Teamwork is the number one reason teams are so important to an organization. Teamwork is the willingness of a group of people to work together to achieve a common aim. We often call someone a good team player, meaning that they have the interests of the team at heart and are working for the good of the team. Here are six ways that teamwork benefits organizations. First, it promotes creativity, combining unique perspectives from each team member creates more effective solutions. Second, employees build on the strengths of their teammates by adding their own. This gives the team access to more talents than any one individual has. Third, trust is built, relying on teammates forges strong bonds within the team. Trusting coworkers establishes relationships that can survive minor disagreements. Fourth, conflict management skills are built. Team members learn to resolve conflicts without managerial intervention. Fifth, ownership increases, teamwork encourages employees to feel more proud of their contributions and connected to the company. And last, healthy risk-taking is encouraged. An individual who risks a wild new idea takes all the blame if it fails. Working with a team diffuses that responsibility. When teamwork is present, members show up on time and ready to work. They communicate openly and listen to each other. They focus on goals and results, not the amount of work being done. Quality, efficiency and morale are high, everyone contributes their fair share and understands their responsibilities. Members accept challenges and volunteer for tasks, they take pride in their performance and pitch in to help others. They contribute their unique experiences and knowledge. Their leader is respected and holds the team together as a well-organized, coordinated, productive group. Of course, not all teams work well together, and once a team is broken, it's very hard to put things right again. Watch out for these warning signs that your team is in trouble. Members are unfriendly, they tolerate each other just enough to do their jobs. There are frequent complaints about other members or other signs of bad feelings. Certain team members flatly refuse to work with certain others. Individual efforts are inconsistent, careless and uncoordinated. Members don't give others the respect they deserve. The workspace may be messy, or there may be vandalism. Lastly, if there are many requests for a transfer, it's pretty clear that your department is a sinking ship, everyone wants to leave. A supervisor's best defense against a lack of teamwork is to be proactive. Developing a high-performing team takes time and effort and is not a smooth process. Teams go through these five developmental stages in order. Supervisors who are aware of the process will be able to lead the team properly from the start. In the forming stage, the group is just starting to come together. Members evaluate whether they are a good fit with the group and will be accepted. In the storming stage, there are conflicts as the group decides how it will operate. Disputes in competition occurs, dominant members and leaders emerge. In the norming stage, members evaluate their goals and resources, and establish their beliefs and values. Interactions are more cooperative and productive, disruptions are resolved with relative ease. In the performing stage, the real work gets done. Members work together to achieve the team's goals. The last stage, adjourning, takes place when the task is done. Members look back on and celebrate their efforts and learn from the process. Self-managed teams are a valuable asset to organizations and supervisors. A self-managed team is a group of employees that is responsible and accountable for all or most aspects of a task or activity. Self-managed teams dramatically change the role of a supervisor by relieving them of some routine responsibilities. Like keeping track of hours worked, assigning jobs to each other, redesigning processes, setting team goals and objectives. Evaluating performance and selecting and training new team members. Members of self-managed teams have better attendance, fewer absences and less turnover. They demonstrate greater ownership of the tasks they perform, and the results. They are more cost effective and productive than employees working independently. The members are more satisfied with their jobs too. Last of all, their decisions are more effective, because they're made by the people who know the job best. A virtual or remote team is a group that works together remotely from separate locations. Relying on email, texts and video or voice conferencing to collaborate. Members rarely, if ever, meet face to face. Supervising a virtual team adds new challenges to those of supervising workers in person. The COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 brought these issues to the forefront, when many workplaces suddenly became virtual overnight. I think it's safe to say that many, if not most, supervisors were not prepared for this sudden change. I confess I was one of them, but I learned a few things along the way. Technology is crucial, members must have both the equipment and Internet access they need to be effective. Interpersonally speaking, it's crucial to define worker roles carefully, develop norms for communication. Check in regularly to keep people on task, identify and resolve conflicts and keep the focus on team goals. If you can do these things effectively, your virtual team has a great chance of success.
