Team Building Team Building Team Life Cycles Effectiveness

Team Building

Team Building • • Team Life Cycles Effectiveness Characteristics Management styles – Ideal manager – Ideal Team leader.

Team Life Cycles Forming Performing Group Stages Norming Storming

Team Stages · Forming – Individuals try to establish their identity within a group · Storming – Personal agendas start to arise, leadership challenges · Norming – Group roles will start to appear, the group will become more cohesive and relaxed. IF IT SURVIVES · Performing – Targets will be achieved, individuals will work together towards a single common goal

Team Effectiveness · The purpose of the team – Why was it brought together? · The team operating environment – A formal work environment or an informal social environment · The constraints imposed on the team – Time-scales, budgets, resources, etc · The team characteristics – Who are the individuals, what skills and traits do they bring to the group etc.

Team member characteristics Belbin’s study, 1981, identified the following team roles Co-ordinator Shaper Plant Monitor Evaluator Resource investigator Team worker Implementers Complete Finisher Specialist.

Co-ordinator · Characteristics – Mature, confident, good chair person, clarifies goals, promotes decision making, delegates well, recognises other team members’ strengths and weaknesses · Tolerable Weakness – Can be seen as manipulative, offloads own workload · Suggested Task Allocation – Should be best person to co-ordinate the groups efforts, ensure that everybody has a useful role.

Shaper · Characteristics – Challenging, dynamic, thrives on pressure, clarifies goals, promotes decision making, drive and courage to overcome obstacles, shapes the way team effort is applied · Tolerable Weakness – Offends peoples feelings, provocative · Suggested Task Allocation – Should be best person to overcome obstacles, create a sense of urgency within the team, turns team talk into actions.

Plant · Characteristics – Creative, imagination, unorthodox, solves difficult problems, redefines problems, thinks “out of the box”, advances new ideas and strategies · Tolerable Weakness – Ignores incidents, too preoccupied to communicate effectively · Suggested Task Allocation – Should be the team’s “problem solver”, or generator of new ideas and strategies.

Monitor Evaluator · Characteristics – Sober, strategic, discerning, sees all options, good judge, evaluates ideas and suggestions · Tolerable Weakness – Lacks drive and the ability to inspire others · Suggested Task Allocation – A key role in planning, an arbitrator in event of controversy, should have a key role in ensuring all worthwhile options are considered

Resource Investigator · Characteristics – Extrovert, enthusiastic, communicative, explores opportunities, develops contacts and resources outside the group, good at creating external contacts · Tolerable Weakness – Over optimistic, loses enthusiasm once initial “buzz” has passed · Suggested Task Allocation – A key role in establishing external contacts, and negotiating follow up contracts, but must regularly report back to group

Team Worker · Characteristics – Supports members in their strengths, improves communication between members, fosters a team spirit, under pinning members on their shortcomings · Tolerable Weakness – Indecisive in crunch situations · Suggested Task Allocation – Use their versatile qualities in a floating role, their diplomatic qualities could help to overcome conflict

Implementers · Characteristics – Turns concepts and ideas into practical working solutions, carries out agreed plans systematically and efficiently · Tolerable Weakness – Can be inflexible and slow to adopt new ideas · Suggested Task Allocation – Responsible for procedures and practical steps to put the teams decisions into a workable “action plan”.

Completer Finisher · Characteristics – Ensures the team is protected as far as possible in mistakes of commission and omission, actively searches for work which requires an eye for detail · Tolerable Weakness – Inclined to worry, slow to respond to new possibilities · Suggested Task Allocation – Responsible for the team meeting deadlines and working to the required standards, responsible for ensuring no major inaccuracies or errors.

Specialist · Characteristics – Feeds technical information into group, contributes professional viewpoint of subject under discussion, translates from general terms into technical terms · Tolerable Weakness – Contributes on a narrow front, dwells on technicalities · Suggested Task Allocation – Should be the focus for technical issues, should provide knowledge and techniques in short supply for the team.

