Theories of Organizational Development - Research Paper Example

Theories of Organizational Development- Intervention Research Paper Team building is an effective way of cultivating good relations in the workplace. Today, no company wants to be left behind when it comes to developing good team building strategies because its value is of immense importance to the growth and development of any organization. In this paper, I will discuss team building in detail, covering aspects concerning its features, how to apply it and best practices, among others. It is important to note that team building has evolved over the years and is no longer a preserve of large or prestigious organizations. This has been triggered by recognition of its ability to bring change in different settings. For instance, schools, universities and other small businesses have started adopting team building as a tool for promoting cohesion and tolerance among people from different backgrounds. As a result of this, the value of team building has been magnified by an increasing appreciation of its many applications (Barner, 2006). Key Features Team building is characterized by a number of features which can be easily pointed out regardless of how this form of intervention is being applied (Advanstar Communications, 2003). These features form the core of the whole team building process, and include the following: a) A Sense of Purpose Teamwork and team building must have a sense of purpose. No matter how small the team is, it is vital that the whole process be set out in a way that facilitates the realization of clear, concise and specific objectives that all members think are important to achieve (Stone, 2010). Teams should always be set out to conduct specific exercises or activities, such as coming up with solutions to low profitability in a business. Other specific tasks which team building can address include scouting for the right human resources for job vacancies and charting new territories for expansion. In summary, team building can be considered to be a waste of time if there are no clear objectives set for the whole process (Bride, 2011). b) Competency All teams participating in team building should be made up of members who can contribute positively to attainment of goals and objectives based on their degree of expertise or knowledge. For example, if a company wants to develop an expense budget for a financial year, the team assigned the task of coming up with that budget should be composed of people who are knowledgeable about budgeting (Stone, 2010). If one or two members of that team are blunt in the dynamics of budgeting, then the whole team will be pegged back in their endeavors. c) Cooperative Spirit Any team building process must be laced with the spirit of cooperation. Without such a spirit the whole process might fail to realize set goals and objectives. All the participants should feel the need to work together in order to achieve specific objectives. The challenge here is that people have different personalities, and therefore those who are either highly opinionated or have strong personalities are likely to disagree with their colleagues (Callaghan & Voight, 2001). Despite this, successful team building tends to take all these factors into account by balancing the personalities in teams by giving everybody an equal chance to be heard and the opportunity to make a difference. This minimizes bickering while allowing a cooperative spirit to flourish. d) Abiding by the Rules Rules are absolutely essential in team building. In fact, rules do more than keep things under control. They help to reveal the character traits of people without them knowing. The manner in which team members react to, follow or flaunt rules portrays some aspects of some characters; aspects which are difficult to discover in the absence of rules (Callaghan & Voight, 2001). Rules define operating mechanisms, negate ambiguities and help team members stay on track. Timelines must be respected and order must be maintained in order to achieve goals and objectives; this is not possible without rules. For instance, a team building activity can have a rule that all members of teams should arrive at a consensus before decisions are implemented. This would compel team members to deliberate until all or most of them are in agreement (Bride, 2011). e) Accountability Team members are responsible for their actions and inactions. They are held accountable for success and failure in equal measure, and favoritism should be avoided at all costs. System level for which this intervention is most appropriate Although team building is effective across all levels, it is highly suited for small groups. Small groups have portrayed a high degree of effectiveness that is difficult to achieve at both individual and large system levels (Gonçalves, 2006). The reason for this is that small groups tend to support close monitoring and good cooperation. In addition to this, concentration is easy to achieve and maintain. Three best practices for team building There are a wide range of best practices for team building, but three of the most important include: a) Addressing communication obstacles b) Increasing the visibility of the team c) Helping team members make decisions Two examples of how team building has been used effectively in organizations 1. Telstra After the sale of its Yellow Pages line, the company wanted its Yellow Pages IT section to carry out its best ever work in the 3 months prior to the transition. The company’s top management held a series of meetings with the affected workers in order to pinpoint the performance areas that were very critical (Callaghan & Voight, 2001). A solution was arrived at which involved the development of a 3 day program customized to identify, develop feasible strategies and implement them. Working in 5 groups each made up of 3 people, the teams identified an important segment of choice and control that could allow workers to take control and maintain their high-value professionalism and marketability in the business community, IT community and corporate media following a successful sale of the Yellow Pages business. The result was that the strategies developed were highly successful and transferable at work. This facilitated the successful sale of Yellow Pages at the maximum asking price (Gonçalves, 2006). Wide recognition and acclaim of this success created excellent job opportunities for Yellow Pages’ former IT team, most of them in better positions with higher salaries. In comparison, equally-qualified workers who never took part in team building took longer to find jobs elsewhere, were less successful and cost the company more. 2. Pfizer After the retirement of the managing director of one of its biggest factories located in the Chinese province of Dalian, Pfizer was looking for a way wanted to sustain high performance in the plant. There was enormous pressure to maintain sharpness and peak productivity, and the company needed to come up with a feasible solution. After detailed planning, the company hired a PR firm which developed a 7 day program based on reformulating, testing and identifying top-draw management strategies that would lead ensure a bright and successful future for the plant. The whole team building process was punctuated by laughter, fun, good cultural balance and a firm grounding on measurement, results, credibility and originality (Advanstar Communications, 2003). The leadership team selected emerged with workable, proven improvements to the excellent dynamics they had been used to under the past leadership. Results were that the team building program led the plant to discover new strengths, and the leadership transition was handled smoothly while increasing all measures of productivity. Top management at Pfizer identified the team building program as crucial in maintaining and improving high performance during the transition and in the future (Barner, 2006). References Advanstar Communications. (2003). Team building Lenexa, KS: Advanstar Communications Barner, R. (2006). Managing complex team interventions. Team Performance Management, 12(1/2), 44-54. Bride, M. (2011). Teambuilding. London: Hodder Education. Callaghan, J. & Voight, M. (2001). A team building intervention program: Application and evaluation with two university soccer teams. Journal of Sport Behavior, 24(4), 420-431. Gonçalves, M. (2006). Team building. New York: ASME Press. Stone, K. (2010). Kaizen Teams: Integrated HRD Practices for Successful Team Building. X evaluation with two university soccer teams. Journal of Sport Behavior, 24(4), 420-431. . Read More