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Business Communication: Building Critical Skills

Kitty O. Locker, Ohio State University
Steven Kyo Kaczmarek, Columbus State Community College
Kathryn Braun, Sheridan College

Working and Writing in Teams

Video Cases

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The Trouble with Teams
Do you heave a sigh when your boss—or your instructor—tells you about a new team project? Or do you start getting ideas for it that you're anxious to share before your team even meets? Your personality may have a lot to do with your answer. Teams may be here to stay, but not everyone welcomes them with enthusiasm.
In the 1980s business gurus saw teams as the ideal, the way to bring democracy to the workplace. Carmakers were the first to embrace teamwork. In the early 1980s, American carmakers needed to compete with the increasing success of the Japanese carmakers. The Japanese were making cars with small groups of workers and were giving workers a voice. By 1989 General Motors was doing the same. Other sectors embraced the new philosophy as more and more business analysts and managers extolled the value of team efforts and results. Bookshelves were full of books on teamwork, and buzzwords became part of everyday business jargon.
Today many managers question the degree of teamwork they embraced in the '80s and '90s. Teamwork takes time, and many feel that productivity does not improve in the long run. A small group of five business partners in Kingston, Ontario have worked as a team for five years. They realize teamwork takes a great deal of time and effort and they are considering a change. They cite some serious difficulties:

Teamwork can bog them down at times.
It can be tough to achieve consensus.
A team can't go in a number of directions at once.

However, productivity may not be the only measure of success. Teamwork produces some less tangible results. What are some of the benefits you gain when have a role and a voice in outcomes? When the Kingston partners looks at their options, they decide to stay with teamwork for now.
Natalie Allen of the University of Western Ontario says we need to know under what conditions teams work well and when they don't. This means that managers need to know more about how teams form and develop and more about how to deal with the different personalities within the teams. They also have to allow enough time for team members to develop the skills they need. Some MBTI types resist team activities, and others of us have been conditioned to concentrate on our own individual goals.
Teamwork does take time. Any yes, some people hate it. Nevertheless, some of the protesters have ideas and insights the others in a team need. The trouble with teams is getting people on board and working together. It takes skill to become a good team player in the workplace. Although teamwork may not be given the same emphasis as in the '80s a d '90s, evidence shows that it is still critical in the workplace.

Source: Based on "The Trouble with Teams," Venture 703 (November 10, 1998).

View The Trouble with Teams


1		What are the intangible benefits of teamwork?



2		What can a team leader do to use time wisely—and avoid irritating those who think teamwork is a waste of time?



3		How can a team leader make each team member feel valued?



4		Write a few reflective notes explaining what you like and do not like about teamwork. Then add a line of descriptors indicating your personality type. If you know your Myers-Briggs type, indicate it. Next, in groups of four, share your notes and feelings about group work. Which types embrace teamwork with enthusiasm? Which types like to work independently? Are there ways to combine teamwork and independent work?

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