Team Work "Project of Organizational Behavior"

8/6/2019 Team Work "Project of Organizational Behavior"

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FINAL PROJECT

PRESENTED TO:

Madam Kanwal Bilal

PRESENTED BY: - SPARTANS -

Lamia Asad – 070Faizan Khan – 037

Hamza Saleem – 049

Hanzlah Mehmood – 052

Najam-Ul-Hassan – 155

SUBJECT:

“ORGANISATIONAL BEHAVIOUR”

TOPIC:

“TEAM WORK”

DATE:

23-05-2011



TEAM

“No one can whistle a symphony. It takes a whole orchestra to playit.”

It is a fact that in the right formation, the lifting power of many wings can achieve twice thedistance of any bird flying alone. So forming a team is really important to achieve greaterresults.

Teamwork is the ability to work as a group toward a common vision, even if that visionbecomes extremely blurry. If you see an example, one piece of log creates a small fire,adequate to warm you up, add just a few more pieces to blast an immense bonfire, largeenough to warm up your entire circle of friends; needless to say that individuality counts butteam work dynamites.

T.E.A.M. = Together

Everyone

Achieves

More

Components of Teamwork

Talking

Listening

Working Together

Including Everyone

TEAMWORK

Teamwork is defined as "a joint action by a group of people, in which each person

subordinates his or her individual interests and opinions to the unity and

efficiency of the group." This does not mean that the individual is no longer important,

however, it does mean that effective and efficient teamwork goes beyond individualaccomplishments. The most effective teamwork is produced when all the individuals involvedharmonize their contributions and work towards a common goal.



As organisations have restructured themselves to compete more effectively and efficiently,they have turned to teams as a better way to use employee talents. Management has foundthat teams are more flexible and responsive to changing events than are traditionaldepartments or other forms of permanent groupings. Teams have the capability to quicklyassemble, deploy, refocus and disband.

“Individual commitment to a group effort - that is what makes a

team work, a company work, a society work, a civil ization work.”

A work team generates posit ive synergy through coordinated effort. The individual effortsresult in a level of performance that is greater than the sum of those individual inputs.Management is looking for positive synergy that will allow the organisations to increaseperformance. The extensive use of teams creates the potential for an organisation to generategreater outputs with no increase in inputs. Teamwork has a dramatic affect on organizationalperformance. Teams can do variety of things like making products, services, negotiate deals,co-ordinate projects, offer advice and make decisions. An effective team can help an

organization achieve incredible results. A team that is not working can cause unnecessarydisrupt ion, failed delivery and strategic failure.

Nowadays it is almost impossible to avoid being a member of team. If one is not on an officialteam at work, chances are that you function within one way or another. So it's important forone’s personal and career development to know the team working strengths and weaknesses.Assessments should be carried out in the organisat ion which helps the employees uncovercommon team working problems that they might be experiencing. Once they've completed it,they should be directed towards team tools that will help them to improve and develop theimportant skills.

QUICK TEAM BUILDING ACTIVITIES

Team building activities are a wide range of things which can be one task objectives to helpbuild the performance of a group of people in your workplace. Or it can be a retreat that co-workers go on for a weekend or however long to help build a team relationship with thepeople they work with. This benefits the individuals that do the exercises and the companythat they work for. In today's job market there is an over growing competition between co-workers and that puts a wall between them and it can end up hurting the business'sperformance.

There are many different degrees of quick team building activities, which can be focused on.Some activit ies focus on just a small group of people, maybe two or three at once. Other

activit ies focus on a whole group of people that work together. This can be for a wholedepartment at work, which points out different things like the importance of workingtogether, others show the importance of communication, some even show that althougheveryone is different they all share the same goals as a company and themselves.

There are more intense team building activities like team building seminars and camps thatcompanies enroll their employees into. These seminars and camps aren't necessarily for peoplethat have problems getting along, but infact they are for people before they get to that point.



There are many different team building exercises that the employees can be doing to build abond with there other co-workers. These activities rely on trust, working together as a group,and many other things.

“Coming together is a beginning. Keeping together is progress.

Working together is success.”

ACTIVITIES

To make the challenges work all we need to do is make sure that the rules for each individualare clearly defined and that everyone knows what is expected.

Another thing is that if we have two people that we think will t ry to take charge of the groupand but both are capable of being heads, then what we should do is divide the group as awhole and have each of them take the lead for each little group. This will keep theconfrontations to a minimum.

Another important thing for the employer to do is to make sure one has one on one time witheach of the part icipants that are there. This should be done in an area where it is clear thatthey can be honest and open and tell you what they think without repercussions.

