Project Planning in Teams
Introduction
Project planning in teams is an integral constituent of team dynamics. When a team has been already formed it is time for it to start working on a project in order to reach the goals of the team or company in a whole. It is necessary to keep in mind two peculiarities about team projects. The first peculiarity is that all projects no matter what their goals are need to be carefully planned and structured before the implementation. And the second peculiarity is that the given projects will be performed not by an individual but a group of individuals, which may result in a certain conflict of interests or other problems, which may be encountered while working with a group of people.
People have been working in teams for centuries accomplishing various tasks very successfully. However, only recently scientific researches have been conducted on the matter of teams, teams' performance and effectiveness and the accomplishment of new projects by so-called high performance teams. Results of scientific researches have proved that a team is clearly distinguished from a simple group of people by means of certain characteristic features. Also, it has been found that working in teams allows people to fulfill certain projects faster and more effectively, however, it is only possible when the new projects have been carefully planned and structured in advance.
The main goal of designing current study is to examine the process of project planning in teams as one of important aspects of team dynamics. The paper will focus on the elements of project planning, such as setting the goals, distributing responsibilities, surmounting obstacles and others. Advantages and disadvantages of working in teams will be analyzed further in the study, as well as evaluation of performance of teams as compared to groups of people and individuals.
Project Planning in Teams
Before analyzing the process of project planning in teams it is necessary to identify the differences between such terms as a group of people and a team. A group is a number of people (members) that are treated as one unit, while a team is a group of people who work together with a common goal and perform certain functions for the benefit of every member. There are special types of a team, known as high-performance teams, which are "groups of people that achieve a quantum leap in performance in less than a year" [1].
The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines a team as: “a number of persons associated together in work or activity,” or “a group of people who work together.” In the current information age more companies are relying on teams to solve challenging tasks and to reach more difficult goals. Since a team of professionals with varying expertise can produce solutions that an individual working alone would likely struggle with, it is no wonder teamwork is becoming increasingly valuable to companies across all industries.
The complexity of teamwork is more than what Merriam-Webster defines teamwork as “the work done by people who work together to do something”. Teamwork involves good practices and strategies utilized in a cohesive manner to get to a common goal. Therefore a clear definition of a team must first be established in order to further understand the complexity of the teamwork process. A team is a collection of two or more people with either similar or different disciplines dedicated to the pursuit of a specific goal (Gilbert, 2004). Hence, the determinant in the level of participation from team members for a functioning team is a joint commitment (Gilbert, 2004).
A team can be define as a group of people with distinct skills and different tasks, who work together on a goal, service or project, with a meshing of mutual and functions support. They are people that regularly contact and have close interaction and common feeling that able to work together (Team-Definition). A group is define as two or more figures forming a accomplish unit in a part. A group is also a number of individuals assembled together or facing some integration relationship (Merriam-webster 2014). A group do not necessarily constitute as a team because a team demands a coordinated effort. Characteristics of a group are synergy, common goals, interdependence, or cohesiveness. A group can be informal, like 3-12 people that are in a meeting to talk over a business problem. Teams are structured formally and sometimes are allocated. Teams have specific goals, purpose and allocate duties. Team need to have different members with particular roles in order to achieve a common goal (Boundless 2014). Without the goals and purpose, you will unable to build a team. The purpose must be worthwhile and create a sense of working something together. The goals must be specific and challenging in order each member can understand how they contribute to the success to the team. The power of a team appears from the sense of community that unleash strong influence on the behaviors and attitudes of the members. Peer pressure and wish to be an effective member helps to shape priorities and direct efforts which they will help the team goals (Sisson. J, 2013)
Larson, C. and LaFasto, F. (1989), Teamwork: What Must Go Right/What Can Go Wrong. Newberry Park, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.
A team or group is a collection of people who are associated and interdependent in their tasks, share obligation regarding results, and view themselves as a unit inserted in an institutional or organisational framework which works inside the established boundaries of that system.(H.Kristin,2013)Teams and groups have shown a similar relationship within the bounds of the procedures and research identifying with their effectiveness(K.Steve, 2006) (i.e. group cohesiveness, cooperation) while as yet keeping up their freedom as independent units, as gatherings and their individuals are autonomous of each other's part, aptitude, information or purpose versus groups and their individuals, who are reliant upon each other's part, ability, learning and
The importance of teams is becoming more and more apparent in today's dynamic business world. Increasingly managers are searching for a means to improve production and keep their organization competitive in the global market. A lot of these managers have turned to the team as a means for achieving this improvement. Quality circles were originally looked at to fulfill this role, however they are being phased out in favor of self-managed work teams. These teams are increasingly being used to solve many of today's organizations production problems and inefficiencies, and in the process are both badly failing and greatly succeeding. So the discussion of teams is a very important one to address. Managers should be aware of the concept of teams and learn about as a means to further their organization and for when the time comes to implement a team they are prepared with the knowledge needed to build and use a team properly.