Being an efficient team member T talk and communicate with other team members E enjoy the experience and relax into given role A ask questions so you know what is expected of you M motivate yourself and others W welcome thoughts and ideas for other team members O offer your skills and knowledge willingly for group benefit R review and reflect on what you have done K keep to time scales and deadlines I include others in the decision making process N notify the team of any problems sooner than later G give 100%

Being an efficient team member TEAMWORKING

Management Style Douglas Mc. Gregor Theory X In this theory management assumes employees are inherently lazy and will avoid work if they can. Workers need to be closely supervised and comprehensive systems of controls developed. A hierarchical structure is needed with narrow span of control at each level. Employees will show little ambition without an enticing incentive program and will avoid responsibility Many managers (in the 1960 s) tended to subscribe to Theory X A Theory X manager believes that his or her employees do not really want to work, The result of this line of thought is that Theory X managers naturally adopt a more authoritarian style based on the threat of punishment. One major flaw of this management style is it is much more likely to cause Dis-economies of Scale in large businesses.

Management Style Douglas Mc. Gregor Theory Y In this theory management assumes employees may be ambitious & self-motivated, Anxious to accept greater responsibility, and exercise self-control and self-direction. It is believed that employees enjoy their mental and physical work duties. There is a chance for greater productivity by giving employees the freedom to perform at the best of their abilities without being bogged down by rules. A Theory Y manager believes that, given the right conditions, most people will want to do well at work. They believe that the satisfaction of doing a good job is a strong motivation in and of itself. A Theory Y manager will try to remove the barriers that prevent workers from fully actualizing themselves. Theory Y allows a business to expand while making more profit because factory-floor workers have their own responsibilities.

Management styles Stereotype 1 -Bully Boys/Girls Manage by; – Fear, and a lot of shouting – Constantly telling everyone “They’re the boss” – Talk about respect, which they confuse with power – Obsessed with titles and positions – Like people to “Give in to them”, and like proving they were right – Like to “Put people in their place”

Management styles Stereotype 1 -Bully Boys/Girls Core weaknesses: – Does not develop trust – Develops an atmosphere of fear and does not encourage an harmonious team spirit – From day one people think they will be put under unreasonable pressure in an unpleasant manner – People will avoid or delay telling the truth, especially regarding bad news – People will seek to cover up or put things in a defensive way

Management styles Stereotype 1 -Bully Boys/Girls Core weaknesses: – Does not work well if work is required from people more senior than themselves – People work hard out of fear, but are unlikely to be enthusiastic or passionate – People will be reluctant to be part of the project team

Management styles Stereotype 2 -Process nuts, compulsive planners and detail obsessive's Typical characteristics: – Gets too involved with detail and neglects the projects overall progress – Likes to tick boxes, more interested in the process of project management than managing the project – Obsessed with updating the project plan, and/or using project management software – Cannot let go of their “technical focus”, get very stressed when having to manage people with more “technical knowledge” in an area than themselves

Management styles Stereotype 3 -The Teflon man/lady Typical characteristics: – Never lets anything stick to them – Never incorrect, never in the wrong place at the wrong time – Always have a valid reason for error or failure – Cannotwill not take responsibility or “Shoulder some of the blame” when things go wrong – Generates resentment from team members who are willing to admit they made mistakes – Unlikely to “take the flak” in support of people they manage, likes “passing the book” to subordinates

Management styles Stereotype 4 -The panicking manager Typical characteristics: – Rushes around aimlessly, and shouts a lot when things go badly wrong – Spends more time managing their panic then managing the project problems – Over reacts to project problems, which results in team members losing faith and trust in the leadership – Unable or unwilling to hide their doubts and fears from the rest of the team. Good leaders, when times get tough, must be able to do this and remain positive

Management Styles The ideal manager would have all the following attributes, and use them all of the time. Even when time scales are slipping, costs are escalating, and many theoretical risks have now become a reality. (The ability to make swine airworthy is also an highly sought after skill!)

Management Styles The ideal leader will have all the following attributes: • • • Empathy with the customer Management and leadership skills Ability to handle stress Respect for people Dynamism and positivism

Management Styles The ideal leader will have all the following attributes: • Networking skills (with other people) • Political sensitivity • Have sufficient presence • A sense of humour • Being sensitive to their environment • Adapting their management style to the situation

Team Building

Students work in teams to produce a brief 10 min team presentation. “The Importance of personal effectiveness skills, and how they compliment technical skills, when climbing the I. T. / Career ladder “