Discuss About the Teamwork And Team Effectiveness Connecting It With Effective Communication, A Critical Analysis Of Ethics In Communication Which Can Be Linked With Team Effectiveness Is Also Provided.
A team is created to accomplish goals by using the resources available optimally. Each member of a team must contribute towards the success of the team. Face-to- face communication should be used to handle issues within a team and an open communication model should be adopted within a team (Galegher, Kraut and Egido 2014). Direct and open communication should be encouraged within members of a team. Teams which score high on general mental ability (GMA), agreeableness, conscientiousness, extraversion and emotional stability generally demonstrate high team-performance based on rating by supervisors (Crawford and Lepine 2013). The communication styles and strength of communication within the members of a team are often the key indicators for successful collaboration among team members which lead to high-performance teams (Daspit et al. 2013). For some, teamwork is an enjoyable experience while for others teamwork can be a stressful experience and they prefer to perform individually. The attributes that are required by an individual to be an effective team player are reliability, ability to communicate constructively and effectively, listening skills, ability to share information, knowledge and experience openly and willingly, ability to co-operate to accomplish common goals, ability to embrace changes and be flexible, problem solving skills, ability to treat all other team members in a respectful manner, ability to function as an active participant. In this essay, the literature on teamwork and team effectiveness is reviewed. The role of effective communication on team effectiveness is analyzed. Ethical communication is further linked with team effectiveness. Generally, the high-performing teams abide by ethical principles in their policies, practices and communication style.
In the year 1977, Rubin Plovnic and Fry suggested a model for team effectiveness. This model is also known as GRPI model. According to this model, a team requires four parts which are Goals, Roles, Processes and Interpersonal relationships in order to be effective. Goals are objectives that are well-defined and priorities and expectations should be clearly communicated to members of a team during the process of goal setting. The roles are responsibilities of the team members which are well defined. The decision making processes as well as the process of work should have clarity within a team. Interpersonal relationships within team members should foster trust, flexibility and good communication (Belbin 2012).The authors Douglas Smith and Jon Katzenbach unveiled a model for team effectiveness after studying the challenges related to work faced by different teams of various companies across the globe . The model is in the form of a triangle and collective work products, personal growth and performance results are the major deliverables of a team and they form the three points of a triangle. Commitment, skills and accountability are the factors which are of paramount importance in order to achieve the team deliverables to make the team effective. In the year 1995, Michael Lombardo and Robert Eichinge developed the T7 model of team effectiveness. The five internal factors which are responsible for the effectiveness of a team according to the T7 team effectiveness model are trust, talent, task skills, team skills, thrust and teaming skills. The external factors which are responsible for the effectiveness of a team are the team leader fit and the support the team receives from an organization. The authors Carl Larson and Frank LaFasto studied 600 teams in organizations across the globe and suggested the La Fasto and Carl Larson model for team effectiveness. This model was proposed in the year 2001 and is known as the Five Dynamics of Team Work and Collaboration. According to this model, selecting the right person is the first step towards effectiveness of a team; the relationships shared by the members of a team determine the effectiveness of a team. In this model it is suggested that good relationships among team members contribute towards the problem solving capability of a team which is related to the effectiveness of the team (West2012). The model also suggests that team leadership and organizational environment contribute substantially towards the effectiveness of a team (Wang, Waldman and Zhang 2014). In the year 2002, J. Richard Hackman proposed a model for effectiveness of a team. According to this model, effective teams have a boundary that delineates who is a part of the team and follow a compelling direction with clear and challenging goals. This model points out that the structure of an effective team should enhance teamwork and a team should have organizational support and expert coaching in order to be effective. Working in a team enhances the capacity of problem solving and allows the flow of innovative ideas within a team (Maxwell 2013).
