A Tale of Two Teams 

The Best Team: 

About the team: This is an accounting team. We are the closing & reporting team
within the Controller team. The team is responsible for recording, adjusting, reconciling
and reporting the financial result of the business at the month end close, quarter close
and the year-end close. 
Team goals: To ensure the financial results of the business are fully report with fairness
and free of errors to both internal and external stakeholders. 
Successful of the team: The closing & reporting team is very successful in each
closing and reporting cycle. We are usually on top of the most recently update of the
technical accounting changes base on U.S GAAP. Beside our work is successful, we
are also successful in leading and guiding others financial functions gain more
knowledge about the accounting and providing a guidance on the accounting methods.
The team is usually recognized by the CFO and other CFO’s direct staffs.  
The main keys to the team successful: 

1. Strong team works: The relationship of the team is very strong and have a
good connection. We are always work as a team and support for each
member in the team. This is proven by always sharing new accounting
knowledge to each other, cross training within the team so it helps team
member understands about the responsibilities of each person in the team. If
there are any issues that arise during the closing, then all the team members
can come together to find the solutions. Also, each team member treats each
other with the respect, polite and kind. The manager level is still treating the
direct team member in the friendly and appreciation. So, all the team
members are very happy to work together without judgements or doubts. 
2. Effective communications: If there are anything changes in the accounting
methods or the way recording the accounting methods needs to be change.
The manager is always communicating directly and immediately to the team
members. So, the team members are aware about the possible changes in
the way of recording the accounting and reporting the financial results. f there
are new requesting that comes from other managers from a different function,
the closing & reporting manager is always evaluating about whether the
requests are reasonable and suitable first before passed on the team
members. By doing this, it helps the team members build a better trust at the
manager.
3. Trust and reliable: Trust and reliable are the two important keys in the team
work, and even within a big organization. The reason that we have a trust in
each member in the team because we never take credit from other team
member or provide a false information to other team member to be failed.
Each team member always stands up for each other and willing to helps each
other on any circumstances. Therefore, we can trust and reliable from each
other a lot within the team. 
The Worse Team: 
About the team: This is a Financial Planning & Budget team in a different company that I
just worked for on last year. We are responsible for budget, forecast, reporting and cost
analysis. 
Team goals: To ensure the reporting of the financial results are fully represented. The
financial forecast and the financial budget are close to the actual resuls. 
Failure of the team: The FP&A team isn’t successfully like the closing & reporting team
that I have been with because the FP&A team has no clear instruction from the top
director down to the manager and to the team member. Second, there is no consistency
in the communications and unclear about the responsibilities or tasks of each team
member. Due to those reasons, those senior levels of the FP&A team have left the
company and so do I. 
The keys led to the failures: 

1. No team works: Due to the company is a small size so the FP&A team also
only about 6 people, including the director of FP&A. When there is a project
that comes up and require two team members are work together to complete
the project. Then, the new hire team member needs some helps from the
existence team member but the existence team member doesn’t want to take
times to explains and working together with the new hire team member. The
existence team member prefers to do it alone and provide the result after the
work is done.  
2. Ineffective communications: The director and the manager isn’t provide a
clear instruction on the responsible of each team member so everyone is
confusing about each other tasks and often step over each other works or
duplicate the work and effort. When the new hire got in, the new hire also
received no specific training from the manager, and the manager just assigned
the training responsibilities to other team member instead of taking fully the
responsibilities on the training for the new hire.  
3. Trust and reliable: Base on the above, there are no trusts in each other team
members because everyone is worrying about losing their jobs or get eliminate
from the organization. So, this is creating an unhealthy work place
environment.