Team Contract and Code of Conduct
Your assignment as a team is to develop a team contract that specifies overall team purpose and
the responsibilities of each of the team members. In addition you will develop a code of conduct
outlining norms or ground rules that your team members will follow.
Team Contract
The purpose of the team contract is to develop a statement of the team's purpose and the
duties/roles of each team member including how leadership functions will be carried out. You
should carefully describe what is expected from each member of the team. Sample questions:
1.
What is our team's purpose or mission?
2.
What are duties/role of each team member? What is expected of each team member?
3.
How will the team handle the leadership/facilitation/management activities?
You are to write a team contract for your team. Every member of the team must agree to the
terms and sign the contract. The contract must be no longer that one page and must be typed.
Code of Conduct
Outcome: Code of conduct stating norms or rules for team to follow. (This will include both
task-oriented and people related ground rules.)
Evidence: 1-2 page document summarizing ground rules/norms and the evidence you would see,
hear, or feel to know if the ground rule was being followed? (Document must be typed.)
Procedure:
1.
Brainstorm a list of norms or ground rules that will affect how your team will operate.
Make sure that some of these norms are related to task work and some are related to group
dynamics (people) work.
2.
For each norm, identify what behavior you would see, hear, or feel if this norm were
accepted by the team (evidence?). Develop some hypothetical situations to see how it
would work, and what evidence you would need to have to know if the norm is or isn't
being followed.
3.
Check for consensus on the content and wording of your code of conduct. Can every team
member agree to attempt to honor it as it stands?
4.
Have each member sign the code of conduct. Make copies for each team member and me.
Issues to consider putting in you code:

What do "on time" and "attendance" mean?

How will decisions be made?

How will conflict be handled?

What behaviors should be encouraged? Avoided?

What happens when the ground rules are broken? How will you handle exceptions?

What recourse will you take when a team member does not perform agreed to
responsibilities? What happens when one of the team members lets the others down?

How will specific roles (activities, tasks) be assigned for team projects?

How will team members give each other feedback on their performance?
Group Biography
As a group, fill out the following document to be turned in along with the Code of Conduct and
Team Contract on Wednesday, August 28.
Group name:
Group members:
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
Select one member of the group to serve as a liaison between the group and myself.
Group contact, phone number, and e-mail:
Compile a list of resources that the group gains from its members. These resources can be
personal qualities, experience, technology, etc. Do not specify which member contributes which
resources.
Group resources:
Ten Errors Behind Most Communication Breakdowns/Problems
1. Having no clear goal.
2. Not establishing rapport.
3. Staying in the negative.
4. Assuming others think as you think or know what you think.
5. Paying attention to yourself when you need to notice the other person.
6. Mistaking interpretations for facts.
7. Hallucinating (filling in the blanks from your own experience).
8. Not verifying information.
9. Leading too soon.
10. Resisting resistance.