Focus on Teams

1
Focus on Teams

• Group Design
• Broken Dreams, Broken Teams
• Why Teams Come Apart

2
Do You Believe In

• Good and Bad People (the sociopath)
• Counseling and Therapy (people actually changing)
• Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome
• Participation by the Uninformed
• The Unconscious
• Organizational Karma
• Teams

3
Why Teams Can Be Good

• Increase Productivity (cost reduction)
• Improve Communication (sharing, delegation)
• Do Work Individuals or Ordinary Groups Cant Do
• Make Better Use of Resources (JIT of Projects)
• More Creative and Efficient at Problem Solving
• Higher-Quality Decisions
• Better Quality Products/Services
• Improved Multi-Function/Technology Processes
• Replace Multi-Function Departmentation (downsize)

4
Approaches to Staffing Teams

• Specialized Knowledge or Skill
• - Each Technology/Skill
• - Multi-Discipline Experience
• Methodology Expert
• Specialized Deliverables (interfaces, etc.)
• Customer/User Expert
• Location/Culture/Language Expert
• Tools/Technology Expert

Obtaining ALL These Skills in a Four Person Team
5
Effective Project Team Success Criteria

• Clear, Mutually Owned Objectives
• Well-Understood Process Interdependencies
• Well-Understood Knowledge Interdependencies
• (Specialist Intercommunication)
• Well-Understood Scale Interdependencies
• (Varying Levels of Contribution)
• Well-Understood Social Interdependencies
• - mutual respect, willing to work out conflicts
• - social opportunities outside work
• Assurance that it is Possible to Succeed

6
Individual Needs vs. Team Needs

• All Team Members have a Hidden Personal Agenda
• - Discover each persons hidden agenda
• - Configure roles/tasks for supremacy of team
  goals
• OR
• - Integrate Personal Goals with Team Goals
• Have Team Acknowledge Team/Individual Goals
• If Not, Replace Dissident

7
Teamwork vs. Socialwork

• Teams will often spend 1/4 of their time in
  Socialwork
• - socializing as a team
• - playing as a team
• - side conversations during meetings
• Assure No One is Isolated
• Individuals Want/Need for Socialwork Vary Widely
• Each member must be perceived as pulling their
  fair load
• If Not, Intervene

8
Misplaced Goals, Confused Objectives

• Assured Failure, Team Does Not Believe
• in the Outcome/Goal/Objective
• the Outcome is Attainable
• they Understand What the Outcome Really Is
• Possible Success, Goals That Are
• Desirable (group and individual)
• Performable (time for socialwork and personal
  life)
• Concrete (measurable, yields success/rewards)

9
Characteristics of Good Goal Setting

• Interpersonal/Intergroup Goals Interlinked vs.
  Warfare
• Easy vs. Stretch vs. Sadistic Goals (sink or
  swim)
• Clarity of Goals
• If You Dont Know Where You Are Going,
• Any Road Will Take You There!
• Short vs. Long Term Goals (mini-goals)
• Each Mini-Goal Changes the Master Plan
• Boring vs. Passion
• Originality, sizzle, personal pride

10
Individual Role Assignments

• Unresolved Roles (it aint my job, man)
• Know each-others tasks/responsibility
• Assignment Leaves Room for Creativity/Success
• Total Work is Actually Assigned (documentation)
• Assigning Scutwork
• Everyone Takes a Piece
• Assigning Plums
• Avoid Turf Wars
• Clarify Assignments/Responsibility
• During Every Meeting

11
Make Up Your Mind

• Decision Making Approaches
• Consensus (teamwork)
• - burns time
• - elicits commitment
• Majority (democracy)
• - alienated minority
• - fast, efficient
• Minority (subcommittee)
• - uncommitted majority
• - use specialized talent/knowledge

12
Make Up Your Mind (Contd)

• Averaging (politics in action)
• - weak commitment
• - middle of road decision (middle level quality)
• Expert (consultants)
• - who is best expert?
• - sometimes best decision
• Authority Rule Without Discussion
• - Apply only to administrative needs
• Authority Rule With Discussion
• - Requires Team Leader who Both Listens and
• Makes Decisions

13
Following the Procedures

• Methodology
• - Guidelines or Laws?
• - For Small, Medium or Large Projects?
• - For New, Experienced or Expert Team Members?
• Policy and Procedure Manuals
• - They Reflect the Organization Culture
• Ignore At Your Danger?
• - Sanity Check
• Update or Bonfire?

Supposed to Serve, Not the Other Way Around
14
Working With Your Teammates

• The People Problems
• Misunderstandings
• - diversity in communication
• - diversity in body language/culture
• Human Variation
• - Varying Logical and Verbal Ability
  (intelligence?)
• - Introverts and Extroverts
• - Street Smarts and Emotional Age
• - Optimists and Pessimists
• - Style

15
Working With Your Teammates (Contd)

• Handling Problem People
• Team Prima Donna
• - Great creativity but crummy personality
• - There is more there than meets the eye
  (insecurity)
• Special Organizational Placement?
• - Being nice, even if he doesnt deserve it
  (acceptance)
• Negotiate Personality?
• - Appreciate contributions

16
Working With Your Teammates (Contd)

• Handling Problem People
• The Team Blowhard (dominates team activities)
• - Termination (inefficient, unfair, lack of
  control)
• - Quarantine (during meeting, work at home)
• - Ignore Them, Interrupt Them
• - Stick to the Agenda
• - Written Questions/Comments Only
• - Everyone participates

17
Working With Your Teammates (Contd)

• Handling Problem People
• The Team Brat (entitlement)
• - No one else is working hard, so why should I!
• - Im not paid enough to work that hard!
• - Im an engineer, ask the marketing member!
• - If no one catches me, its not wrong!
• - Spoiled by the family/ organization?

I/We Deserve ...
18
Working With Your Teammates (Contd)

• Handling Problem People
• The Dark Angel (evil, sociopath)
• - The Addict
• - Antisocial rage (hates everything/everyone)
• - The Crook (unethical)
• - The fanatic (personal goals above all)
• In-depth, Extensive Therapy Sometimes Helps
• An Isolated, Alienated Upbringing

19
Ideal Project Team Profile?

• A Supervisor/Leader
• A Communicator
• A Listener
• An Organizer
• A Technical Expert
• No Perfectionists

Beijing - Eighteen factory workers were executed
today for poor product quality at the Chien Bien
Refrigerator Factory... Wall Street Journal,
Oct. 17, 1989