When we think of the word team, individually many different ideas may come to mind about what a team really is. Some may think of an NFL team (Tennessee Titans), an NBA team (Sacramento Kings), or a NASA astronaut team with such pioneers as Edwin Aldrin, Jr. and Neil Armstrong as members. You might even think of the U.S. Navy, Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, or Marines as teams. In fact they all are, and they have a great deal in common as teams. However, for the purposes of this paper I will examine the characteristics of work teams, as they apply to organizations and I will supply answers to the following questions: What is a team? Where did the team concept come from? What are the types of teams? What are the advantages and disadvantages of having teams in organizations? What does it take to make a team effective?
In this paper, I will discuss how a team/group can become a high-performance team/group, examine the demographic characteristics and cultural diversity and the impact on the team/group behavior. I will also describe how demographic characteristics and cultural diversity contribute to or detract from high-performance groups or teams. What is a team/group? A team/group is a group of people who form together to complete a mutual goal, such as a presentation, paper, discussing a topic, or creating a new design. How does a team/group become a high-performance group/team?
As such the top executives had to conduct research to find out the best ways to create the best teams. This research was named project Aristotle and the main idea behind it was to find why some teams were making it while other teams were lagging behind. According to the results given by the group assigned to project Aristotle, there are norms that shape a team which is different for every team (Seibert et al., 2011, p. 985). As such the key thing is determining the various norms that matter the most to a certain team to make it most successful. The responses given by the employees during the survey indicated that teamwork was of no major importance to the
From the lessons, I have been able to understand various methods and procedures in managing a project team. My lecturer gave a brief introduction of the topics which are going to be discussed in the 2nd course “Managing the Project team”. I was excited to go through those topics as some of the terms were familiar to me.
“Coming together is a beginning. Keeping together is progress. Working together is success,” (Ford, n.d). Ford’s quote and the concept of teamwork in planning are significantly important and prevalent in contemporary planning practices. The importance of a team in planning is imperative in providing a good plan. The team would also advance through the stages of team development. As a result an effective and cohesive team is achieved and there becomes a common goal is produce the paramount result. However, members within an effective team may come into conflicts with ideas or practices. Likely, these conflicts can be resolved with simple strategies. Nevertheless, through all the conflicts within a team group, teamwork still
The above essay gives clear idea about the teamwork. There are different types of team in the organization, which is very essential for the business. The theories of belbin (1993), Tuckman and Jensen (1977) shows the nine teams role and five stages of development which are very important for any team building and also in belbin theory there is practical example of the company who used the nine team role and win the award and tuckman theory has been criticed by authors, and the example of teamwork given by Apple Inc. Ceo Steve jobs and Microsoft shows important of teamwork in their organization. Therefore I came to the conclusion that teamwork is a for the organization and very helpful in achieving the task on time.
Working in teams provides an opportunity for individuals to come together and establish a rapport towards others within a group. Teamwork is classified as people with different strengths and skills who work together to achieve a common goal. When a team works well, specific objectives are fulfilled and satisfied. Teamwork plays a crucial role in implementing and fulfilling a common goal in a team project. Each member plays a role and takes on different responsibilities combined together. In different stages of teamwork, conflicts and arguments may occur for as members have different standpoints which need to be harmonized within the team. The key to having an effective teamwork is to explore each member's unique abilities to motivate them.
Team approach shrinks a large complex issue or opportunity into several smaller parts where it can be solved in parallel. Once fall fragments into individual tasks, and are appointed for individuals to carry out assigned tasks, but where are the systems in place to keep track of the work done by the members of the team mode. This approach will allow the project manager to focus on the project as a whole and ensure that all tasks are being integrated
Many businesses place an emphasis on the importance of teamwork. A good team consists of people with different skills, abilities and characters. A successful team is able to blend these differences together to enable the organisation to achieve its desired objectives.