X team Paper

Team Analysis

Student’s Name

Institutional Affiliation

Team Analysis

Overview of the team

Jamie Tech Corporation had been facing a few challenges when it came to its network security. Due to the challenges, the management of the organization decided to task a team of its employees from different departments the role of designing a firewall that is impenetrable to hackers. The organization’s project team, having workers from different departments, was assigned to activities for the same project. This team was to be used only for a certain duration of time, that is until the project of designing impenetrable firewall is completed. The functions of the departments in the organization have been affected negatively by hacking. This necessitated the involvement of different individuals from more than one department. Involving individuals from different departments made the team to be categorized as a cross-functional team. This cross-functional team was working under the supervision of a project manager. All of the team members were working on the project on a part-time basis, meaning that they only met during certain times. Generally, project teams are always required to have the correct combination of personality types, abilities, and skills to attain collaborative tension. Also, there are different methods that can be used to formulate a team. The method that was used to formulate this project team for Jamie Tech was at the discretion of a senior member of the company.

Identification and analysis of team Characteristics, Processes, Issues, and Organizational Context

Team Characteristics

Jamie Tech's project team had begun its work well during the early stages, but it faced some issues along the way. There are some characteristics that made the team be successful during the early stages. The first characteristic that made the team be effective is that the team had a clear direction. There are many times that different organizations have been in a hurry to on with projects leading to pulling together groups of individuals without first making the decision regarding goals as well as desired outcomes. When there is an unclear sense about what a team is required to attain and the manner in which as successful result will be defined, then it becomes impossible to bring together the right group of people to carry out a project (Fuller, Valacich, George, & Schneider, 2017). The good thing with Jamie Tech's team is that they had decided on team goals as well as the desired outcomes properly. The team goals together with desired outcomes were used for clear direction for the team that was selected.

The second characteristic evident was the support for risk-taking and change. Basically, good project teams are known to support the right experimentation for change and risk-taking. Jamie Tech's team appropriately supported risk-taking and change. Also, in the beginning, the team properly looked in first-time mistakes and rectified the mistakes as opportunities for learning. The third characteristic in the team is role definition. Each and every member of the group was assigned a particular role. Since the team was after developing an impenetrable firewall, the members were given detailed orientation meant to make everyone stay on track. The fourth characteristic that was present in the group was mutual accountability. Every member accepted responsibility as a team and individual. The blame game for team failure and mistakes were kept aside, especially during the beginning phases of the project when the group was successful. There was no waste of time, particularly in personal justifications. Furthermore, the team recognized its special performance and also celebrated success as well as contributions of every team member.

Team Processes

How team members work together and interact with one another to attain group goals is referred to as processes. Team processes are important for the effective performance of teams. Various firms are increasingly making use of team-based structures when it comes to coordinating work as well as completing projects. Consequently, it is important for team members to understand and make good use of effective processes that lead to high performance. Jamie Tech's team employed different processes, especially when it came to different phases of the project.

When the team was working towards the objectives and goals of the project, the carried out different activities, and the activities were part of action processes. There were a number of activities, and the first activity was measuring progress toward goals. The second activity was tracking the environment and resources to make sure the things that are required will be available. The third activity is helping other team members carrying out their responsibilities, while the final activity was managing the consequence of member activities. On the other hand, when it came to all phases of teamwork (that is, before, during, and after), the team used interpersonal processes. The team process was used with the goal of managing the relationships between members of the team. Some of the interpersonal processes that were evident in the team are developing norms and conflict management that promote cooperation, coping with stressful demand and fostering togetherness, and maintaining and building team member confidence and motivation.

According to Melcher (n.d.), every set of processes are related positively to team member satisfaction and team performance. “The more effective a team is at setting goals, coordinating activities, and working together, the better the team performs, and the more satisfied members are with working as part of a team" (LePine, Piccolo, Jackson, Mathieu, & Saul, 2008, p. 274). The effectiveness of a team and its processes are enhanced by the use of technologies, such as virtual teams. The author goes ahead to state that different sets of processes can be important in situations where the performance of a team is lagging. The project leader can look at the processes, which will help analyze where the problem is arising. When a project manager determines the set of processes that a team is facing problems with, it becomes easier to determine what kind of measures that can be taken to improve the performance of a team.

Team Issues

As earlier stated, the performance of the team was good during the early phases of the group. However, when the team was nearing the completion phases of the project, there were some issues that were experienced. These issues negatively affected the performance of the team. Among the issues that were experienced by the team was a communication challenge. There was a tool failure of communication in the team. Communication is very important when it comes to creating a sense of camaraderie among team members (Hassell & Cotton, 2017). The approach of communication in the team, that is, how frequently and freely team members communicate, was not appropriate, thereby interfering with the effectiveness of the team. The members were not talking freely to one another. The communication challenge also meant that the members were not comfortable to share idea and insight. Additionally, the most crucial part of communication, which is listening, was missing in the group. Every team members acted as if he or she knew everything. No one was ready to listen to the ideas of others. Listening is not only a way of finding different things out, but it also acts as a sign of respect. Since the team members were not willing to listen to one another, it means that there was a lack of respect in the group.

