Skyler Ray

OGL 343

Professor Dr. Wade Lueck, PhD

10/17/2021

Reading Essay Topic #1

Prompt #1:

In the textbook Making the Team by Leigh Thompson, Thompson had discussed the three

essential conditions for successful team performance. Those are, process the relevant expertise to

perform the task, be engaged and motivated to perform the task, and execute the task by coordinating

with other team members (Thompson, 2017, p.114). For the first essential condition, having expertise to

accomplish a task can be useful for a team. Having someone who specifically focuses on certain tasks

can lead to less pressure on the other team members who may not understand the task. The second

essential condition for successful team performance would be staying engaged and motivated for the

task that is given. Thompson stated, “Flow is a psychological state in which a person is highly engaged in

a task” (Thompson, 2017, p.117). Having flow while working enhances the engagement towards the task

by being so invested that one may lose track of the time. Having team members engaged will also

increase productivity. When a team is productive, it keeps them motivated. When there is high

motivation with the leaderships support, team moral will be at a good level. Lastly, the third essential

condition is coordinating with team members to complete a task. Being able to coordinate and

communicate can prevent confusion. For example, if an email was sent but was poorly worded and was

not clear to what is being asked, more time is spent trying to understand what needs to be done. That

time could have been spent on the actual task itself. Coordinating strategies is needed when working on
tasks. Having strategies helps keeps action items organized and makes things clear on who does what.

An essential condition for successful team performance that could be included would be preparing for

contingencies. Planning for contingencies can prevent setbacks and budget losses. With back up plans

documented, there should be little set back and will allow the team to meet their deadlines.

There are essential conditions for successful team performance that leaders must be aware

about but there are also threats to team performance. One of these threats is social loafing. Social

loafing is typically found in larger groups. The amount of effort given by an individual will decrease is a

task in unchallenging. The best way to combat this problem in a team setting would be giving more

challenging tasks. This will allow them to put their best efforts towards the task. Another good way to

eliminate this problem is to document each member of the teams’ contributions. That way it is visible on

how much each person is doing to complete a task. This is something that is in practice in my current

team I work with. Every Monday is our team meeting where we must list everything that we are working

on and give a status update. This allows us to see what we are all working on and if we need to delegate

any of our tasks.

Prompt #3:

Three challenges to virtual teams are productivity, coordination, and conflict. First, productivity

is a challenge virtually because it is naturally harder to get people on the same page. Productivity is how

well a group can organize and perform a specific task. It is much easier for teams to organize together

face to face. In a virtual setting, team members may not be able to communicate their thoughts as well

or may not be as informed as to what effort or task they are needing to perform. A second challenge of

working in virtual teams is coordination. Going off the previous topic of productivity, coordinating team

members virtually to perform a specific task is not always easy. Coordination and delegation of tasks

requires that great communication if established first. For example, a team of three is asked to complete
a status report on a product development idea. One person is designated to create charts and graphs

from the data in the server to showcase how many test runs have successfully been completed. The

second person oversees the writing portion of the status report. The third person manages creating

meaningful graphics for the report. Each team member was informed of their effort in the project via

email. Unfortunately, person number three who oversees creating meaning graphics, has crated a chart

very similar to what person number one created. Because all three team members were working

independently and told of their task via email, and there was not a great flow of communication, team

members were not coordinated as well as they could have been. Because of the lack of coordination of

the virtual team, the status report was not up to par and therefore productivity also decreased. Lastly,

problem solving can cause conflict in virtual teams. One aspect of problem solving that is important for

each person (in the conflict) is being heard. And if communication is already not as strong in a virtual

environment, this may lead to more feelings being hurt or more frustrations.

Another challenge virtual teams face is motivation. There is a human connection that occurs

when people work together and solve problems as a team. This creates bonds between members and

enhances the overall productivity and energy of the team. At times, team members are motivated by

working with others. Working collectively creates a sense of community for members. This community

itself is a motivating factor in teams, which is lacking in a virtual environment. Some helpful practices for

people to work together and productively in a virtual team is to get to know other team members better

than you would normally do so. This allows social bonds to easily form and allows members to better

know who they are working with (this also reduces team stress levels). In addition, over communicate

always. Since communication is already hindered in a virtual setting, it is imperative that team members

are checking in with others daily, asking for help when needed, and taking time to check in with the

status of others. Understanding the team dynamic will help everyone in the team perform at their

highest level!
 Work Cited:

Thompson, Leigh L. Making the Team. Available from: VitalSource Bookshelf, (6th Edition). Pearson

Education. (US), 2017.