Another good thing is to put the employees in the position to be able to work things out as agroup, whether these are real life situations that one has made up that they might encounterat work or any other circumstance. It is important for each person to feel they have had apart in the decision that they are going with.

Another thing is to praise your employees when you feel they have done something good, it

gives them the confidence to do it again and feel there is some reward for doing so. There aremany benefits to having the employees participate in these types of things, it will make themwork together better and in the long run will make the company run more smoothly. All weneed to do is just make sure that one gets the activities that will help them work better as aunit.

“We must all hang together or most assuredly we shall hang

separately.”

STAGES OF TEAM GROWTH

It is important for the team members to know that teams don't just form and immediatelystart working together to accomplish great things. There are actually stages of team growthand teams must be given time to work through the stages and become effective. Teamgrowth can be separated into four stages.



STAGE 1 – FORMING:

When a team is forming, members cautiously explore the boundaries of acceptable groupbehavior. They search for their position within the group and test the leader's guidance. It isnormal for little team progress to occur during this stage.

STAGE 2 – STORMING:

Storming is probably the most difficult stage for the group. Members often become impatientabout the lack of progress, but are still inexperienced with working as a team. Members mayargue about the actions they should take because they faced with ideas that are unfamiliar tothem and put them outside their comfort zones. Much of their energy is focused on each otherinstead of achieving the goal.

STAGE 3 - NORMING:

During this stage team members accept the team and begin to reconcile differences.Emotional conflict is reduced as relationships become more cooperative. The team is able toconcentrate more on their work and start to make significant progress.

STAGE 4 - PEFORMING:

By this stage the team members have discovered and accepted each other's strengths andweaknesses, and learned what their roles are. Members are open and trusting and many goodideas are produced because they are not afraid to offer ideas and suggestions. They arecomfortable using decision making tools to evaluate the ideas, prioritize tasks and solveproblems. Much is accomplished and team satisfaction and loyalty is high.

Since working as part of a team can improve learning and is a much needed skill in today'sworkplace, some team exercises should be included in the classroom. With well planned outtasks, careful guidance, and close observation, instructors can make team exercises extremelyvaluable learning experiences.

“If you want to build a ship, don't drum up people together to collect

wood and don't assign the people tasks and work, but rather teach

them to long for the endless immensity of the sea.”

WHY COMPANIES ARE INTERESTED IN TEAMWORK

Teamwork has become an important part of the working culture and many businesses nowlook at teamwork skills when evaluat ing a person for employment. Most companies realizethat teamwork is important because either the product is sufficiently complex that it requires



a team with multiple skills to produce, and/or a better product will result when a teamapproach is taken.

Therefore, it is important that employees learn to function in a team environment so that theywill have teamwork skills when they enter the workforce. Also, research tells us that employeeslearn best from tasks that involve doing tasks and involve social interactions.

Working on teams can normally prove very challenging, with all of the variations inpersonalities, strengths, and weaknesses, most of these issues are raised face to face withindividuals, and can be resolved by finding a room to sit and talk them out.

Teamwork combines the skills and the creativity of a diverse number of people in order toproduce an effective outcome. Knowing the true meaning of teamwork is the first step inmaking a successful team.

“A snowflake is one of God's most fragile creations, but look what

they can do when they stick together!”

WHAT MAKES A TEAM EFFECTIVE?

It has a range of individuals who contribute in different waysand complement

each other. A team made up just of planners would find it diff icult to cope withchanging deadlines or plans whereas a team full of spontaneous individuals would bedisorganised: you need both types. A good team produces more than the individualcontributions of members.

Clear goals are agreed that everyone understands and is committed to.

Everyone understands the tasks they have to do and help each other.

It has a coordinator who may adopt a leadership style from autocratic to democraticdepending on the circumstances. Different people may assume the role of leader fordifferent tasks.

There is a balance between the task (what do we need to do?) and the process

(how do we achieve this?)

There is a supportive, informal atmosphere where members feel able to take risks

and say what they think. The group is comfortable with disagreement and can successfully overcome

differences in opinion. There is a lot of discussion in which everyone participates. Group memberslisten to

each other and everyone's ideas are heard. Membersfeel free to criticise and say what they think but this is done in a positive,

constructive manner.

The group learns from experience: reviewing and improving performance in the

light of both successes and failures.

“Nobody is perfect but a Team can be.”



WHAT MAKES A TEAM INEFFECTIVE?

People talk more than they listen and only a few people may contribute.

Some members are silent and don't contribute. They may be indifferent, bored or

afraid to contribute. Members’ ideas are dismissed or even ridiculed and their views are ignored.

