A Mini Case Study
Read Part I of this case study.
Here are some ways to address this situation and to avoid it in future:
- What are the primary reasons for the team feeling as they are?
The team does not appear to understand the potential of teamwork and the benefits of working on a team. It is likely that there was very little, or no, time spent on building the team and enabling for the team members to get to know each other. Likely the team was pulled together, assigned their tasks, and left alone to work on the initiative.
- What should be done at this point?
The following steps might be taken to address the situation:
- Discuss with each team member individually their concerns – determine commitment to teamwork, past experiences working on team, etc.
- Schedule a meeting with the entire team ensure understanding around:
- Purpose of team
- Goals of team
- How they will work together
- How they will be recognized for the efforts
- How teams operate
- Consider a team building event – how can the group benefit from working together as a team?
- Discuss processes and attendance around team meetings and the purpose for team members; set up a schedule for upcoming meetings.
- Going forward – regularly check on progress of the team as a whole and check in with individual team members.
- What should have been done from day one when these issues surfaced?
As soon as the team was pulled together to work on the initiative, a team kick off meeting should have been held before assignments were made. This time should have been used to enable the team members to get to know each other, learn more about the initiative, and bring up their concerns and expectations. Also the team should use this meeting to develop processes, procedures and best practices for getting the work accomplished and being recognized for their efforts – as individuals and as a team.
