Teamwork
references:
Engineering by Design by Gerard Voland
Creative Problem Solving, Thinking Skills for a Changing World
by Edward Lumsdaine and Monika Lumsdaine
The Power of Teamwork
Why Work in Teams?
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Brain dominance controls our thinking preferences
Herrmann’s Four-Quadrant Brain Model of thinking preference
left cerebral hemisphere
A
B
left limbic system
right cerebral hemisphere
logical
factual
critical
technical
analytical
quantitative
visual
holistic
intuitive
innovative
conceptual
imaginative
conservative
structured
sequential
organized
detailed
planned
interpersonal C
kinesthetic
emotional
spiritual
sensory
feeling
D
right limbic system
Teams Have Advantages When Creativity
Is Sought
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Teams combine the different backgrounds, experiences and
thinking preferences of individuals
Interaction among team members – other’s ideas are used as
stepping-stones to more creative ideas
Willingness on the part of a team to take greater risks
Effective Team Practices
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Common goals
Equitable workloads
Mutual accountability
Collegial Environment
Common Goals
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All members of a design team first must agree upon a single
problem formulation and a set of initial expectations so that
everyone will be moving in the same general direction as the
work progresses
Equitable Workloads
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Overall workload for developing a final design should be
shared equitably among all members of the team
Work should be divided into general and then more specific
tasks
Some tasks will require a coordinated effort by the entire
team or a number of members, while the more specific or
focused tasks can be completed by individual members
Recognize that the work will be dynamic in nature, everchanging, and likely necessitating changes to the assignments
over time
The design proposal and/or a Gantt chart can be used to
assign tasks to team members and monitor progress
Mutual Accountability
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All members of the team must share responsibility for the
completion of all tasks and the development of the final
design
Leadership and decision-making responsibilities should be
shared among all members in order to increase each person’s
motivation and commitment to the project and to enhance the
quality of the final design
The team should establish expectations for individual and
group performance
Use peer appraisal (see example form
) to provide each
individual and the team with feedback on performance such
that corrective actions can be taken in a timely manner
Collegial Environment
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Teamwork is built upon the mutual trust and respect among
all members
The working environment must be one in which everyone
feels comfortable about sharing an idea or opinion
Each member must also realize that their idea may be justly
criticized (and possibly rejected) by the team
All criticisms must be constructive in nature and respectful of
the person whose work is being criticized
Being Effective as a Team Member
Being Effective as a Team Leader