Teamwork

Glossary of Terms for Planning, Leading and Managing

From Belief to Vision, with Driver, Delegation, Outcome, Output, Strategic Thinking and 36 other useful definitions in between. This is designed to provide a basis for informed development, and help parties to initiatives avoid unsafe assumptions by finding common ground in their terminology.

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Nurture Teams and Teamwork

When team members share a common definition of "team" and are committed to methodically becoming an "effective team", greater teamwork results. This may be fundamental common sense but it's certainly not common practice. Teams usually have no such definition, have no clear criteria of team competence, do not systematically monitor team performance and are consequently team in name only. If they capture the extraordinary potential of real teamwork it is a matter of sheer luck. Developing and nurturing teams is an art, not a science, but there's much more to it than luck. Teams really do achieve more. They make better decisions and better use of collective potential. However, most so-called teams (that is to say, most workplace groups) are a mile or two away from the wisdom and potential of real teamwork.

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Clarify and Test the Working Assumptions

Assumptions made and assumed to exist elsewhere, or held unawarely in our sub-conscious, hold inherent dangers inherent for collective ventures including teamwork and meetings, working-parties, committees, project work, planning and problem solving. This discussion of actual workplace events is intended to raise awareness of the phenomenon, to help prevent misdirection, confusion, conflict, blocked progress, inappropriate conclusions, unwise plans and initiatives.

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Team function and dysfunction

Workplace groups now called teams, whether or not true teamwork is present or necessary. Mostly, only the terminology has changed; little clarity has been reached about what constitutes teamwork, how it is best achieved and when it is necessary. Team functioning differs from (non-team) group functioning, is capable of different outcomes and has different applications. Teams reach their potential most easily when these differences are understood. Take our 10-item quiz to establish whatever gaps exist between your team's practices and those necessary for high-performance. Have all of your team complete this and meet to consider their answers together, alongside ours. That process alone will raise awareness of team processes, moderate behaviours and raise agenda items for improving team performance.

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