Teamwork enables people to achieve team goals

OB Individual Reflection Paper
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Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
Evolution of the tem over the term..................................................................................................3
Team Dynamics...............................................................................................................................4
Group Structure...............................................................................................................................4
Inter group conflict..........................................................................................................................6
Communication Issues.....................................................................................................................7
Korn-Ferry assessment results.........................................................................................................7
Summary and my take away from the effort.................................................................................10
References......................................................................................................................................11
Team Peer Evaluation....................................................................................................................13
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Introduction
Team work comprises of actions taken by a team or a group of people in order to achieve team
goals (Lussier & Achua, 2015). Team work enables people to generate collective ideas through
creative thinking and helps in achievement of all tasks in a collaborative environment (Shuffler,
Thayer, Bedwell, & Lazzara, 2015). However, working in teams has its own set of challenges.
The following reflective paper is an evaluation of my experience as a member of a team working
on a project to understand the organizational culture of Auto Nation; a US based Auto Dealer
Company. The following reflective paper assesses team dynamics, structure, conflicts and
challenges faced during the duration of the project.
Evolution of the tem over the term
Teems are formed for the purpose of goal achievement (West, 2012). Therefore, each team needs
to have a mission and purpose for it to work effectively (Mandourah, Samad, & Isaac, 2017). My
team had 5 members and one team leader. The purpose of the team was to jointly assess the
organizational culture at Auto Nation. The team also worked towards assessment of changes
undertaken by the company in its organizational culture. Another major purpose of the
assignment was to increase self-knowledge for advancement in professional career.
Various thinkers have given different models of evolution of teams for various roles. One such
model is given by Bruce Tuckman known as Forming, Storming, Norming and Performing
model (Slater, 2010). As per Tuckman, teams pass through these stages to achieve team goals.
In the forming stage a group gets formed due to the need to achieve a common goal (Redick,
Reyna,, Schaffer, & Toomey, 2014). Our team was formed because we needed to complete the
assignment on Auto Nation jointly. After team formation we started understanding each other’s
strengths and weaknesses. We started settling into our roles. This was the storming stage
(Lunenburg & Lunenburg, 2015).
As we started working on the assignment our comfort level and trust for each other increased.
We started valuing each other’s inputs and ideas. Therefore, by working together we reached
Tuckman’s norming stage (West, 2012). After forming a cordial relationship of trust we focused
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on the work in hand and divided the tasks as per knowledge, interest or expertise. After working
on the tasks in coordination we reached the performing stage where our team achieved the
predefined goals. However, during the course of the team work, we encountered various
challenges like time management. We also faced difficult situations when one of our team
members left the group mid-way.
Team Dynamics
Team dynamics is the inter group team relationship (De Jong, Dirks, & Gillespie, 2016). Team
dynamics is governed by psychological and unconscious forces that affect the direction of team
performance (Belbin, 2012). The major constituents of team dynamics are type of work,
personality of the team members, inter team working relationship and team environment.
Many theories and models have been suggested by scholars to understand group dynamics
(West, 2012). William Schutz in his theory highlights interpersonal relationships like affection,
inclusion and control which govern group dynamics type (Lunenburg & Lunenburg, 2015).
Inclusion is when all members are included in decision making. Affection is when members are
close to each other and control relates to one person controlling and wanting to control a group.
Our group worked on the basic principle of cooperation, coordination, belongingness and
partnership. Inter group relationship was good. Team leader was organized and cooperative.
Decision making was done through discussion. Voting was used to resolve conflicts or any other
issue which could not be solved through discussion. Therefore our group dynamics was based on
inclusion of members in decision making (Lunenburg & Lunenburg, 2015). Member inclusion
led to better team cooperation, understanding and effectiveness. According to theoretical
viewpoints, these are the highlights of a healthy group or team dynamics.
Group Structure
Group structure is the layout of a group (Belbin, 2012). It is based on roles of each member,
norms, conformity, member-status and workplace behavior (Mathieu, Tannenbaum, Donsbach,
& Alliger, 2014). There are various theories about team roles and structure. Most important
among these is Belbin’s team roles (Belbin, 2012). According to Belbin, teams will be effective
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