Week Four Paper

Running head: WEEK FOUR PAPER

Week Four Paper

 

Abstract

Within this paper I am going to discuss how the team concept and team structure played out in the course of this assignment.

Week Four Paper

Week Four Individual Paper

Working over the past few weeks in a learning team environment has been both rewarding and frustrating. I have found that while I am learning new ideas and new concepts, it has been very hard to acclimate to new team members versus the group that I currently work with. It has been a challenge, but more so, it has been a very valuable learning experience.

But, you first must ask yourself, why learning teams in the first place, as pointed out in, (University Of Phoenix) Learning Team Handbook, Copyright 2002, 2003, 2004 University of Phoenix, "More than ever, organizations require their employees to work effectively as members of teams." As our team came together, we realized that we were no longer a group, but working towards becoming a team. A team, in its basest sense is a collection of individuals who are working together towards a common goal. As groups become teams, they learn to rely on each other, and realize that they are all working towards the same shared goal, the same shared failure or success.

That is a good start, but more specifically, this quote from, (White) Tracey Edwards(Skippered the First Women's Crew to Circumnavigate the Globe) gives an idea of the importance of teams, Quote by Tracey Edwards in "Teaming with Talent", by Jim White, Management Today, Sept. 1999, p.56, "We are a pack animals. From earliest times we have used the strength of the group to overcome the weakness of the individual." This became apparent as we started working together; we went through

the normal stages of team development. The first stage being forming. Basically it is where assignments are divvied up, and tasks are assigned. It is also where the goals and objectives of the group are defined, and where members find out the resources that are available to them. The key in this stage is to be as flexible as possible, and be willing to try out different roles within the group. The next stage is storming. In this stage the direction of the group, leadership roles, and style and approach and what the expectations are for the delivered product. In this stage it is highly likely that the first real conflicts will arise. The reasons for this are many, people are not sure who should lead, what the actual direction is for the group, and more importantly the framework for the group hasn't been fully implemented. People at this stage are likely to become discouraged by the infighting, but the main thing to remember here is that differences need to be resolved so that the project can move forward. The next stage in the process is Norming. That is when power and leadership issues are dealt with in the open, and directly. The team members know what is expected, and how to behave within the structure of the team. In a sense, this is the most productive stage, because people are comfortable with their roles, and know they can give input into the process without fear of retribution. They also feel a sense of belonging to the group. The next stage is Performing. Performing is where the issues have all been worked through

, and the group is focused towards their goal. Usually team members are motivated and willing to work hard to achieve their objectives. They are working closely together