There are arguments between membersof the group (as opposed to constructive

differences of opinion). One or two members dominate the others and make the decisions.

Disagreements are put to the vote without being discussed.

Some members are unhappy with decisionsand grumble privately afterwards.

Litt le effort is made to keep to the point or to work to deadlines.

There is a lack of clarity regarding goalsand specific tasks are not agreed.

Roles are not delegated to particular team members.

There is a lack of trust and helpfulness.

Members don't talk about how the group is working or the problems it faces.

“None of us is as smart as all of us.”

EFFECTIVE TEAMS AND THE REASON OF THEIR SUCCESS

We interviewed three managers of different organisations, and asked them their experiencesregarding teams and how they tackle situations and what strategies to they adopt toovercome hurdles and to enhance efficiency. Some of the main reasons of the effective team’ssuccess are described below; the rest of the interviews will be followed later on.

1. The team must have a clear goal:Avoid fuzzy, motherhood statements. Team goals should call for a specific performanceobjective, expressed so concisely that everyone knows when the objective has been met.

2. The team must have a results-driven structure:The team should be allowed to operate in a manner that produces results. It is often best toallow the team to develop the structure.

3. The team must have competent team members:In the education setting this can be taking to mean that the problem given to the team

should be one that the members can tackle given their level of knowledge.

4. The team must have unified commitment:This doesn't mean that team members must agree on everything. It means that all individualsmust be directing their efforts towards the goal. If an individual's effort is going purely towardspersonal goals, then the team will confront this and resolve the problem.

5. The team must have a collaborative climate:



It is a climate of trust produced by honest, open, consistent and respectful behavior. With thisclimate teams perform well...without it, they fail.

6. The team must have high standards that are understood by a ll:Team members must know what is expected of them individually and collectively. Vague

statements such as "posit ive attitude" and "demonstrated effort" are not good enough.

7. The team must receive external support and encouragement:Encouragement and praise works just as well in mot ivating teams as it does with individuals.

8. The team must have principled leadership: Teams usually need someone to lead the effort. Team members must know that the teamleader has the position because they have good leadership skills and are working for the goodof the team. The team members will be less supportive if they feel that the team leader isputting him/her above the team, achieving personal recognition or otherwise benefiting fromthe position.

“A group becomes a team when each member is sure enough of himself

and his contribut ion to praise the skills of the others.”

HOW TO MAKE TEAMS WORK MORE EFFICIENTLY & HOW TO

MAKE THE INEFFECTIVE TEAMS IMPROVE PERFORMANCE

People in every workplace talk about building the team, working as a team, and my team,but few understand how to create the experience of team work or how to develop an

effective team. Belonging to a team, in the broadest sense, is a result of feeling part ofsomething larger than oneself. It has a lot to do with your understanding of the mission orobjectives of your organization.

In a team-oriented environment, you contribute to the overall success of the organization. Youwork with fellow members of the organization to produce the desired results. Even though youhave a specific job function and you belong to a specific department, you are unified withother organization members to accomplish the overall objectives. The bigger picture drives

your actions; your function exists to serve the bigger picture. You need to

differentiate this overall sense of teamwork from the task of developing an effective intactteam that is formed to accomplish a specific goal. People confuse the two team building

objectives. This is why so many team building seminars, meetings, retreats and activities aredeemed failures by their participants. Leaders failed to define the team they wanted to build.Developing an overall sense of team work is different from building an effective, focused workteam when you consider team building approaches.

“A man may do an immense deal of good, if he does not care who gets

the credit for it.”



Apart from all these considerations, the few tactics that we got to learn from meeting andinterviewing the managers regarding their experiences in managing teams and improvingthem are very beneficial too. I must say that meeting them was one of the most amazingexperiences that we had ever had. They provided us with the most appropriate answers andguided us too, for our future handling in such situations.

“If everyone is moving forward together, then success takes care of

itself.”

Below are a few points they gave us in improving the ineffective teams’ performances:

Schedule regular performance evaluations to monitor the team’s overall ability tomeet deadlines and deliverables, and keep an eye out for weak links within theorganization who consistently fail to meet expectations and honor commitments tomembers of the team.

In teams certain people may not be willing to work efficiently. Try not to focus or wastetoo much time in improving them rather you should work individually to improve yourown personal productivity and effectiveness, but as part of a distributed team, it’simportant that your team shares the responsibility for constantly adjusting andimproving communications, feedback and organization.

You should regularly check in with the individual members of your team to get theiropinions about where communications, productivity, organization and effectiveness arelagging, and then get their ideas for improving it.

