Teambuilding

Contents

1. INTRODUCTION 1

2. OBJECTIVES 1

3. PROBLEM STATEMENT 1

4. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 1

5. LITERATURE SUMMARY 1

6. FINDINGS 4

7. CONCLUSIONS 5

8. RECOMMENDATIONS 6

9. LIST OF REFERENCES 6

LIST OF TABLES:

TABLE 1: The traditional working environment versus the team environment 2

TABLE 2: Team behaviour and the leadership role to accelerate development.............3

LIST OF PICTURES:

Picture 1: Obstacle activity at teambuilding session............................................5

ANNEXURE A: RECOMMENDED TEAMBUILDING ASSESSMENT .........................7

1. INTRODUCTION

Organisations face many internal and external challenges on a daily basis. In addition, globalization requires companies to utilize resources more effectively to reduce costs and become more competitive. Changes in organizations are inevitable to keep up with the ongoing demands of stakeholders such as, customers, staff and shareholders. The use of teams provides organizations with the flexibility to move forward successfully in a changing world of work and business. It is therefore imperative that organizations engage in teambuilding activities to create, maintain and enrich the development of a group of people into a cohesive unit.

2. OBJECTIVES

The objectives of this case study are to:

-Identify the purpose and benefits of teams for organisations;

-Establish whether DBT (SA)(Pty) Ltd engages in teambuilding activities; and

-Evaluate the success of any teambuilding activities.

3. PROBLEM STATEMENT

Teambuilding is said to be critical to the development and effectiveness of teams. It is unknown whether DBT (SA) (Pty) Ltd engages in teambuilding activities and if so, whether teambuilding activities are scheduled on an ongoing basis, meet specific objectives and the success thereof is measured.

4. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

The following methodology was utilized for this case study:

a) A literature review on teams and teambuilding was conducted;

b) A questionnaire was designed;

c) A company and contact person for the case study was identified;

c) A face-to-face interview with Mr Tony de Oliveira was conducted on 15 May

2005; and

d) The findings, conclusions and recommendations were documented.

5. LITERATURE SUMMARY

As the terms "groups" and "teams" are often used interchangeably, research suggests that in order to comprehend the origination and evolution of teams, the difference between these the two concepts, needs to be differentiated meaningfully. Gibson et al. (1997:201) define groups as "...two or more employees who interact with each other in such a manner that the behaviour and/or performance of a member is influenced by the behaviour and/or performance of other members". Teams are described by Bateman & Snell (1999:472) as "...a small number of people with complementary skills, who trust one another and are committed to a common purpose, common performance goals, and a common approach, for which they hold themselves mutually accountable".

According to Hellriegel et al. (1999:332), the most common reasons why organizations form work teams are:

*Reduce costs, improve efficiency and timeous delivery of results;

*Enhance customer relations;

*Improve quality and innovation of services and products;

*Strengthen management and employee relations;

*Develop a culture of employee ownership and enhance commitment and motivation;

*Expand the employees' understanding of the business; and to

*Form or enhance organizational networks.

The use of teams changes the way people work individually and collectively in organizations. Table 1 identifies the differences in working in a traditional environment to that of a team environment, by focusing on how the manager's role changes to one of becoming more participative, whilst workers enhance their skills base and are rewarded for individual as well as team performance.

Table 1: The Traditional Working Environment versus the Team Environment

Traditional Environment Team Environment

Managers determine and plan the work Managers and team members jointly determine and plan the work

Jobs are narrowly defined Jobs require broad skills and knowledge

Information is "management" property Most information is freely shared at all levels

People work alone People work together

Rewards are based on individual performance Rewards are based on individual performance and contributions to team performance

Training for non-managers focuses on technical skills Continuous learning requires interpersonal, administrative, and technical training for all

Managers determine "best methods" Everyone works to continuously improve methods and processes

Source: Bateman & Snell (1999:473)

Teams develop through the stages of Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing. An entrepreneur, or