Team Effectiveness Continued

The key to team effectiveness is good communication. First, feedback and openness without reprimand should always be encouraged in team settings. Second, people in a team must be understanding listeners and be willing to give their fellow team members the benefit of the doubt. Third, overly critical team leaders are detrimental to a team. “Poor team leaders cannot bring themselves to see that they may be in the wrong and cannot admit their faults” (Patterson, 2010). When team members feel comfortable contributing, then the team will be more effective as a whole.

It is also important to recognize that each of the team members will have diverse strengths and weaknesses. For example, one team member may be shy in meetings and discussions because he or she may be more inclined to execute the specific tasks. This trait of shyness could easily be misinterpreted as a lack of concern from that group member. An effective team needs to identify differences and use them to the betterment of the team in reaching goals. By letting members function in their respective areas of strength, most of the time a team's ability to fulfill its needs should be maximized (Teal, 2009).

References

Patterson, M. (2010, 9 02). 7 Tips for Developing an Effective Team. Retrieved 2 19, 2014, from Bizniks: http://biznik.com/articles/7-tips-for-developing-an-effective-team

Teal, A. (2009, 8 20). Business Guide: 7 Tips to Improve the Effectiveness of a Team. Retrieved 2 19, 2014, from Yahoo voices: http://voices.yahoo.com/business-guide-7-tips-improve-effectiveness-4068399.html?cat=3