Team Building

Summary

What does a team really mean?

What Defines a Team?

Today, «team’ has become a very loosely used word. People are calling any random group of people a team, even in the corporate milieu where it is very important to know what a team is and use it for progress.

A team is not a random group of people. It is a set of people who come together to achieve a particular purpose. A corporate team looks after a particular assignment. A scientific research team tries together to invent or develop something. A sports team tries to win a sports event for their nation or their county or whatever it is that they are representing. Similarly, various teams exist and they can have differing number of members, but these members are all united with a common strand – they are trying to achieve a common goal.

A team is a unique combination of people because, whichever way it is formed, it eventually turns out to be a group of people with complementary qualities. This is an essential feature of a team. Thus, in a corporate team, we might have a visualizer, an executor, a thinker, a planner and so on. These people have different merits and that’s what keeps them in the team. Their merits are different, but they are aligned in such a way that they complement the merits of other people. This is actually what makes a team a force to reckon with.

We have to realize that we all have our plusses and minuses. None of us are perfect. That is the need to have teams in the first place. When we try to make a team, consciously or unconsciously, we try to unite with people who have talents that we don’t have. But our intentions are same. It is just that each one can do a particular job well toward the accomplishment of the goal.

In many cases, teams will need a team leader. The team leader is the cohesive force that keeps the team members together. The job of the team leader is quite essential, in that it is he or she that acts like the glue in keeping the members

together. At the same time, the team leader sets and emphasizes upon the goals and ideals for the team.

Chapter 2:

Qualities of Successful Teams

Summary

Let us take a look at the characteristics that every successful team should have.

Qualities of Successful Teams

Here we shall take a look at the main characteristics that a team should possess. If your corporate team does not possess these characteristics, you need to take a closer look at it.

Proper Objectives

The team should have clearly defined objectives. This the purpose with which the team has been set up. Everyone in the team should be aware of these objectives and they must work toward its achievement.

Division of Labor

Though a team is a single mobilized force, every person in the team is a unit contributing in his or her way for the overall functioning of the team. These goals also must be set beforehand, when a member is inducted into the team.

Interaction

Interaction among the team members is important, and this should be healthy interaction. The interaction may be for personal reasons but largely it must be to achieve the purposes that the team as a whole is striving for.

Logical Thinking

There can be no set rules for how a team should think or behave. This depends more on the situation at hand. Due to that, it is imperative that the team members think logically and take rational decisions. The role of the team leader becomes important in this respect.

Acceptance of Majority Decisions

When you put a few people together, it is quite understandable that opinions will differ. Teams cannot sit with these differing opinions though, because decisions need to be taken. A good team will have a sense of adhering to the majority vote.

Compatibility

No team can progress without a feeling of mutual amicability between the members of the team. There must be mutual informality among the members and no disagreements. If there are issues, they must be resolved in a civilized manner.

United Force

A team has to think in unison. This doesn’t mean individual members cannot disagree. They sure must, but then they must arrive at common decisions through majority voting methods. But, for all other purposes, there should be a loyal feeling in every member toward the team.

Assessment

It is vital that teams keep evolving. They must meet often just to decide what their achievements have been, what obstacles lay in their path, what shortcomings they have and how to improve upon those. Teams should keep evolving according to changing circumstances.

Chapter 3:

Excite Your Team with Outcomes

Summary

Teams don’t sustain themselves for long if they don’t see the outcomes. If you are a team leader, you have to keep wowing them with results.