Every other week or even once a month, designate a “clean up day,” where teammembers spend time finding creative solutions for regular problems and glitches in yourcurrent system, as well as cleaning up those already in place. Even something as simpleas cleaning up files and inboxes can go a long way toward improving productivity andorder.

Managing any team is not easy, which is why you should always be asking thequestions and then making adjustments to maintain and improve overallperformance.

Much of the problem around a distributed workforce is a direct result of poor,inconsistent or even non-existent communication. Establish clear expectations for thefrequency and method of communication. Set one clear channel for communication

and stick with it.

It’s surprising to see how often team members are on completely different pages withtheir understanding of goals and tasks for a given project, even with seemingly clearinstructions to start. What you should do is, get everyone on your team in the habit ofalways using one common phrase, “Repeat it back to me.” Or at the very least,

wrap each communication with a quick rundown of the highlights, especially nextactions.



Simply staying focused on the task in front of someone for more than five minutes ishard enough, let alone actually completing it. It’s important to clearly understandwhat you’re trying to create and when it’s due.

“Contrary to popular belief, there most certainly is an "I" in"team." It is the same "I" that appears three times in

"responsibility."

Firstly, we interviewed the HR Manager Store METRO, Ahsan

Fayyaz Cheema; the answers he gave us are as follows:

What is your formal team structure? While forming a team do you consider the

capabilities of people and is there member role clarification?

It depends on how many number of employees are required in a department or in certain

area. The role clarification is really important, so allocating the right employee with the most

appropriate skills for a specific job is how we normally form teams and we consider this the

most correct method of forming teams.

Do you think teams are required everywhere?

If you ask me today, my answer would be YES. As in today’s world no firm can work without

teams which are efficient, hardworking and which can co-ordinate according to the

requirements.

Did you face any difficulties while handling certain people or groups in a team?

How do you resolve conflicts and what strategies do you adopt for effective results

and performances?

We normally don’t let the conflicts rise up to a serious level. The procedure that we use is the

Grievance handling process. It has the following steps:

Personal

Perception

At the end of management

Line manager

Supervisor



HR

How well does the team do in addressing and resolving conflicts among members?

Do team members feel comfortable suggesting a controversial or dissentingopinion in team meetings?

Well, I would say my team has now actually started to work on resolving conflicts and have

started feeling comfortable in addressing their problems. Normally as I’ve said earlier we don’t

let them convert into big issues. But if in any case the issue turns into a BIG problem, then the

two strategies we adopt are:

Organization choice

Employee choice

This all is coached by line manager or HR manager.

Communication is really important for consistent results, how and when do you

communicate? Is everyone working to improve communication, feedback and

organisation, as every employee has a different way of doing things?

Communication is extremely important. I feel it is really important for you to communicate

with your employees regarding what you what and what queries they have. So the basic

system of communication that we have has helped us a lot in overcoming hurdles and a lot of

minor issues, which could result in a slower processing for the firm. We conduct meetings on thisschedule:

Daily morning meeting that is the 1st shift at 9 am.

Section head communicates with team

Then in the afternoon that is the 2nd shift at 3 pm.

Apart from this daily basis of communication, we also have monthly meetings

with every team at the end.

Is it important to assess organisational readiness? Do you have performance

evaluat ion and awards?

Yes, organisational readiness is extremely important if you want to succeed in this world of

throat-cut competition. We have different criteria’s for reward and punishment such as:

Corrective action



Rewards

Fines performance related/not defined(confidential)

Rewards ,monetary and recognition

Has the team established a purpose—a reason for the team’s existence? How well

is the team doing in living i ts purpose and does the team have the right members?

Current team that I’m working with has the clear aim of excelling in whatever they are doing.

So this is my team’s purpose and the main goal. The team that I’m working on was formed 3

years back and now Masha’Allah it is on a level where I can say that every employee is

working extremely hard to strive.

Is there a clear contract on what the team expects from the leader and what the

leader expects from the team? Are members of the t eam f lexible—are they willing

to change their points of view for the good of the team?

Ofcourse there is. The main purpose of the meetings and conferences held is to tell theemployees about what is expected out of them, with a complete guideline of the whole workprocedure.

My team has great potential and is extremely flexible as that is the most important thing in ateam that they should on working together and co-coordinating in every situation. And if youask my about my team than I shall say that its attitude towards change is great.

Has the team adopted a set of procedural ground rules? What programs do you

have for employees that are new in your organisat ion to make them aware of thefirm rules and requirements? Do you plan t o train the currently working

employees too?

