Teamwork Flashcards
A team member who attempts to compromise or bargain with other team members demonstrates which of the following approaches to resolving conflict?
A. Ignoring
B. Negotiating
C. Demanding
D. Controlling
B. Negotiating
During team meetings, team members should thoroughly discuss why things can happen before debating why they cannot.
True or False
True
A team should be given the freedom to act so that mistakes will be made and lessons can be learned.
True or False
True
Kavan Jordan’s goal is to conduct acceptable orientations for all new travel counselors by the end of the calendar year. Which of the basic criteria of goal setting is missing from this statement?
A. The goal is fine the way it is written
B. It does not focus on an important result
C. No date is given for reviewing the goal
D. It is not measurable
D. It is not measurable
Which of the steps below should be taken initially to ensure conflict is viewed positively?
A. Regularly elicit and communicate true thoughts and feelings
B. Handle the urgent items on a “to do” list as quickly as possible
C. Clearly identify what is causing the conflict
D. Increase efficiency and effectiveness in your agency to reduce conflict
A. Regularly elicit and communicate true thoughts and feelings
The first step in solving a problem is to:
A. Gather the necessary information
B. Sense the problem
C. Identify the problem
D. Determine if it really is a problem
B. Sense the problem
Shy people are ineffective networkers
True or False
False
Which of the following is not a characteristic of a productive team?
A. Leadership is shared with every member of the team
B. A constant high level of communication among members is maintained
C. Team members have individual missions
D. Emphasis is more on “We” rather than “Us and them”
C. Team members have individual missions
When it comes to making important team decisions, consensus is more effective than voting.
True or False
True
When dealing with conflict, teams need to negotiate more than innovate.
Ture or False
False
Characteristics of a well-defined mission statement
- includes what an organization/team does and who it does it for,
- clarifies why we exist (What is the organization’s or team’s primary purpose?),
- is short,
- is reviewed regularly or as conditions that may impact the mission change, and
- becomes the environment in which everyone is encouraged and accountable to operate.
A mission benefits your organization because it
- empowers teams to set and reach more ambitious sales and profit goals,
- facilitates brainstorming,
- encourages universal solutions through consensus,
- focuses the activities of team members to be more efficient and effective,
- becomes easier to manage by reducing one-on-one time,
- enhances interdepartmental support of a common mission, and
- promotes positive, not negative, conflict.
A mission benefits team leaders and members because it
- fosters personal development to better reach personal goals and full potential,
- allows greater control of a team member’s future,
- breaks down status differentials, allowing everyone to be an entrepreneur,
- builds stronger relationships with others, thereby reducing stress-related problems, and
- increases self-esteem.
Steps to developing a mission
- Discuss trends, if any, that may affect the mission
- Individually write and clarify mission statements
- Elicit views from others
- Revise your mission statement
- Develop a rough draft of the mission
- finalize the mission
- Identify potential barriers to the mission
- Communicate the mission
What is a team?
A team is any group that is committed and organized to work together to achieve a common purpose.
What is Project Aristotle?
A lengthy study conducted by Google on the work habits of its own employees using hundreds of its teams.
Google researchers found the mix of personality types, skills, or other demographics did not seem to matter in gauging whether a team was successful. What distinguished good teams from dysfunctional groups was how teammates treated one another.
Google found teams work best when members feel they can take risks, can count on each other, have clear goals and believe their work matters.
Characteristics of a productive team
- identical mission and goals,
- a high level of quality communication,
- shared leadership,
- encouragement of flexibility and creativity,
- freedom to make mistakes, and
- a “we” rather than an “us versus them” philosophy.
Synergy
The interaction of two or more people or teams so their combined result is greater than the sum of individual efforts.
Here are some clues that your team needs to build trust:
People are withholding information.
You find it hard to share your true thoughts and feelings with others.
Team members tend to place blame and guilt on each other.
There is a need to cover your tracks.
Individuals are talking behind the backs of others on the team.
You often have to read between the lines, trying to guess what truly was meant.
People are not keeping their commitments.
How to build trust in a team
Be assertive, not aggressive, in expressing your honest thoughts and feelings.
Choose your words carefully.
Work to eliminate conflicts of interest.
Don’t allow or encourage backstabbing or gossiping.
Give team members the benefit of the doubt.
Make time to actively listen to each other with respect.
Evaluating how a team functions and measuring its results can aid in:
Increasing personal development,
Reinforcing positive behaviors,
Identifying improvement opportunities,
Improving communication among team members,
Setting more realistic goals,
Prioritizing activities, and
Recognizing both team member and team performance.
Stages of Team Growth
Increasing awareness and setting direction
Increasing negative conflict
Coming together
Establishing a credible team
Measurable results of effective individual team member behavior include:
- the number of ideas contributed by the member
- the turn-around time for the completion of tasks
- the accuracy of data supplied to the team
- the overall contribution to the final team product or service
Efficient behaviors and processes are demonstrated by a team include:
- runs effective meetings
- communicates well as a group
- allows all opinions to be heard
- comes to consensus on decisions
- engages in successful problem-solving techniques
When to evaluate team roles
when a team is being formed
when additional or new priorities are set for or by the team
when the team needs to reorganize
when a new project begins
when team or individual responsibilities change
when things are getting boring, and the team needs to be energized
Guidelines to developing team roles
Team members do not always take turns in performing other team members’ roles.
