Introduction
In this article an effort has been made to analyze types of backup behavior in different circumstances and that might often result in decreasing the efficiency levels of a team. It is contented that the extent of impact depends upon the cohesive nature of the team and distribution of responsibilities.
Statement of Research Problem
Backing up in general is provided to get things done. But this study attempts to see through the minute details of the ill effects of unwarranted backing up. An effort has been made to figure out the cost of backing up behavior for a team and the types of potentially harmful impacts of providing such backing up. Authors have mainly focused on to examine the relationship between backing-up behavior and team performance.
Description of Research Procedure
Research on the subject has been extensively carried out with the help of earlier writings on the subject and related topics. Quoting earlier studies on the subject by well known writers like Porter (2005), Dickinson and McIntyre (1997), Johnson et al., (2006) etc. this study has tried to test a set of hypothesis for arriving at the conclusion. Authors have observed different types of teamwork and working behavior of the individual team members.
In addition, analogy has also been established with some standard set of team behaviors like that of an Air Force midflight refueling crew, fire response team etc. which often mandates adequate backing up while complementing each other’s task. But in general, authors have cited a number of previous works from different writers which provide a glimpse of how backing up often leads to complacency on the part of some team members, while unduly putting the burden on some others. An effort has also been made to highlight how some of the previous studies have tended to ignore the negative impacts of backing up.
Flaws in Procedural Design
The writers have made attempts to take care of the diversity in team performances, as a result of backing up, but considering the fact that, in today’s context team spirit is encouraged amongst management, it sounds somewhat out of place to think that complementing each other’s efforts, helping the fellow team members leads to negative impacts. Certainly, there might be instances which could lead to development of a sense of complacency amongst some team members, but to generalize it without thorough research might lead to undermining the value of team spirit. A team of course comprises of members with different sets of attitudes and abilities, but what matters in the end is, the output that the team is able to deliver, which necessitates more comprehensive research on this particular topic, before arriving at the conclusion.
Analysis of Data
In the study, data has been taken mainly from secondary sources. The concept of team functioning has changed quite a bit in the recent years. Concepts like globalization and liberalization, in which people need to take care of activities happening in different parts of the world, requires a functional team to coordinate and cooperate. But in this study, barring a few relevant examples, most of the instances have been cited from previous studies, which somehow tends to limit the horizon of this study.
Limited and Justifiable Conclusions
The article raised question marks on the efficacy of backing up undesirable team members, stating that such acts lead to bringing in inefficiencies in the functioning. With the help of six hypotheses, the article summed up the finding stating that, if people realize that if there are no backups then they will be more vigilant about their duties.