Teams are groups of people who share a common purpose, who depend on each other to accomplish their purpose, develop relationships with each other and outsiders and eventually develop roles in the team. These teams can be intact work groups working for the same person, or can be from different functions or organizations. In these times of constant change, it is essential for teams and team members to understand their strengths and weaknesses. Effective teamwork can help a company deal with this ongoing change and can create an environment to find better ways to solve problems, resolve conflicts, and set goals, whether they be to provide the best possible service, to be the top sales district, or to plan exciting company events. Teams have an important place in our professional and personal lives. Working in teams is an inevitable life experience, even for people who prefer to work alone. Working on teams can normally prove very challenging with all of the variations in personalities, strengths, and weaknesses.
An effective teamwork does not happen overnight; it takes a cooperative group of individuals and a talented leader. To avoid a stiff structure in an organization, management must learn to let people do their creative best and optimize their talent. An ideal organization consists of a team-oriented environment where people are being asked to work beyond their disciplines. Departments learn to work together, helping one another, as well as themselves, instead of behaving like rivals, only out for their personal advancement.
Generally, there are three main characteristics for a team to be successful; they must share a common goal, each member must play their own particular role, and each member must be willing to make a few sacrifices (Hambrick, 1994). The most important aspect must be the common goal of the group. Even though the members of the team have different views, even though they come from different
References: Hambrick, D.C. (1994). Top Management Groups: A Conceptual Integration and Reconsideration of the "Team" Label Hare, A.P. (1992). Group, Teams and Social Interaction. Theories and Applications Moorehead, Gregory, & Griffin, Ricky W. (2001). Organizational Behavior: Managing People And Organizations Parks, C.D. & Sanna, L.J. (1999). Group Performance and Interaction. Boulder, Oxford: Westview Press. Shaw, M.E. (1981). Group Dynamics: The Psychology of Small Group Behaviour. Wheelan, S.A. (1994). Group Processes. A Developmental Perspective. Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon.