For this assignment, your deliverable is a 4- to 5-page essay, not counting the

For this assignment, your deliverable is a 4- to 5-page essay, not
counting the cover or reference pages, of an analysis of the use of
teams in the following case study scenario. You will draw on the
background material and your analysis of the scenario presented below to
help you address the questions at the end of this case study.
In this second Case Assignment, the assignment is going to test your
understanding of how successful teams operate efficiently through
teamwork. Teamwork relies upon individuals to work together to achieve
common team goals through sharing knowledge and skills. Successful
teamwork relies upon synergism existing between all team members and the
creation of an environment where they are all willing to contribute and
participate to promote and nurture a positive, effective team
environment. Team members must be flexible enough to adapt to a
cooperative work environment where goals are achieved through
collaboration and social interdependence rather than placement of their
focus on individualized, competitive goals.
Please see Table 1 on pages 642 and 643 in Tarricone and Luca (2002). It provides a summary of literature on the successful attributes needed for effective teamwork as follows:
Commitment to team success and shared goals – team members are
committed to the success of the team and their shared goals for the
project. Successful teams are motivated, engaged, and aim to achieve at
the highest level;
Interdependence – team members need to create an environment where
together they can contribute far more than as individuals. A positive
interdependent team environment brings out the best in each person,
enabling the team to achieve their goals at a far superior level
(Johnson & Johnson, 1995, 1999). Individuals promote and encourage
their fellow team members to achieve, contribute, and learn;
Interpersonal Skills includes the ability to discuss issues openly
with team members; be honest, trustworthy, and supportive; and show
respect and commitment to the team and to its individuals. Fostering a
caring work environment is important, including the ability to work
effectively with other team members;
Open Communication and positive feedback – actively listening to the
concerns and needs of team members, valuing their contribution, and
expressing this helps to create an effective work environment. Team
members should be willing to give and receive constructive criticism and
provide authentic feedback;
Appropriate team composition is essential in the creation of a
successful team. Team members need to be fully aware of their specific
team role and understand what is expected of them in terms of their
contribution to the team and the project; and
Commitment to team processes, leadership & accountability – team
members need to be accountable for their contribution to the team and
the project. They need to be aware of team processes, best practice, and
new ideas. Effective leadership is essential for team success,
including shared decision-making and problem solving.
There are two teams of students working on projects. In the end, one
team was successful in completing their project on time while the other
was not.
Successful Team
This team of students was highly successful in developing a quality
project, as well as being highly collaborative. Their journal entries
continually reflected positive comments about other team members, and at
no stage during the semester was there a request or requirement to
transfer marks from one team member to another. Team meetings were
always friendly, and at no stage were team issues discussed as being
problematic. The team always focused on the project and how the process
of development could be improved by exploring expectations of the tutor,
client, and end users. An analysis of the data collected from this team
indicated that they showed the attributes needed for successful
teamwork. In almost all of their responses in interviews, focus group
meetings, and questionnaires, it was evident that this team was
committed to:
Commitment to team success and shared goals – the
team was highly focused on delivering a quality product, and not
pre-occupied by personal issues that might have interrupted this
objective. They facilitated and nurtured positive, cooperative-working
relationships based upon the focus of developing a quality final product
that would impress their client tutor, peers, and end users. The whole
team was strongly motivated to outperform other teams and shared a
strong common goal of wanting to develop a product that would support
their chances of gaining employment at the end of the course. This was
evident in almost all of their responses.
Interdependence – the team members felt
that they had a responsibility towards the other members of the team and
that the success of the project was based upon each team member’s
contribution. Team members were always happy to help peers when they
were experiencing difficulties. The team would proactively brainstorm
problems individual team members were having and offer assistance if
needed.
Interpersonal skills – the team recognized
that team members had different personalities and experienced problems
at different stages. They showed consideration for each other, and
respected and supported others in difficult times.
Open communication and positive feedback –
the team recognised that it was a “healthy thing” to discuss problems or
difficult issues and try to offer constructive help/criticism in trying
to resolve these. They strongly valued open dialogue that enabled team
members to express their concerns in a non-defensive manner. They were
open and truthful about all aspects of the project.
Appropriate team composition – this team
was proactive in selecting their team members well in advance for this
unit. They had carefully considered the skills needed for each team
member, and also the type of personality for each team member. These
were carefully discussed and considered by two team members four months
before the unit commenced.
Commitment to team processes, leadership & accountability –
team members were all aware of the importance of everyone’s role within
the team and the process used by the team to plan and track the timing
and quality of required tasks. The project manager was well respected by
the team, and always consulted the team before making any major
decisions. Also, the team had a number of quality assurance procedures
which helped monitor activities as well as individual team members’
accountabilities.
Unsuccessful Team
Another team of students experienced severe team problems, which
caused it to become dysfunctional; it had to be split. At the first peer
assessment session, marks were transferred between team members, as it
was perceived that some team members were not contributing. Even though
agreement was made at this meeting that marks should be transferred, and
suggestions were made about how to improve the situation, resentment
amongst team members escalated. This was clearly evident from the
comments being made through the confidential on-line journal entries
each week. The tutor had several meetings with the project manager and
individuals to help try to resolve issues, but to no avail.
At one of the team meetings, a serious disagreement occurred in which
one of the team members verbally berated another, from which point
there was no reconciliation. After this altercation, team members felt
they could no longer work together, so even though they would experience
a heavier workload, they unanimously agreed to split and form two
separate teams. An analysis of the responses given by the successful
team indicated that this team had a strong awareness of the attributes
needed for successful teamwork. Comparing responses from this team
against the key attributes needed for successful teams shown in Table 1,
it was evident that this team was not congruent with these criteria.
Review the descriptors in Table 1 on pages 642 and 643 in Tarricone and Luca
(2002) that describe the successful team, then review the commentary
about the unsuccessful team and create your own Table in which you
change the descriptors to ones applicable to the unsuccessful team. Then, include paragraph descriptions of the six attributes as was done for the successful team above.
Last, address these final questions about the unsuccessful team:
How would you recommend the unsuccessful team resolve its conflicts?
What steps could you take to improve the team’s performance?
The essay assignment calls for a paper that is 4-5 pages. This means your submission will not be less than 4 full pages, not counting the cover and reference page.
Upload your assignment to the Case 3 Dropbox. Be
sure to review your Turnitin Originality report. If the score is over
15%, you may not be writing in your own words and you will need to
contact your professor and arrange to revise and resubmit your
assignment. Changes cannot be made to the submission, however, if it has
already been graded by your professor. Always check your originality
score after submitting your papers. If your score is above 15%, take a
look at the originality report to see where you forgot to cite your
sources. Always use quotation marks to indicate that material has been
copied directly from the source. Also, the citation for all quotes must
include the page number where you found the quote. These are two areas
where most students get dinged on their score.
While it is not mandatory, you are encouraged to submit all your
assignments into the practice dropbox. If you do this, you can make any
needed changes prior to submitting the assignments for grading.
Citation and reference style instructions are available at
https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/10/ and Trident University’s Introduction to APA Style, 7th edition .
You will find the following useful as you critique sources:
Herring, J. E. (2011). Chapter 3: Evaluating websites, Figure 3.1, p. 38. In Improving students’ web use and information literacy: a guide for teachers and teacher librarians. Facet Publishing. Available in the Trident Online Library, EBSCO eBook Collection.
Lack, C. W., & Rousseau, J. (2016). Chapter 4: What is critical thinking? In Critical thinking, science, and pseudoscience: Why we can’t trust our brains. Springer Publishing Company. Available in the Trident Online Library, EBSCO eBook Collection.