You know we do have some basic ground rules regarding work as well as behavior which is

why the teams that we have now and will in future too, accept change and are always

prepared for changes.

Talking about the program that we have for the new employees is the ORIENTATION, which

is of 2 – 3 hours, explaining them about the firm’s requirements and rules. For the working

employees we conduct training sessions as well as workshops to enhance their skills and

abilities.

What plans do you implement to improve the workers efficiency which don’t

produce the desired results and how do you improve communication within other



departments and how do you overcome the problems within different

depart ments?

The main procedure that we use is of Induction. There is a 2-3 weeks induction plan, in which

we shuffle employees to interact with other employees of the department so that they learn

about the main areas that they focus on. It’s all about the learning key points. We oftenshuffle teams within the departments as some workers might not be working well with one

specific team but might work well with different teams

Do team members act in a manner that indicates that they feel mutually

accountable to one another for the success of the team?

I shall say that now they have started giving credits as you know in the beginning everyone is

trying to come forward and tell what capabilities they have. Gradually after working in a

team now they have realised that it’s about team effort and now they feel accountable to

another for the success in the organization

How much effect does a leader has on team effectiveness, do you think you’re an

appropriate leader?

Leaders play a vital role in the management of the team, it is said 100 percent leaders affect

the team.

Although leadership is critical to team effort and sourcing team success, what

type of team leadership strategies have you adopted?

Assertive/influencing

Fairness

Ready to change/change agent

There is an important connection between task-oriented leadership behavior and

sourcing team effort and performance, what is your take on that?

Flat structure and open door policy

Not comfortable with line manager, HR deals with them

Do team members feel comfortable suggesting a controversial or dissenting

opinion in team meetings? Are team meetings well planned? Do you stick to the

agenda?

Team meetings



1. 80 percent focus on operational issues

2. 20 percent on soft skill issues

Do all members part icipate equally in team decisions?

Team members contribute in solving issues, cross functional issues discussed by hr manager,

store and same members contribute and issues are resolved

Do you think you’re an appropriate leader?

Yes ofcourse, I think I am an appropriate leader. With the major leadership roles:

1. Authoritative

2. Democrative

Authoritative style used on the 1st stage but can’t be used on every stage of managing teams.

At performance stage different leadership styles are adopted.

We have changed leadership style for four leaders.

Hr manager deals with cross functional manager issues deals, assertive comes into play and

deals with logics

It is known that ineffective team members are interested in pursuing theirpersonal goals, was this problem with your ineffective team too? What do you

think can be done to improve their performance?

Action planning deals with objectives. Feedback is required by team objectives which are pre-

decided. Specific action plans are devised by team for ineffective teams.

In the start, the time line doesn’t meets up, the team when reaches performance, the members

who don’t gel in, get dropped due to peer pressure

Skill set in every department is very important in achieving the goals

1. Skill inventory should be allocated properly

2. Sales team should have sales related personal not financial people

What do you think can be done to improve their performance and make them

efficient teams?



Employee strength and weakness are known because working since 3 years

Recruitment feedback is taken after 3-4 months

Promotion leads to attitude, time is given to employees for adjusting of the attitude.

As the Right employees are the assets. Employees in my team have taken 1year or 9 -10months to adjust.

What recreational programs you have for your employees?

EMPLOYEE recognition tools

These are rewards:

Weekly

Monthly

Employee night(yearly) Sports gala (yearly)

Day outs for employees

Dinners

Is there trust and integrity throughout the team regarding evaluations?

Trust on others for working. An old team, trust is building in 3 years. Employee development is

based on working with other teams.

People who cannot work easily in other teams are given personal coaching by hr manager,

shaking their minds, giving them directions, altering their personal vision, leads them to

openness of minds

Realization depends on openness of minds. This results in transition face to introvert to

extrovert. Like in my team 23 people were identified in sept 2010, 6 of them are now being

promoted to next levels

Training is now being outsourced to special departments:

Corporate communication

Presentat ion skills

These were done to build up openness of leaders.

Are you proud to be a part of this team, which you’re currently working with?

I’m proud of my team as this an excellent team to work with as no matter how I stretched it, it

gave me the desired results.



Secondly, we interviewed the ASSISTANT VICE PRESIDENT

HBL, Syed Muhammad ALI; the answers he gave us are as

follows:

Communication is really important for consistent results, how and when do you

communicate?

ANS: Create an outline of the project's steps with a clear list of which team member is

responsible for each step. If one person shirks his duties, you'll be able to identify theshortcoming and compensate accordingly. Set up an email group so you'll be able toconveniently send and address questions, updates and changes. Members won't be able todeny they've missed emails or that they're unclear about the guidelines. We meet in person

several times before the deadline if you need back and forth interaction to change directionsor solve problems.

