this stage,

the team should have a thorough understanding of what is required of them, the
problems, challenges and issues they face in reaching their goals and will have
established norms of behaviour that will facilitate the team in meeting its goals
(Tuckman, 1965; Murray et al., 2006).
The team which emerges as a result of these group development stages is a mature
group, capable and willing to complete the tasks as defined by the organisation
(Tuckman, 1965; Murray et al., 2006, Buchanan and Hyczynski, 2007). Arguably, if
the team is not able, for whatever reason to complete the stages of group
development, then the team will be ineffective (Murray et al., 2006). As a result, this
has important implications for managers and team leaders. Group processes and
behaviour cannot be separated from the pursuit of effective team working. Therefore,
leaders and managers must develop and emotional awareness of the influence of the
psychological group on the overall performance of the team (Steijn, 2001; Buchanan
and Hyczynski, 2007)

Factors which Threaten the Success of the Team

Buchanan and Hyczynski (2007) point out that "teamwork of all kinds is fraught with
tensions, conflicts, obstacles and problems. If these are not managed effectively,
rather than surpassing the best members' capabilities, the total group output may
actually equal less than the weakest members efforts" (p.351). This is known as
negative synergy. This can be caused by factors such as negative equity, whereby
other members of the group underperform so the other person thinks 'why should
I?', shirking of responsibility, negative effort of group reward whereby everyone is
rewarded the same regardless of effort and finally, problems of coordination, so
people are obstructing others ability to get on with a task (Buchanan and Hyczynski,
20007). Collectively, this phenomenon has come to be known as social loafing
(Ingham et al., 1974).
In addition to social loafing, problems of group think can have a negative impact on
the performance of teams. Whilst the development of group norms and behaviour
can be beneficial to the team, in its extreme form this can lead to the problem of
group think (Buchanan and Hyczynski, 2007). Group think occurs whereby members
of the group fail to critically analyse, test and evaluate problems, issues and
challenges which face the group (Murray et al., 2006). This may be caused as a
subconscious desire for members to avoid deviating from the prescribed norms of
behaviour and group consensus (Buchanan and Hyczynski, 2007). However, this

leads to ineffective team working, which is not beneficial to the organisation (West,
2004).

Managers and team leaders play a pivotal role in ensuring that the problems of social
loafing and group think does not occur. In addition managers should recognise team
leaders who may advertently or inadvertently encourage the onset of negative
synergy, social loafing and group think and take steps to minimise the impact of their
ineffective team leadership.

Impact of Technology on Team Functioning

Technology plays an increasingly important role on the way in which teams function
(Brooks, 2006). This is because "organisations are becoming increasingly distributed
across geographical boundaries and across industries" (Brooks, 2006, p.115). There
are many different types of technologies that have emerged which facilitate the
development of teamwork both in a virtual and non-virtual teamwork environment.
The rise in computer mediated technology, which facilitates communication,
planning and organisation, has broken down barriers and can contribute towards
making the team more effective (West, 2004; Brooks, 2006). Virtual teams are
becoming an increasingly common extension of traditional organisational structures.
Brooks (2006) describes the process as the following: "virtual organisations,
workplaces and teams are becoming increasingly common place. In a virtual team
the member's primary interaction is through some combination of electronic
communications systems, which allows members of the team to cross time, space
and cultural boundaries (Brooks, 2006, p.110).
The type of technology which facilitates both physical and virtual teams includes the
reduction in costs in recent years of portable PC's and consumer electronics and of
communications devices. For example, laptops have seen a reduction in price and the
majority of modern laptops come with in-built microphones, speakers and web cams
for video conferencing. The cost of international calls has reduced and can even be
made for free using VOIP (voice over internet protocol) technologies, such as Skype
and Google Voice.

Conclusion
Teamwork is becoming increasingly important in contemporary organisations, and
as long as teams are formed, managed and implemented effectively, can provide a

source of competitive advantage in terms of increased employee satisfaction,

creativity and innovation. However, if teams are assigned to inappropriate tasks, are
managed ineffectively or not provided with adequate support, resources and
autonomy to carry out their tasks then the effect of teamwork can be
counterproductive. Teams are formal groups assigned by management that have
shared goals. There is a difference between teams and groups; groups can exist
without teams but teams cannot exist without groups. Therefore, the impact of group
behaviour and group dynamics will have a significant impact on the overall
performance of the team. Therefore, management must be awareness of the presence
of groups that create their own norms and personal goals, which may deviate from
the objectives of the team. Therefore, teamwork can be is a complex management
area, yet if carried out effectively, the results can be very rewarding.