Roles will be modified as the team evolves and the nature of the work changes.
There always will be a variety of opinions as to what the roles should be.
Teams may find it necessary to experiment before being comfortable with defining roles.
Team members’ roles should not be carbon copies of those of other teams.
The role of team leaders
encouraging an environment that is supportive of all team members to achieve their mission and reach personal goals,
coaching and counseling team members to develop their technical, operational, and/or requisite behaviors,
looking for ways to continually improve the team’s operating process, and
keeping necessary team records, correspondence, minutes of team meetings, agendas, and other relevant information.
What is a leader?
Leaders influence others to achieve a vision.
Can you think of and write one or more reasons why any organization would want to give out awards for the mistake of the year?
Effective teams want mistakes to be shared.
Creativity increases when team members are encouraged to take risks.
Problems are not solved by punishment.
Team members’ roles include:
improving the requisite knowledge and skills consistently,
training other team members to effectively handle assigned roles,
supporting, rather than undermining, the decisions reached by the team,
advocating the importance of continually practicing the mission,
trusting in their own ability and in the ability of their teammates to make effective, timely decisions, and
asserting themselves to clearly understand expectations.
Prevent overlapping roles by:
Writing down the actual accountabilities of each team member
Writing down who will assume each of the roles
Achieve a consensus regarding the role, skills, and expertise needed
Achieve a consensus regarding who will be accountable to take on the role
What is the first step to solving a problem?
Sensing that a problem exists.
Identifying the problem leads to ___ and is Step ___
Problem Statement, Step 1
Examining Basic Causes leads to ___ and is Step ___
Root Causes, Step 2
Evaluating Possible Solutions leads to ___ and is Step ___
Determining Options, Step 3
Choosing Best Solutions leads to ___ and is Step ___
Action Plan, Step 4
Implementing Solution(s) leads to ___ and is Step ___
Desired Result, Step 5
Step 1 — Identifying the Problem
Completing this step will require all team members to
- avoid the common mistake of jumping back and forth between steps 1 and 2 (problems) and steps 3 and 4 (solutions),
- define the difference between opinions and facts; both are useful but only when it is known which is which,
- look both upstream (what happens before the work gets to you) and downstream (where the work goes after it leaves you) for problems,
- prevent finger pointing and griping at team meetings, and
- reach agreement on a written, understandable, and short definition of the problem.
Step 2 — Examining Basic Causes
Completing this step will require all team members to
- be creative in gathering and analyzing relevant information,
- elicit as many options as possible by asking who, what, why, where, when, and how,
- keep those who are affected by the problem involved and informed,
- focus on issues, not on personalities, and
- gain written consensus on what the root causes are.
Step 3 — Evaluating Possible Solutions
Completing this step will require all team members to
- assertively provide honest and open feedback,
- actively listen to each other for possible solutions,
- make a list of suggested solutions before discussing them in depth, and
- explore the pluses and minuses of each solution.
Step 4 — Choosing Best Solutions
Completing this step will require all team members to
- prioritize the best solutions based on the list of suggested solutions,
- understand that team members are more committed to implement the solutions if they had a hand in developing them, and
- choose realistic solutions that will address the problem and can be realized within a reasonable time.
Step 5 — Implementing the Solution(s)
Completing this step will require all team members to
- develop, by consensus, a written time and action plan (goal and strategies, persons accountable for each strategy, and completion dates) to increase focus, coordination, and accountability,
- assess if the solutions are working and, if not, what changes need to be made to solve the problem,
- recognize and share accomplishments and disappointments, and
- share any lessons that were learned.
Pareto Chart
Used to identify which significant factors need to be addressed first, based on the ranking of importance.
Nominal Voting Technique
A structured approach without much discussion that narrows a list of options, resulting in the selection of one or more choices.
Steps to take if your team is at a standstill
Step 1: Have each team member write, independently, his or her own suggestions
Step 2: When everyone is finished, each member reads one idea from his list in rotation. record each entry on a flip chart or screen without discussion. Combine similar ideas if participants allow
Step 3: Discuss and clarify any recommendations
Step 4: each team member will write his own perception of the top three most important ideas and assign ranks (3=highest, 1=third highest)
Step 5: Each team member shares their rankings.
Step 6: Idea rankings are totaled and the one(s) with the highest number of points become the selection to work on.
Step 7: Team will create an action plan based on the top idea
Goals must
focus on important results,
be challenging but achievable,
be measurable,
be linked to the mission and the standards developed,
be mutually agreed upon (consensus) by the team,
be written, and
be periodically reviewed.
Three rules of goals
First: Who will do it
Second: What is expected to be achieved? How will we know it is achieved?
Third: When will it be completed?
Establishing appropriate rewards for your team involves these four steps:
understand your organization’s reward philosophy,
decide on what should be rewarded,
choose appropriate rewards, and
deliver the rewards.
Criteria for an appropriate award system
What performance expectations should be rewarded?
What systems currently exist to reward those who reach or exceed these expectations?
Are there any present accomplishments that are not being rewarded?
Are there any present negative consequences for meeting or exceeding expectations?
Are there any undesirable behaviors of team members that are presently being rewarded?
