Improving Teamwork
A group of people working without any direction does not equal a team. It is vital to build a team that you have behaviors that can build trust and a sense of give and take. You will never be able to control how team members feel about each other but you can establish expectations and guides to how they act towards each other as part of the same team.
When looking at ways to improve teamwork, everyone needs to sit down and discuss how they want to work together and decide on what they want as guiding values. There needs to be agreement on a set of behaviors that help people work together to make decisions and meet the teams goals.
There needs to be a discussion at the beginning of the team that every one is aware of what is expected of them. If their is a lack of role clarity, it can become a major barrier to effective teamwork.. It needs to be spelled out clearly that it is an expectation that every team member will collaborate with and support each other. If there is a member of the team that is only interested in their personal success, it needs to be made clear by the other team members that they will not succeed without becoming collaborative.
When a group pf people are working together to solve problems and make decisions, they will be able to accept and respect decisions and feel they have a shared responsibility and feel ownership for attaining the teams goals. When you have a high level of commitment and buy in by the team members, you will see more creative input and sharing of opinions among the members of the team.
it needs to be clearly stated that all members of the team contribute ideas and solve problems. It needs to be clear that everyone will build on the ideas of others and not criticize them. There should never be any individuals who try to one-up each other. The leader of the team should be a role model to show how to build on the comments of others. The leader should show how to expand on what other individuals have said by stating what they have heard and then adding their ideas to it. When team members are encouraged to share ideas, one single idea can cause everyone to start contributing.
It is always important to acknowledge and celebrate the teams accomplishments. This is a way to reinforce how important their team is and the value from their contributions. This accelerates motivation and a positive experience for all the team members. It is important to acknowledge accomplishments timely and soon after they have occurred. By responding and acknowledging accomplishments quickly, the more impact it will have. Individuals want to feel appreciated and valued for their contributions.
