BELBIN Team Role Theory and roles

Do you ever wondered why some teams just

seems to work and other his the rock?

Problem often at personal

level: how team members
feel about themselves
and each other.
People find it hard to deal
with these behavioural,
emotional issues.
WHY DO WE NEED TEAM ROLES?

 Need a way of looking at

these issues, measuring
their effect.
 Team role provide a
common language to
talk about how people
behave in work place.
 What makes a balanced
and effective team -
better the mix, the
better the performance
Belbin team role theory

 Belbin promotes team role theory, enabling

thousands of people to work with greater self
knowledge and understanding.
 The value of Belbin team-role theory lies in
enabling an individual or team to benefit
from self-knowledge and adjust according to
the demands being made by the external
situation.
What is a Team Role?

 A team role as
defined by
Dr Meredith Belbin
is:"A tendency to
behave, contribute
and interrelate with
others in a
particular way.“
Belbin Team Role Expert System
 Belbin - 9team role types

 Each type has a typical

behavioural strength and
a characteristic weakness

 “Allowable weaknesses”
are the negative side of
the positive strength.
 Belbin Team Roles

 Plant
 Resource Investigator
 Co-ordinator
 Shaper
 Monitor Evaluator
 Teamworker
 Implementer
 Completer-Finisher
 Specialist
 Team Role Summary Descriptions

Team role Contribution Allowable weakness

Plant Creative, imaginative, Ignores incidentals. Too

unorthodox. Solves pre- occupied to
difficult problems. communicate effectively.

Resource Extrovert, enthusiastic, Over-optimistic. Loses

Investigator communicative. Explores interest once initial
opportunities. Develops enthusiasm has passed.
contacts.

  Mature, confident, a Can be seen as

Co-ordinator good chairperson. manipulative. Offloads
Clarifies goals, promotes personal work.
decision-making,
delegates well.
 Contd….
Team role Contribution Allowable weakness
Challenging, dynamic, Prone to provocation.
thrives on pressure. Offends people’s
Shaper Has the drive and feelings.
courage to overcome
obstacles.

Sober, strategic and Lacks drive and ability

Monitor discerning. Sees all to inspire others.
Evaluator options. Judges
accurately.

Co-operative, mild, Indecisive in crunch

perceptive and situations.
Team worker diplomatic. Listens,
builds, averts friction.
 Contd….
Team Role Contribution Allowable weakness
  Disciplined, reliable, Somewhat inflexible.
Implementer conservative and Slow to respond to new
efficient. Turns ideas into possibilities.
practical actions.

Completer Painstaking, Inclined to worry unduly.

Finisher conscientious, anxious. Reluctant to delegate.
Searches out errors and
omissions. Polishes and
perfects.

Specialist Single-minded, self- Contributes on only a

starting, dedicated. narrow front. Dwells on
Provides knowledge and technicalities.
skills in rare supply.
 Team Role Theory
Strengths Weaknesses

• realise strengths & • individuals may not be true to

weaknesses role in all circumstances

• if role absent, can compensate • overpowering leader syndrome

• groups can be formed • organisational politics

deliberately with team role
theory • organisational & national
culture
Do’s and Don’t
Dos nd don’t (contd)
Benefits of Team Role Theory
 Recognise strengths

 More tolerance for

weaknesses

 A language to talk
about behaviour