Is there trust and integrity throughout the team regarding evaluations?

ANS: Yes. I think some factors on the part of manager affects employee trust like openness

and transparency on the part of the manager i.e. all agendas are on the table. Honesty on thepart of manager, consistency in action and words, demonstrated commitment through actionsto helping the employee succeed, demonstrated commitment through listening to understandthe employee.

Is time allotted for innovat ion and modificat ion in working strategies?

ANS: Yes time is allotted for these things because its better to take your time if it makes work

more efficient.

What steps do you regularly take to improve the effectiveness of your remote

team?

ANS: Monitoring of the team member’s work and the communication should be done

regularly.

How was your experience regarding managing teams?

ANS: Some of the tasks were really challenging and managing teams is tough because thereare different type of people with different approach to work and there occur conflicts andgrudges between people and as a manager these are the basic issues which you have to dealwith and i have enjoyed my responsibilit ies.



Did you face any difficult ies while handling certa in people or groups in a team?

ANS: YES. People have different calibers. Some are able and others are weak. You should

analyze the abilities of every member and assign them tasks accordingly. Members also makeexcuses regarding their work. So its difficult but u have to tackle them.

What strategies do you adopt for effective results and performances?

ANS: There must be a clear single goal. Frequent communication of the project purpose can

be vital in keeping the team on track. There has to be a commitment from each teammember to the team. With multiple tools at our fingertips like email, mobile phones andproject management software, to not communicate is a sure sign of lack of commitment fromteam members. Personal ambit ions should be placed on one side to have effective team work.Any person that is responsible for building teams will factor in the importance of spending timetogether both on projects and in non-working events.

While forming a team do you consider the capabilities of people and is theremember role clarif icat ion?

ANS: Yes these are the basic requirements. The work is assigned to every member according

to his/her capabilities so that every one is at the right place and roles are defined.

How much effect does a leader has on team effectiveness, do you think you’re an

appropriate leader?

ANS: Leaders are the ones who direct team members towards goal achievement so they have

major impact. Leaders are made with passing time through experience. I think born leaders

are rare. I think I have learned to lead with time and effectively as well.

Talk ing about effective teams, how good is your team?

ANS: We have an effective team. We support each other’s ideas, don’t blame each other,

communicate as much as possible, listen actively to each other.

Has the team established a purpose—a reason for the team’s existence?

ANS: The purpose for creating teams is to provide a framework that will increase the ability

of employees to participate in planning, problem solving and decision making. So thesereasons are the basics for effective work and we follow them.

Has the team adopted a set of procedural ground rules (meeting frequency, face-

to- face meetings, teleconferences, etc.) ?

ANS: All rules are adopted. Face to face interviews are very effective in a team which has few

members and who are nearby i.e in same office or can be brought close easily. Tele



conferences are also effective if people are scattered and meetings should be scheduledfrequently.

Has the team adopted a set of behavioral ground rules?

ANS: Ofcourse. We treat each other with respect and intend to develop personal relationshipsto enhance trust and open communication. We value constructive feedback and avoid beingdefensive and give feedback in a constructive manner. We treat subcontractor and customerteam members in the same way as contractor team members and strive to recognize andcelebrate individual and team accomplishments.

Are members of the team flexible—are they willing to change their points of view

for the good of the t eam?

ANS: In every meeting team members are allowed to give their view point and we have a

decentralized system. Members are recognized and allowed to give their thoughts.

Do members of the team recognize one another’s contributions to the team?

ANS: In our case of banking, output is in figures for example deposits. So you to agree any

way because figures speak themselves.

Is there a sense of team spirit?

ANS: Yes. We have a friendly environment and team spirit is there.

How well does the team do in addressing and resolving conflicts among members?

ANS: Conflicts do occur. You have to go to the team leader and he is the one to resolve them

most effectively. Leader should settle their grudges and make them focus on work.

Do all members part icipate equally in team decisions?

ANS: They must be allowed to give suggestions and views but decision making has to be done

at higher level. If every one is allowed to participate in decision making, then it would not beappropriate.

Are people proud to be part of the team?

ANS: Yes. We work effectively, in good environment and our work is recognized by higher

authorities so people are proud to be a part of our team.

Why do you think your team is effective and the reasons for their success?

ANS: Our team is effective because we have friendly environment, specific goals, we meet

regularly, keep each other up to date, and our hard work is the key to our success.



Do you have performance evaluat ion and awards?