A key aspect of teamwork and team effectiveness is communication. A proper communication model and strategy must be adopted by organizations to create highly effective teams. The three metrics of communication that affect the performance of a team are energy, engagement and exploration. The energy metrics of communication determines quality of communication and the amount of communication that is fostered among team members. For instance, electronic mode of communication like emails and text messages have less impact on team performance while face-to-face communications boost higher energy among team members and affect the performance of a team. Another metrics of communication which has impact on teamwork and performance of a team are engagement. The teams which demonstrate partial engagement among team members do not contribute towards high organizational performance. High engagement and high performance within a team can be fostered by high and equal energy among team members resulting in good cohesion and engagement among team members (DeOrtentiis et al. 2013).Exploration is also the third metrics of communication which determines high performance of a team. Most of the global organizations adopt an open communication model and a culture of innovation and creativity. The exploration metrics for communication is highly essential for such innovative organizations. Exploration metrics of communication reflect how the members of a team communicate with the external environment like teams, companies and industry of the external environment. This external communication level also has a positive impact on the effectiveness of a team. The high performing teams and teams with a higher team effectiveness generally demonstrate characteristics of effective communication like the conversations and gestures among team members are energetic with more face-to-face conversations and members coordinate among one another and not only with the team leader. Team members with high effectiveness of team generally take periodic breaks and explore the outside world to collect, gather and analyze information from the external environment (Maxwell 2013). This information from external sources is vital for teamwork because information from macro-environment can provide valuable data related to competition, market and customers. It has been found that socializing can substantially improve the interpersonal communication among team members. High- performing team also demonstrates effective listening skills and ability to communicate effectively both verbally and non-verbally using gestures. A high performing team with an effective communication model among team members receives support from team leaders and the organization which is suggested in the models of team effectiveness. Teams which follow an open communication model are generally supported by transformation team leaders who allow autonomy and flexibility among team members. Organizations that develop an effective communication strategy among teams also invest in training the team members on effective communication strategy (Boies, Fiset and Gill 2015). It has been found that in decision making teams, communication plays a vital role while in general teams, the literature provides little evidence in connection between communication and team performance. In general teams, team performance can be linked with demography and team size (Joshi and Knight 2015). It has been found that teams dealing with complex tasks that require higher level of information and cognitive decision making is affected by degree of communication among team members.
Communication and ethics can also be linked and an ethical communication among team members generally contributes towards high-performing team. The effectiveness of a team increases when managers and leaders organize workshops for team members which focus on work ethics. These workshops make team members aware about the ethics which are in alignment with the vision, mission and strategic goals of an organization thus increasing the performance of the team. Standards should be set by an organization and these standards for acceptable behavior should be clearly communicated to team members to enhance team effectiveness. The ethical practices that members of an effective team generally adhere to are being punctual, being responsible, working with an optimistic attitude, respecting and collaborating with team members and communicating with ethical values (González-Romá and Hernández 2014).
Ethical behavior among team members should be driven by values and team members of high-performing teams follow a code of moral standards that enable them to distinguish between right and wrong. High-performing team and teams which demonstrate effectiveness generally align their communication model around a strict code of ethics. The ethical values of high-performing team are in alignment with the vision and values of the organization they work for which are reflected in interpersonal communication among team members (Walumbwa, Morrison and Christensen 2012).Communication ethics that determine effectiveness of a team are maintaining balance between speaking and listening, degree of criticism and praise and the legitimacy of emotional appeal and fear. Communication training can reduce biases and discrimination among team members related to culture, ethnicity, language barriers and race. Ethical communication training can foster cultural tolerance and cultural sensitivity among team members. Stereotypes among team members can also be reduced by effective communication training related to ethics. This kind of ethical communication is of paramount importance in a high-performing culturally diverse global team. In this world of globalization, organizations rely on virtual teams with team members based on different geographical location (Maynard et al. 2012). Ethical communication and transparency play a vital role for team effectiveness of virtual teams because team members do not get a chance to meet physically(Hoch and Kozlowski 2014).The team members of a high-performing team are provided training on ethics and compliance programs. The team leaders and managers should not only set goals for the members of a team but should also focus on increasing awareness among team members about workplace ethics and ethical communication. In an effective and high performing team of an organization, generally the team members adhere to a written ethical code of conduct. Organizations with high-performing teams often have written code of conduct related to ethics and ethical communication within team members. Some employees possess strong sets of values in their personal and professional life, however other team members especially members of a team who lack previous experience must be trained on ethics and transparency. The ethical issues like lack of hygiene factors at workplace, issues related to quality, customer dissatisfaction, and ethical issues related to stereotypes and low cultural sensitivity resulting in conflicts can be resolved when teams are trained in ethical values (Bradley et al. 2012).
