Chapter 8

Quality Teamwork

Teams
 Team - a group of people who work together and cooperate to share work and
responsibility.
 Teams are a way to coordinate work.
 Teamwork enables various parts of the organization to work together in meeting
customer needs that can seldom be fulfilled by employees limited to one
specialty.
 Teams promote equality among individuals, encouraging a positive attitude and
trust.
Types of Teams
 Leadership teams
 Problem solving teams (departmental or cross-functional)
 Natural work teams
 Self managed teams
 Virtual teams
 Project teams

Leadership Teams
 Steering committees
 Quality councils
 Executive leadership teams

Problem-Solving Teams
 Corrective action teams
 Quality circles
 Typically composed of workers at lower levels of the organization

Natural Work Teams

 Organized to perform a complete unit of work
 Extensive cross-training and sharing of responsibilities

Self-Managed Teams
 Also known as self-directed teams or autonomous work groups
 Have broad responsibilities, including the responsibility to manage themselves
 Generally more productive than conventional teams

Virtual Teams
 Groups of people who work closely together despite being geographically separated
 Use technology to share information
 Importance because of globalization, knowledge work, and need for diverse skills

Six Sigma Project Teams

 Champions – senior managers who promote Six Sigma
 Master Black Belts – highly trained experts responsible for strategy, training, mentoring,
deployment, and results.
 Black Belts – Experts who perform technical analyses
 Green Belts – functional employees trained in introductory Six Sigma tools
 Team Members – Employees who support specific projects
Cross-Functional Teamwork
 Common in leadership teams, virtual teams, and project teams
 Useful for process improvement and for implementing large-scale organizational
changes
Team Effectiveness Criteria
 Teams must achieve their goals
 Teams should make progress quickly
 Teams must maintain or increase their strength as units
 Teams must preserve or strengthen their relationships with the rest of the organization
Ingredients for Successful Teams
 Clarity in team goals
 Improvement plan
 Clearly defined roles
 Clear communication
 Beneficial team behaviors
 Well-defined decision procedures
 Balanced participation
 Established ground rules
 Awareness of group process
 Use of scientific approach
Reasons for Team Participation
 Have a say in decisions that affect work
 Enhance promotion or job opportunities
 Learn more information
 Enhance feeling of accomplishment
 Address personal agendas
 Want to genuinely help the organization
 Enjoy recognition and rewards associated with team activity
 Be in a comfortable social environment
Team Processes
 Problem Selection
 Problem Diagnosis
 Work Allocation
 Communication
 Coordination
 Organizational Support
Team Charters
 A team charter is an explicit, written document that offers guidelines, rules, and policies
for team members. It often includes a mission statement; values that guide behavior;
structural issues such as logistics, meeting agendas, task responsibilities, and target
dates; methods for group decision making; processes for dealing with conflicts; and
methods for resolving problems with team members.
Teams and Organizational Behavior Theories
 Sociotechnical systems approach
 Organizational development (OD)
 Homogeneous and heterogeneous groups
 Cultural values and support/resistance
 Diversity