Team Effectiveness:
Principles & Guidelines
© LearningBridge Inc., 2003. All rights reserved.
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What Do I Need to Know
about Teams?
© LearningBridge Inc., 2003. All rights reserved.
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What is a Team?

A relatively small number of people

With complementary skills

Who are committed

To a common purpose,

Set of performance goals,

And approach

For which they hold themselves mutually
accountable
© LearningBridge Inc., 2003. All rights reserved.
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All Groups are Not Teams. Teams:

Are characterized by interdependency

Often share leadership roles

Express individual and mutual accountability

Have specific team purposes that the team delivers

Have collective work products

Encourage open-ended discussions and active problemsolving at meetings

Measure performance against collective work products

Do real work together
© LearningBridge Inc., 2003. All rights reserved.
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Teamwork Represents Values that:

Encourage listening and responding
constructively to the views expressed by others

Give others the benefit of the doubt

Provide support

Recognize the interests and achievements of
others
John R. Katzenbach and Douglas K. Smith, “The Discipline of Teams”, Harvard Business Review, March-April, 1993, pp. 111-120
© LearningBridge Inc., 2003. All rights reserved.
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Characteristics of Losing Teams

Dominated by one individual

Compromise between two competing business
strategies

Engage in groupthink

Not all team members contribute
© LearningBridge Inc., 2003. All rights reserved.
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Winning Teams

Trust

Clear time frame and agreed upon goals

Get facts and do analyses before making
decisions

Divide responsibilities

All team members contribute

Challenge and play devil’s advocate
© LearningBridge Inc., 2003. All rights reserved.
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