Teams That Work

Running Head: Teams that Work

Teams that Work: How to Develop Effective Teams

Patricia Gibbons
Michelle McKnight
Kim Shoultz
Strayer University

BUS 520: Leadership and Organizational Behavior
Dr. Binta Abubaker

Overview
It has become increasingly evident by both researchers and business professionals that workplace teams serve a profound purpose in modern organizations. Coutu (2009) in her article states that “over the past couple of decades, a cult has grown up around teams. Even in a society as fiercely independent as America, teams are considered almost sacrosanct. The belief that working in teams makes us new task, leaders are quick to assume that teams are the best way to get the job done” (p. 99). While Coutu’s article seems to be against the effectiveness of teams, it is the premise of this paper that teams can be created to be high performers. It will discuss the definition of an effective team, the network perspective on team effectiveness and the effect of leadership and member roles on team effectiveness.

Key Definitions - Effective Teams
According to Vinokur-Kaplan (1995), the effectiveness of a team is delineated by (a) the group’s production of a high-quality “product,” be it a physical product, a decision, a plan, or other output, that is acceptable to those who receive or review it; (b) the continuing capability of members to work together in the future, that is, not “burning themselves out” in producing their product; and (c) the team’s contribution to the well-being and growth of its members, allowing members to learn new things and to help their personal needs be satisfied.
Organizational Network Analysis/Social Network Analysis is an established set of methods and statistics for eliciting and analyzing relationships between people such as “who obtains information from who,” who trusts who,” or who is aware of whose expertise (Cross, R. & et al), and is representative of social structure in terms of relationships (ties)... [continues]

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