UNDERSTANDING WORK TEAMS

UNDERSTANDING WORK TEAMS

Team consists of employees from diverse managerial and professional backgrounds working for a specific period of time on certain projects. According to Stephen Robbins a work team is a collection of people whose individual efforts result in a level of performance which is greater than the sum of their individual contributions. Teams generate synergy by coordinating the efforts of the individual members.

BENEFITS OF WORK TEAMS

Improved Organizational Performance Reduces wastage,minimizes errors Innovative solutions Improves quality,productivity & customer service Employee Benefits Quality of worklife Reduces stress Work satisfaction Less use of employee assistance programs

BENEFITS OF WORK TEAMS

Reduced cost Reduces wastage's Lower turnover & absenteeism Fewer injuries Organizational enhancement Innovation & flexibility Quick adaptation to face the competition

WORK GROUPS VS WORK TEMS

According to Stephen Robbins a work group is a group that interacts primarily to share information to make decisions to help each other to perform within his or her area of responsibility. Work team is group whose individual efforts results in a performance which is greater than the sum of individual contributions Team members should pusses Functional skills, interpersonal skills,problem solving & decision making skills Team member are accountable to each other

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN GROUPS & TEAMS

Work Groups
Allocated specialized task Minimal training is required Members have same job description Do not get feedback related to their contribution No relationship between efforts & end results Supervisor decides about

Work teams
Members have number of skills appropriate for different job category. The management is not concerned about who does the job Members identify the necessary tasks as well as the person Supervisor acts as a facilitator and coach

REWARD SYSTEM
Team members are rewarded for learning a set of skills essential for achieving the goals. Sometimes performance of the team is considered. Reward systems used in team based organization Skill based pay system Mastery in some important skills Employees can increase their pay up to certain level by learning additional skills

REWARD SYSTEM
Gain- sharing systems
Reward all the team members on the basis of the performance of the organization,division or plant. Requires the team to exceed baseline performance May disappoint employees in poor business conditions. Team bonus plan Each team should achieve certain specific performance targets.

TYPES OF WORK TEAMS

On the basis of objectives teams can be classified into Problem solving Teams One of the earliest forms of teams Consist of 5-12 employees from the same departments Members meet for specific number of hours per week to discuss about improving quality,efficiency & work environment Temporary teams to solve a specific problem Authority to implement their suggestions is not given Established to make recommendations for others Ex American companies

TYPES OF WORK TEAMS

Commonly used problem solving team is Quality circles QC is a small group of employees in the same work area where employees meet voluntarily & regularly about an hour every week to identify,analyze & resolve work related problems. First formed in Japan The objective of QC are Improving quality of work life, change in attitude Developing employees & utilizing their maximum potential Involving people at different levels Motivating employees & providing conducive environment

SELF- MANAGED WORK TEAMS

These teams can give solutions to problems, implement them & be held responsible for the results Autonomous teams Consists of 10-15 employees & to them supervisors responsibilities are assigned They select their own members & evaluate their performance by themselves The supervisor plays a role of facilitator HP,Xerox,GE, PepsiCo

CROSS FUNCTIONAL TEAMS

Consists of employees from same hierarchical level,but from different functional areas. A task force & committee is also considered as a cross functional team. Ex Toyota, Honda ,General motors The teams consists of members from the cross section of the organizations The teams efficiently manage operational activity & programs for new product development

TEAM EFFECTIVENESS
Essentials for building Effective teams
Providing supportive environment Management helps organization to initiate team work Makes employee adaptable & flexible Relevant skills & role clarity Role clarity increases the efficiency Focus on superordinate goals Encourages members to think beyond his individual interest Superordinate goals are higher level goals which integrates efforts made by two or more people. The purpose is to unify the efforts Team rewards : Innovative rewards,financial & non financial.

TEAM EFFECTIVENESS

Shaping individuals into team players Members should posses the qualities of good team players Different ways to turn workers into effective team players Selection Interpersonal skills are essential for team work Training Problem solving,communication,negotiation conflict managemen & coaching skills Training makes them effective player Rewards Assisting in conflict resolution Imparting training to new employees Learning new skills for improvement of the team performance

TEAMS & TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT

TQM focuses on customer relationship & build an environment of trust & openness. Requires high level of communication,adaptation, coordination & sequencing. Ford company initiated TQM to deal with the problems faced by the organization & accordingly worked out certain norms Small size teams,trained members, Authority to study the problem,champion of the team were the important features

TEAMS & WORKFORCE DIVERSITY

Diversity is helpful in solving problems or in decision making Development of variety of creative & innovative solutions to problems Whereas sometimes diversity may lead to behavioral problems, & unfavorable impact on employeesatisfaction,absenteeism productivity & turnover rates