Conclusion
It can be concluded that teamwork and team-effectiveness is of paramount importance in today’s fast paced, competitive and highly volatile business environment. Team work fosters collaboration and brainstorming within a team. Team performance increases when team members work in cohesion and organizational objectives are reached when people work together in a team. Organizational productivity increases when individuals collaborate and perform effectively within a team to accomplish organizational goals. Thus, working in teams should be practiced while pursuing education in universities. Team work foster better decision making skills among students and enable them to respect the viewpoint of team members. Teamwork at universities enables students to develop tolerance and respect for their teammates who belong to a different cultural background, ethnicity, race or language. It is recommended that students should adhere to teamwork at universities to develop skills of effectively working within a team which will help them when they enter the corporate world. Team effectiveness can also be linked with communication and ethics. It is recommended that teams should follow an open communication model, should adopt transparency among team members and team leaders, should work in harmony and avoid biases and stereotypes to enhance team effectiveness. Ethical values like respect for diversity and organizational code of conduct should be fostered within a team to enhance team effectiveness and increase team performance. It is recommended that team members should be trained in formal training programs which will increase their awareness about ethical values, so that they can adopt the same while communicating with all stakeholders.
References
Belbin, R.M., 2012. Team roles at work. Routledge.
Boies, K., Fiset, J. and Gill, H., 2015. Communication and trust are key: Unlocking the relationship between leadership and team performance and creativity. The Leadership Quarterly, 26(6), pp.1080-1094.
Bradley, B.H., Postlethwaite, B.E., Klotz, A.C., Hamdani, M.R. and Brown, K.G., 2012. Reaping the benefits of task conflict in teams: the critical role of team psychological safety climate. Journal of Applied Psychology, 97(1), p.151.
Crawford, E.R. and Lepine, J.A., 2013. A configural theory of team processes: Accounting for the structure of taskwork and teamwork. Academy of Management Review, 38(1), pp.32-48.
Daspit, J., Justice Tillman, C., Boyd, N.G. and Mckee, V., 2013. Cross-functional team effectiveness: An examination of internal team environment, shared leadership, and cohesion influences. Team Performance Management: An International Journal, 19(1/2), pp.34-56.
Galegher, J., Kraut, R.E. and Egido, C., 2014. Intellectual teamwork: Social and technological foundations of cooperative work. Psychology Press.
González-Romá, V. and Hernández, A., 2014. Climate uniformity: Its influence on team communication quality, task conflict, and team performance. Journal of Applied Psychology, 99(6), pp.1042-1058.
Hoch, J.E. and Kozlowski, S.W., 2014. Leading virtual teams: Hierarchical leadership, structural supports, and shared team leadership. Journal of applied psychology, 99(3), p.390.
Joshi, A. and Knight, A.P., 2015. Who defers to whom and why? Dual pathways linking demographic differences and dyadic deference to team effectiveness. Academy of Management Journal, 58(1), pp.59-84.
Maxwell, J.C., 2013. The 17 indisputable laws of teamwork: Embrace them and empower your team. Thomas Nelson Inc.
Maynard, M.T., Mathieu, J.E., Rapp, T.L. and Gilson, L.L., 2012. Something (s) old and something (s) new: Modeling drivers of global virtual team effectiveness. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 33(3), pp.342-365.
DeOrtentiis, P., K. Summers, J., P. Ammeter, A., Douglas, C. and R. Ferris, G., 2013. Cohesion and satisfaction as mediators of the team trust–team effectiveness relationship: An interdependence theory perspective. Career Development International, 18(5), pp.521-543.
Walumbwa, F.O., Morrison, E.W. and Christensen, A.L., 2012. Ethical leadership and group in-role performance: The mediating roles of group conscientiousness and group voice. The Leadership Quarterly, 23(5), pp.953-964.
Wang, D., Waldman, D.A. and Zhang, Z., 2014. A meta-analysis of shared leadership and team effectiveness.
West, M.A., 2012. Effective teamwork: Practical lessons from organizational research. John Wiley & Sons.
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