Purpose of the Team
The team I will be writing on is Information Technology (IT) Team. The purpose of the team is to build a formidable group spirit among the members so that all the set goals and objectives can be achieved with much ease. It is imperative to mention that it takes immense effort, commitment and competence to create and maintain an effective team (McShane & Glinow, 2009).
This team has also been formed to assist members gain the much needed knowledge and skills when handling various IT related tasks. It is an ongoing team which members are supposed to stay and work together in a particular department. A good example is a manager in IT department and the accompanying staff members. The department may decide to bring efficiency in work place by improving individual performance.
Team Dynamics
My role in the team was to help the rest of team members to evaluate as well as value individual differences and thinking. The team members seemed not to have been relating well because they experienced communication barriers. It is worth noting that team dynamics and the way a given team operates may be duly affected if there is lack of smooth flow and exchange in communication.
If members are able to identify and understand as well as appreciate individual differences and unique thinking patterns, then a team will improve its productivity in any given department (Choi, Lee & Yoo, 2010). This is an integral opportunity for me to help every member towards accepting one another so that there will be individual and team improvement in performance.
My role affected the team’s dynamics by changing their individual perspective towards each other. So far, tea members have been able to improve on communication skills especially when communicating with each other.
In addition, there is more value attached to individual differences in terms of gender, age and other unique attributes. This level of growth within the tea has been instrumental towards the success of the group. After initiating cohesion in the team, the IT department has experienced tremendous growth.
Strategies
One of the most important strategies that the team has devised is that which deals with how best communication can be enhanced among members. In order to attain cordial communication, promotion of good relationship among the members has been a key strategy in place. When individuals among the team resort into conflict, their performance is equally interfered with on a regular basis (Goldman, 2005).
It is important to re-group in order to tackle problems which are related to communication and relationship. The aforementioned strategy has been instrumental managing the team.
Other strategies include holding common meetings, setting the priorities of the team issues according to importance, seeking prompt solutions, setting up action plans on what is to be achieved within a given time. These strategies have been used in the team because IT department handles a lot of diversity.
Processes and Standards
The processes and standards followed by my team in order to perform well were set to accomplish group goals. They included encouraging team members through rewards, initiating learning processes for every individual, setting high standards of personal integrity, faithfulness, sincerity and trust. These are uncompromising standards that are fundamental in any team work.
The team cannot accomplish its goals and have effective performance without these standards. For example, rewarding the best performers in the team can create positive competition among the members.
Timely and effective recognition system has also assisted the team to understand that teamwork is real and also a rewarding undertaking (Cordery et al., 2010). As a matter of fact, successful IT teamwork depends on dedicated individuals. Therefore, recognizing and rewarding dedicated and committed members are important processes in managing teams (Wyman, 1998).
Team Performance
If I could reformulate the team from scratch, I would make some drastic and yet effective changes. I will create a competitive atmosphere in order ignite slow and less motivated workers. I will also change the usual time of group meetings. In addition, it will also be important to organize retreats and camps for the team in order to have ample time to discuss serious matters.
The purpose of team retreats is to come up with the best strategies for developing efficient performance in the team. This involves incorporating the members in decision making instead of giving my opinions as the ultimate guide.
Furthermore, every member has to contribute in order to make final findings. These camps and retreat will help a manager to have the right strategies that overcome challenges in communication processes and decision making.
Finally, another drastic change which I will make concerns time management. Each hour will be utilized fruitfully. The workers will no longer waste time discussing unworthy matters. I will encourage my team to discuss matters that create cohesion and not those that promote hatred among them.
The above strategic changes will finally help to improve performance especially at individual. It is also imperative that improving on the process of time utilization will also come in handy towards boosting the efficiency and effectiveness of the entire IT department.
References
Burgess, S. et al. (2010). Smarter Task Assignment or Greater Effort: The Impact of Incentives on Team Performance. The economic Journal 120(547): 968-989.
Choi, Y.S., Lee, H. & Yoo, Y. (2010). The impact of information technology and transactive memory systems on knowledge sharing, application, and team Performance: a field study. Journal MIS Quarterly 34(4): 76-89
Cordery, L.J. et al (2010). The impact of autonomy and task uncertainty on team performance: A longitudinal field study. Journal of organizational Behavior 31(2-3): 240-258.
Goldman, M. (2005). Surviving the Storm. Hamilton: CMA Management: 79 (19): 28-44.
McShane, S. & Glinow, M. (2009). Organizational Behavior (5th ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill/Irwin.
Wyman, S. (1998). Reaching New Heights. North York: Computer World Canada: 14(6): 19-32.