Team Development

Is there a team in your organization that is functioning more like a “group” than a high performing team? Groups are made up of individuals who work somewhat independently with minimum communication and participation in decisions that affect the group. Team members work interdependently to achieve organizational goals and strive for “synergy.” Not all groups of employees must function as a team, but for others it is critical.

Both groups and teams can experience conflict and dysfunctional group dynamics that the leader must manage. A group that is experiencing dysfunction may benefit from work around group dynamics, process consultation, or what we think of as team building – the goal of which is to improve the member’s understanding of group dynamics and to improve relations. It’s important to note that team building is not just a day of playing games, but should be measureable, sustainable, and linked back to the workplace.

Teams that are highly interdependent and striving with the goal of increased performance and effectiveness will benefit from a longer-term process of team development. Team development provides members the opportunity to examine current functioning and to collaborate in setting goals and envisioning how they want to work together going forward. Team development will generally involve a team building event, but it is simply one facet of the process.

Team Coaching May Include:

• Strengthening team performance
• Clarifying purpose
• Increasing effective communication
• Sharing productive feedback
• Improving conflict resolution
• Clarifying individual roles
• Problem solving
• Managing group dynamics, group culture, norms and values
• Sharing information
• Creating an environment of transparency, shared responsibility and mutual accountability

Dorsett OD Offers Customized Team Development That Typically Involves:

• An initial meeting with the team leader and other key players in order to understand issues & expectations, how they fit with the broader Organization Development plan, and to assess manager and group readiness.
• Collection of baseline information around current team functioning through structured interviews with each team member, team observation, and other types of comparison-yielding assessments.
• Summarized results of the interviews, team assessment, and findings.
• A development plan involving goals, action steps, a collective vision for future team functioning and specific goals and deliverables unique to the team.
• Continuing and on-going monitoring of the process is continuous as contracted.