How Teamwork Works

The definition of a team is “a small number of people with complementary skills who are committed to a common purpose, set of performance goals and approach for which they hold themselves mutually accountable. This definition lays down the discipline that teams must share to be effective” (Katzenbach and Smith, 1993, p.1). When all of these elements exist, the ultimate performance of the team will be very successful. When the team works on a common purpose, their goal is to collaborate until they have something that everyone can stand by and support. The other elements that support the successful performance of the team are to have a manageable size of members, who hold themselves accountable for the results. The larger the team, the more opportunity for personality conflicts, not staying focus on the topics and not being able to meet on a timely basis. In summary, this article paints a clear picture of what a performing team looks like. Teams that are not performing are missing common commitments to a cause, are without clear performance goals and they don’t hold each other accountable. Teams that function with a disciplined approach, find ways to work together because they have a common purpose that they can all live by.
Submitted by Akote Paziyah E. Navoniel (KNN Reporter)