ANS: We do have evaluation. Awards like pay will increase with target achievement. Awards

are result oriented only.

Have you had any experiences with ineffective teams?

ANS: Yes and the main reason for that is inability. Personal goals are also responsible. Some

members want different environment and intentionally work badly.

Are they unwilling to share their knowledge and experiences?

ANS: I think they are willing but not good enough or as I said they are not comfortable and

need a different task or environment. They want change and you have to change their taskand you have to do it as they are not contributing.

It is known that ineffective team members are interested in pursuing theirpersonal goals, was this problem with your ineffective team too?

ANS: Yes the personal goals are an issue. Some people don’t take responsibility of negligence

and blame others unnecessarily. So there are many issues like these and they can damageteam work.

What characteristics do you think an ineffective team has?

ANS: Disagreements are not dealt effectively, atmosphere reflects indifference and members

tend to avoid discussions and the purpose may not be united.

What do you think can be done to improve their performance?

ANS: Reward and punishment method is used.

Thirdly, we interviewed the Director Operat ions ALLIANZ

TECHNOLOGIES, A Multi- national Call Centre, Tayyab

Saleem; the answers he gave us are as follows:

Q. It’s not surprising that team effort relates to sourcing team performance, and

an understanding of t eam effort in firms drives great performance and

commitment, what strategies does your company use on that?



Answer:

Yes it’s not surprising that team effort relates to team performance, our company uses thefollowing strategies in this process:

Descript ion of team building foundation. Various team building activities. Dependability pattern is defined

Q. Communication is really important for consistent results, how and when do you

communicate?

Answer:

Yes communication is very important, there is no compromise in communication at any level,any blockage or delay in communication channels may cause horrible results. Communication

channel is always open from team building till task execution. There is no formal mechanismdeveloped for this kind of communication but however a meeting is compulsory before theshift ends and begins.

Q. Is there trust and integrity throughout the team regarding evaluations?

Answer:

Yes. There is trust and integrity, it can never be removed from team evaluations, and both of

these factors are used as a scale to measure the team effectiveness.

Q. Is everyone working to improve communicat ion, feedback and organisat ion, as

every employee has a different way of doing things?

Answer:

Not all the five fingers are equal, an ideal team always has differences within themselves,knowing these differences leads to the formulat ion of strategies to make the teams effective.

Q. Is time allotted for innovat ion and modificat ion in working strategies?

Answer:

Time allocation is very important for team building strategies. It is just like oxygen for workingstrategies.

Q. What steps do you regularly take to improve the effectiveness of your remote

team?



Answer:

Following steps are taken to improve the effectiveness of the remote team:

Remote team visits

Video conferencing Web monitoring

Report ing mechanism is developed Adherence system is developed

Q. How was your experience regarding managing teams?

Answer:

It is a part of evolution, when you walk across from an individual to a team member, then toa team leader, evolving into a manager, all these experiences combine and act as a scale to

calibrate, manage and lead a team or teams. In simple words my experience is very good.

Q. Did you face any difficulties while handling certain people or groups in a

team?

Answer:

Yes, it comes with the package.

Q. What strategies do you adopt for effective results and performances?

Answer:

My strategies are based on multiple factors, to address the highlighted and identified scenarios.Following strategies are most commonly used by me:

Motivational strategies Recreational strategies

Pressure strategies Fear factor strategies. (Worse case scenarios)

Q. While forming a team do you consider the capabilities of people and is there

member role clarif icat ion?

Answer:

Yes, making a team is like filling a jigsaw puzzle; you have to place your team member on theright spot to get the result.



Q. What plans do you implement while establishing team performance goals?

Answer:

Whenever a team performance goal is set, it is based on combination of individual and team

capabilit ies and a goal has to be realistic.

Q. Is it important to assess organisational readiness?

Answer:

Yes, a team goal is directly proportional to the organizational goal.

Q. How much effect does a leader has on team effectiveness, do you think you’re

an appropriate leader?

Answer:

Leader is just like a coach or a path finder, who has the capabilities and skills to make the restfollow. He is the one who is the hope for the team, my evolution from an individual to amanger is an answer to being an appropriate leader.

Questions on teams they thought were effective and why they

succeeded:

Q. Talking about effective teams, how good is your team?

Answer:

I think it is one of the best teams to work with. My team has an individual variance which isthe reason for success of my team.

Q. Has the team established a purpose—a reason for the team’s existence?

Answer:

Yes it has. It started to gain its purpose and reasons for the establishment i.e. the main taskwithin 3 months of its format ion.

