Successful Teamwork

2. Attributes of an Effective Team

Successful teamwork relies upon synergism existing between all team members creating an environment where they are all willing to contribute and participate in order to promote and nurture a positive, effective team environment. Kreitner and Kinicki (1998) identified number of attributes required for successful teamwork as per Table 1 below

Attribute Description

1 Clear purpose The vision, mission, goal or task of the team has been defined and is now accepted by everyone. There is an action plan

2 Informality The climate tends to be informal, comfortable and relaxed. There are no obvious tensions or signs of boredom

3 Participation There is much discussion and everyone is encouraged to participate

4 Listening The

Why is Teamwork important

Working effectively as part of a team is incredibly important for output quality, morale, and retention. Teamwork is important because it creates human synergy. It amplifies the results of each member of your team such that the overall result is greater than the individual contributions made by each member

According to Kelly (Online), team work enables the organization to:

a. Work Efficiency

Teamwork enables organization to accomplish tasks faster and more efficiently than tackling projects individually. Cooperating together on various tasks reduces workloads for all employees by enabling them to share responsibilities or ideas. Teamwork also reduces the work pressure on every worker, which allows them to be thorough in the completion of the assigned roles. In sharing ideas or responsibilities, every employee should have a role that suits his specialization. It should also consider employees' levels of interest in the project at hand, which positively influences the efficiency or speed of their output in accomplishing the task.

b.

Benefits of Teamwork

According to Mattson(Online), organizations benefits from teamwork in the following ways:

a. Fosters Creativity and Learning

Creativity thrives when employees work together on a team. Brainstorming ideas as a group prevents stale viewpoints that often come out of working solo. Combining unique perspectives from each team member creates more effective selling solutions.

Collaborating on a project creates an enthusiasm for learning that solitary work usually lacks. Being able to share discoveries with the rest of your team excites employees and fosters both individual and team knowledge. Thus, teamwork also maximizes shared knowledge in the workplace and helps each employee learn new skills that can be used for the rest of their careers

b. Blends Complementary Strengths

Working together lets employees build on the talents of their teammates. Often, a team works well together because team members rely on each other to bring individual talents to the table.

c. Builds Trust

Relying on other people builds trust, and teamwork establishes strong relationships with coworkers. Despite occasional disagreements, an effective team enjoys working together and shares a strong bond. Trusting your teammates also provides a feeling of safety that allows ideas to emerge. It helps employees open up and encourage each other. Open communication is key when working on a team and produces effective solutions in difficult group