Team Building

Question 1

What are team building exercises?

Answer 1

Tasks that are designed to develop team members and their ability to work together.

Question 2

What are benefits of teams?

Answer 2

A mixture of skills and abilities within the team

Better control, with opportunities for individual performance to be reviewed and controlled by other team members

Improved communication

Question 3

What are problems with the use of a team?

Answer 3

slower decision-making

decisions may be compromises

group pressure to conform

lack of individual responsibility

Question 4

What are Kotter and Schlesinger’s methods of overcoming resistance?

Answer 4

Participation
Education and communication
Power/coercion
Facilitation and support
Manipulation and cooperation
Negotiation

Question 5

What are the key considerations when deciding upon a leadership style?

Answer 5

The speed at which change must be introduced

The strength of the pressure for change

The level of resistance expected

The amount of power you hold

How much information you need before you can implement the change and how long will it take to get that information

Question 6

What are the stages of building a team?

Answer 6

Clear backing and resources from Board (authority, time, admin support, secondment of key staff)

Clear access to data promised by Board

Careful selection process (breadth of technical skills, assistance from specialists seconded from advisors) 

Team should have clear goals/objectives (timing, milestones, success indicators).

The team will need leadership and feedback - A Project Manager with relevant experience (in particular of how to help the team through its stages of Forming, Storming, Norming, and Performing) 

The team should focus on the material areas

The team needs to communicate frequently to ensure common issues are identified and tackled. There should be daily teleconferences of the work stream leads 

The team leader should prepare a report on progress for Board members each week 