Teamwork; Functioning Together at Your Individual Best

By Jim Smith

 

Teamwork is a watchword of family, business, and national efforts. As Americans, we look for teamwork in sports, at work, and everyday enjoyment. Various acrostics have been used to describe teamwork. “T.E.A.M.” is a well-known one. It stands for “Together Each Accomplishes More”. Team building efforts, aimed at increasing trust, defining roles, applying expertise, and reaching goals represent the core of multiple training programs in schools and community groups, and small to large corporations. Yet when all is said, all is done, teams are usually not more enlightened or ready for “teamwork”.

 

Even though there is a greater understanding and feeling of togetherness and a common cause or common enemy, improvement in performance remains marginal. The former status quo of outcomes remains after these teambuilding and “iso-morphic” experiences. Teams return to the daily grind wondering how is it that with all these team building experiences, the team still functions much the same way, and falls into the same “old routines”? The next paragraphs provide an understanding and action plan to improve performance. Once these two concepts are understood, performance will improve.

 

Teamwork is a function of two actions: contribution and reliance. Contribution refers to the individual efforts and abilities of each member to reach team goals. For simplicity sake, contribution refers to adding what is expected or more so the team effort can succeed. Reliance, on the other hand, means that individual team members can depend on the efforts of the other team members’ in reaching the goal. Reliance means trusting that other team members will add to the team’s efforts to reach team goals.

 

The “contribution question” is “What must you do for the team?” The “reliance question” is “What must the other team members do for team?” A strong and satisfactory answer to each question is key to success. Success means balancing both contribution and reliance in such a way as to produce optimal performance. Optimal performance means immediate goal attainment and sustained performance. Sustained performance means the ability to consistently achieve goals in both the long and the short term.

 

To contribute as a team member it is imperative to know what contribution is expected of you, and how you can best carry it out. How can you contribute your individual best? To rely on the team, on the other hand, it is imperative to know and act so other team members can accomplish their expected task. This requires “sensing” the present level and ability of team members, and understanding their expectations of each other. Because of our limited ability to be aware of others as well as our own action, team size must be limited. Most authorities limit a core team size to five of six. If a larger number is required on a team, the team is still divided into functionally diverse segments. An example is a football team. Here, a 12-person team is divided into geographically into the line, the backfield, and the ends. The same football team can be divided by function as eligible and non-eligible receivers, or passer, runners, blockers, and receivers. This division makes the twelve persons easy to manage. Also, the strengths and weaknesses of the twelve members can be balanced for optimal effectiveness.

 

It is important to keep contribution and reliance balanced to assure fairness. The contributor must be able to rely on the team. If the contributor cannot rely on the team then the contributor is being used, or unfairly treated. Each contributor must be rewarded properly or team will break down. Yes, the team pays its contributing members in many ways, such as the timeliness or strength of its response. Likewise, the team keeps balanced by giving to members that contribute. If the team gives to members who do not contribute enough then the team becomes a welfare program. The team, in this case, responds or gives its resources for no known reason. The team will be weakened by such an activity. (This does not apply to those who have retired from the team or those who are infirm. Both of these have value in response.)

 

It is not necessary to have other people on your team to accomplish this dynamic of contributing and responding. It can be done internally or just by one person’s activity. To accomplish this simply conceptualize yourself in two parts, your body, and your mind. Your body and mind contribute and respond to one another in order to live a healthy productive life. Your body can carry out your inner choices. Your body’s needs are more easily attained through a creative, and therefore, a contributing mind. This is essential.

 

*iso-morphic: An experience in an environment outside of the normal course of business that is during or afterward compared back to the normal course of business by analogy, as a learning tool. For example, wilderness journeys, obstacle courses, or other off site team exercises.