Q. How well is the team doing in living its purpose and does the team have the

right members?

Answer:



My team is doing very well; it has never let me down in the achievement of goals assigned tothem. At start there was a bit problem as far as the members are concerned, but now with thepassage of time the members have adjusted themselves accordingly.

Q. Has the team adopted a set of procedural ground rules (meeting frequency,

face- to- face meetings, teleconferences, etc.) ?

Answer:

Yes, it has the basic rule for the effective output of the team. These things are conducted onneed basis as well as regular basis, also based on goals and targets.

Q. Has the t eam adopted a set of behavioral ground rules?

Answer:

Yes, they are following the team code of ethics and company code of conduct.

Q. Is there a clear contract on what the team expects from the leader and what

the leader expects from the team?

Answer:

Yes, this is the basic ground role, which is set at the time of team formulation.

Q. Are members of the team f lexible—are they willing to change their points of

view for the good of the team?

Answer:

When a team is formulated, individual flexibility is used for the strength of the team.

Q. Do members of the team recognize one another’s contributions to the team?

Answer:

They do recognize and they give the due credit to each other. Credit giving started with time.

Q. Is there a sense of team spirit?

Answer:

When the members of the team start giving credit for the contribution to other teammembers, team spirit starts right there.



Q. How well does the team do in addressing and resolving conflicts among

members?

Answer:

Sometimes they resolve the conflict themselves and sometimes the leader has to intervene andpurpose the solution. It depends on the nature of conflict, however in some case the conflictmight be solved through the following chain:

Line Manager SupervisorDepartment HeadHuman resources.

Q. Do all members participate equally in team decisions?

Answer:

Not Always, Depend on the nature of conflict or confidence level of employees.

Q. Do team members feel comfortable suggesting a controversial or dissenting

opinion in team meetings?

Answer:

Not always, again it depends on conflict and confidence level.

Q. Are team meetings well planned? Do you stick to the agenda?

Answer:

Not always, some of the time, some unprecedented events may or can affect the agenda orplanning.

Q. Has the team actively worked on gett ing to know one another and on building

strong relationships?

Answer:

No, they haven’t, they were forced and engaged in team building activities.

Q. Are people proud to be part of the team?

Answer:

Yes, they are, because my team has integrity and a code which is respected and honored.



Q. How effective is the team in handling problems and setbacks?

Answer:

Problems and setbacks always help the teams to gel in and prepare to handle future

problems and setbacks, initially they were not good, but with the passage of time, they havelearnt the tricks.

Q. Do team members act in a manner that indicates that they feel mutually

accountable to one another for the success of the team?

Answer:

Sometimes they do and sometimes they don’t. It has always been a combination of dos anddon’ts.

Q. Are people proud to be part of the team?

Answer:

Yes, they are, when team effort results in success, it obviously brings pride in being a part of asuccessful team.

Q. Why do you think your team is effective and the reasons for their success?

Answer:

Team formulation. Team strategy Dependability pattern Trust Respect Clear vision of goals

Q. Do you have performance evaluation and awards?

Answer:

Yes, we do like:

Employee of month Team star

Employee nights Team spirit awards

Team bonuses



Questions on ineffective teams:

Q. Have you had any experiences with ineffective teams?

Answer:

Yes, various times

Q. Are they unwilling to share their knowledge and experiences?

Answer:

Most of the times yes, but mostly they are reluctant to accept. Various strategies andtechniques used to stain:

One to one sessions Individual assignments Stress test

Knowledge test Leadership role assignment

Q. It is known that ineffective team members are interested in pursuing their

personal goals, was this problem with your ineffective team too?

Answer:

Yes, when these personal goals are judged by various techniques, then if these goals are linkedwith organizational goals, in this way the goals can be taken out from their mind andconverted towards organizational goals.

Q. What characteristics do you think an ineffective team has?

Answer:

The characteristics of ineffective teams are:

Attention towards personal goals then organizational goals.

Less attention towards team goals, more towards personal goals. No trust.

Wrong skill inventory. Wrong working combination. Lack of interdependency.



Q. Any negative energy that they have which affects the performance of the

team?

Answer:

Biasness Jealousy Negative Aggressiveness

Q. What do you think can be done to improve their performance?

Answer:

Two ways:

Get rid

Eradicate weaknesses

Training:

Personal issues solving at work

They might have other skill, better to find out that skill

Assign another role.

Results:

Highly productive.

Get promoted.

“Regardless of dif ferences, we strive shoulder to shoulder... [T]eamwork can be

summed up in f ive short words: "We believe in each other."

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Team Work "Project of Organizational Behavior"