If I were to undertake this research, I would be able to explore team members' perceptions of the effectiveness of team building. What is the opinion of team members about the effectiveness of team building.
Limitations of the Study
In an attempt to answer questions 1 and 2, the researcher conducted a review of the research literature to discover what could be learned from comparable studies, objectives, procedures and problems encountered. For question 3, the researcher (manager) provided a description of what was done regarding team building and a personal assessment of how effective it was.
Structure of the Dissertation
The fact that the department manager is also a team leader and researcher led to team members being reluctant to disclose information that they believed would have negative consequences for themselves. The next chapter will review some of the literature with specific emphasis on that which has direct relevance to the focus of this study.
LITERATURE REVIEW
Introduction
Teambuilding refers to a set of activities that enable groups of people to work well together - so that the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. Without proper team building, it is unlikely that the team will work effectively in developing and realizing a shared vision.
Why Teams?
Adair (1988, p.44) identifies overlapping characteristics of teams that are worthy of consideration and support by other authorities in the field. By taking authority over their work, team members are actively involved in the continuous improvement process.
Teambuilding
Team members are able to communicate with each other without reference to the team leader. This is replicated until they have completed one for every other member of the team.
Stage 1: Forming
Storming
The team tries to resolve the mission, goals, roles of the team members and agreement on how to work together.
Norming
People agree on who the team is and what it is trying to achieve. During standardization, work procedures are established and the team builds its own sense of identity. Team leaders are expected to be working members of the team, but they are also expected to maintain some distance and perspective, allowing them to help the team clarify and commit to a mission, goals, and approach.
Team leaders are viewed by those inside and outside the team as primarily responsible for managing the team's relationships with the rest of the organization. Team leaders maintain a certain distance from the team because of their position, but they do not use their position to avoid work.
RESEARCH METHODO LOGY
Because the researcher is the manager of the department, it was decided that an external person would conduct the interviews and observations. Semi-structured interviews were used rather than structured interviews because of the degree of flexibility involved. An observation schedule was constructed as a tool for data collection which highlighted certain issues of the team building sessions which in the opinion of the investigation needed to be investigated, viz.
As the researcher is the manager of the whole school development department and also a participant in the team building sessions, entry was relatively easy with a discussion held about the research process. Questions during the semi-structured interviews were built around team members' perceptions of team building effectiveness.
PRESENTATION AND DISCUSSION OF FINDINGS
Introduction
Effectiveness of Teambuilding in Supporting the Goals of the Department
34; Before we did not work together, now people's attitudes have changed and we have started working as a team.". ".
Clarity of Roles within the Department
The team was clear about its important goals and set performance targets that were stretch-inducing but achievable. 34;When we have to prepare a workshop, she offers help and helps to make things clearer if we don't understand." 34;For example,' if you are the person preparing to facilitate the team building workshop, she will ask you in passing if everything is okay and if you need any help."
Another team member indicated that he was fortunate to be able to facilitate a team building session. He felt that by being given this additional responsibility, and with the encouragement of the leader, he grew and developed his skills.
Utilization of Team Members Talents
50% of interviewees expressed concern that the leader was criticized by some people in the organization because the organizational grapevine carried the story that teambuilding was a waste of time, while others sought her help with teambuilding. Despite this, team building continued in the whole school development department, which they said showed it was committed. It was observed that the manager spoke to the staff as an equal and did not speak.
There was a good relationship between the manager and staff members, and as six interviewees said, the manager was enthusiastic about team building. It was also observed that the leader was willing to spend her time, energy and resources to make the team as effective as possible, and also indicated that she was willing to make the necessary changes.
Leadership Style Used
Relationships in the Team
Because of the different attitudes, values and backgrounds of the team members, learning to work together took time, patience and effort. 34;Team building is helping us because we listen to other people's views and then we can help each other. Team members have learned to appreciate and enjoy each other for who they are, and this has helped them keep each other on track.
Team members may need encouragement, reassurance and appreciation to establish and maintain their membership in an active sense' (Bell 1992 p 52). There was a climate of trust and support felt by all, where contributions from team members were encouraged and valued.
How well Conflict is Managed
Communication
34; Everyone felt comfortable participating in the conversation and felt free to express their opinions." It was observed that team members felt that their ideas and input were heard by the rest of the team and that the interaction between team members was open and honest.
Interpersonal Communication
The knowledge and skills of all team members were taken into account and this increased the quality of decisions made and led to decisions being shared and full commitment from team members. After the team building sessions, every team member knew what needed to be done, by whom and when, because team decisions were also expressed in terms of action. When a decision had to be made, the leader quickly moved the team toward a firm and decisive outcome.
It was observed that team members volunteered for the tasks instead of being given the task by the manager.
Thinking outside the Box/Creativity
Summary
The process has been going on at the Whole School Development department for eighteen months. Trust is the glue that keeps team members working together; if trust is lost, it is very difficult to regain it. Team members felt like partners with the team leader in the work that needed to be done.
The leader spends time building the team so that team members feel responsible for working together to achieve common goals. Most team members compared their previous work experience to what was happening in the department now (since team building began), and 100% of team members expressed that they are now happier than they have ever been before.
Conclusion
It is clear from the interviews that this team's leader tends to give more responsibility to the team, open lines of communication, encourage cooperation and mutual assistance between members and allow - even encourage - differences and thereby work.
SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS
- Conclusion
Leadership of team building was seen as a shared function, and team members were given the opportunity to exercise leadership when their experience and skills suited the needs of the team. Facilitation of the sessions was shared and team members rotated, in pairs if they preferred. This would ensure that the team members put into practice the agreements reached at team building sessions.
This would add variety to the sessions and build the capacity of team members to improve their knowledge skills and value base. Building the capacity of team members will ultimately lead to an increase in morale and team members will be encouraged to reinvest their efforts in the department.
Everyone feels that their ideas and input are heard by the rest of the team. Strongly Agree - Fully functional and exceeds description Agree - Functional and meets all or nearly all aspects of description, but not ideal. I strongly disagree - Nothing has been done - this does not apply to our team at all.
DEPARTMENTAL PURPOSE
Accountability - donors and other stakeholders will be provided with regular updates, thus helping to maintain their support and interest. Projects will be evaluated every 6 months to ensure they are on track with respect to prior planning and a baseline evaluation will be done once a year. Here we will look for tangible and concrete evidence that will help us identify what happened.
The development objective, which describes the long-term impact of the project, will be monitored less frequently. From the beginning, it will be clarified who will receive the analyzed data and who will decide what to do with the recommendation.
OPPORTUNITY IS
NOWHERE
They ran upstairs and removed the price from a pair of socks, then spiked underneath and put it on a shirt. They traded the price tag on a plastic football for the price tag on a leather one. Some lucky customers walked away with the deal of a lifetime, others paid double or triple what they ended up with.
Sometimes other people change the price list of things or activities and we don't realize that what we get is not worth the price we pay. The team was given blank papers to write what they liked and disliked about their team.
HO NES T Y
WHOLE SCHOOL DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT
TOPIC
PRESENTED BY VENUE
DATE TIME
TEAMBUILDING
WHERE ARE YOU
Teambuilding at Crinkly Bottom Park
Team Members Receiving their Birthday Presents during a Teambuilding Session at
Amatata Primary School
Team Members Build a Tower using Straws to Demonstrate Creative Solutions to
Problems
Team Members Playing a Synergy Game Called Ganghis Khan
A Picture of the Whole School Development Department