The other issue in the team was lack of team trust. The project team members did not trust one another. Also, some of the members did not believe in the goals and process of the team. This process also hampered the success of the team. The trust issue in the team may have arisen due to the lack of open communication or communication breakdown. Trust is believed to be an addition of efficient communication. Since the team members were not free to air their views and ideas, the issue of trust emerged eventually. Even after the team managers realized that there was a problem with trust, he did not carry out a team-building exercise that could have put the team members in the position of trust.

Team’s Organizational Context

There was a problem with the team’s organizational context. The organizational context was not supportive. Some of the things that made the organizational context not to be supportive were the leadership and culture. The Jamie Tech's team was under the leadership of the team manager. The team manager tried as much as possible to make the team be great, but the problem is that the team manager did not put conditions in place that were meant to increase the likelihood that the team will be effective. Since the manager failed to create a set of conditions that operate together, it was difficult for the team to move onto a pathway of competence that was ever increasing as one unit. On the other hand, the culture did not encourage effective communication in the team. Another important thing that the culture did not encourage is trust. Most of the employees of Jamie Tech are used to working independently. The element of collaboration is not encouraged so much in the organization.

Dysfunction Assessment Analysis

Dysfunction assessment analysis of the team was carried out using the five dysfunctions of a team assessment. Through the use of the measure, the collective team behavior patterns of team members that relate to the five dysfunctions (absence of trust, fear of conflict, lack of commitment, avoidance of accountability, and inattention of results) were identified. There was a total absence of trust in the group. Due to the absence of trust, members of the team concealed mistakes and weaknesses from one another. Also, the members were not in a position to ask one another for help, and also no one was willing to provide the other with constructive feedback. All these made the team fail to tap into or recognize the strengths and weaknesses of one another. Fear of conflict is the second dysfunction. This element was not present in the group since group preserved artificial harmony. The team did not fear conflict.

Since the project was being carried out on a part-time basis, there was a lack of commitment at some stage. Due to a lack of commitment, some members were not willing to make decisions in a definitive way. Ambiguity is created by a team that is not willing to commit. There is no avoidance of accountability in the team. This is because the team members were accountable for their actions and other activities. It is normally argued that a team that avoids accountability builds resentment between the members. The final element of dysfunction is inattention to results. Jamie Tech team is focused on results. It is only s few challenges that are affecting the effective performance of the team. The team members are also focused on their own careers as well as individual objectives.

Recommendations to Improve Performance

As earlier stated, there was communication challenge in the team. This communication challenge is also the cause of trust issue among the team members. There are a number of things that can be carried out to improve communication and trust in the team. The first thing that should be carried out by the team leader is to encourage two-way feedback. The members should be encouraged to give constructive and detailed feedback. The leader should provide feedback, which coaches the team members. The feedback should not create boundaries among the members and the leader. The other important element that can build communication and trust is the development of team spirit. Building the team spirit will enable the team to get on well, and this will automatically make the members communicate better.

Furthermore, the virtue of training should not be overlooked by any team leader. Training takes money, effort, and time. However, it improves interactions among team members. Communication training also enhances the quality of work entirely. Currently, there are many courses available that can change positively communication skills. The courses can also improve the ability to persuade, inform, and deliver the message. The use of an appropriate form of communication in a team can be made possible through training the team members.

One way through which the team can alter positively its organizational context is through the team leader creating conditions that increase the probability that the team will be effective. Creating enabling conditions will launch the team appropriately and help the team members to take possible advantage of performance circumstances that are favorable. There are six enabling conditions that the team leader should have created. The first enabling condition is a real team. The team leader should have designed a real team with clear boundaries, interdependence, and membership of work and stability. The second condition is a compelling team purpose. The compelling team purpose should guide the work of the team. The third condition is having the right people on the team. The right people should possess the required skill, experience, and knowledge to perform the requisite work. The fourth enabling condition is having a clear set of norms that guide how the team works together. The fifth condition is organizational support, which offers the resources, time, and information that enable a team to do its work. The final enabling condition is competent team coaching. This kind of coaching should be aimed at helping the team members grow their talent individually and as a team.

References

Fuller, M. A., Valacich, J. S., George, J. F., & Schneider, C. (2017). Information Systems Project

Management: A Process and Team Approach, Edition 1.1. Prospect Press.

Hassell, M. D., & Cotton, J. L. (2017). Some things are better left unseen: Toward more effective

communication and team performance in video-mediated interactions. Computers in Human Behavior, 73, 200-208.

LePine, J. A., Piccolo, R. F., Jackson, C. L., Mathieu, J. E., & Saul, J. R. (2008). A meta‐analysis

of teamwork processes: tests of a multidimensional model and relationships with team effectiveness criteria. Personnel Psychology, 61(2), 273-307.

Melcher, K. (n.d.). Teamwork processes necessary for effective performance. Retrieved from

http://www.degarmo.com/teamwork-processes-necessary-for-effective-performance