Introduction
My team was made up of representatives from four departments which comprised of purchasing, logistic suppliers, binding, printing and photocopy, and quality control. My selection was the best match for the available roles since the above representatives tend to come from major departments of the library and without such departments then the library cannot be able to operate as the operation of the library depends on their services to a larger extend (Robbins, 2005).
The reason why I used the above representatives is that since they tend to come from various diverse areas of the library departments this will provide an easier exchange of information hence leading to the development of new ideas that will help when it comes to solving problems that may occur when such representatives are working. Furthermore, these cross-functional teams will be able to coordinate easily and it will enhance trust among each individual in the team making them work effectively since such representatives are made up of individuals from different backgrounds with different experiences and perspectives (Robbins,2005).
Team managing factors
The major factors which I need to consider so that I can effectively manage the team comprise; available resources and other contextual influences, leadership style, performance evaluation, reward system which reflects team’s contributions, and finally the climate which should be a climate of trust.
To begin with, a team’s performance is strongly related to the presence of adequate resources since the scarcity of resources is believed to be a major factor that directly reduces the ability of the team members to work efficiently well and to perform to the required standards. For the team to work effectively well then it should receive support and this support includes; timely information, proper equipment, encouragement as well as administrative assistance through this the teams will successfully succeed in achieving the targeted goals of the team (Mullins, 1999).
The second factor is Leadership and Structure where Team members should agree on what kind of task that an individual should do. This will equally contribute to equality in sharing the workload that is available which in the end will contribute to the efficient working of the team members.
Furthermore, the schedules required for the team’s members should be set as well as the required skills should be developed when it comes to the team members resolving their conflicts and how the team members can modify certain decisions which they have made but the decisions do not meet their expectations as a team. Also specific should be established in a way that a particular team member can know which on at a specific time this enables the team members to effectively integrate their skills as well as leadership structures. To effectively achieve this direct management by team members should be implemented (Robbins, 2005).
The third factor is the development of a climate of trust since effective team members should trust each other. This, therefore, implies that to effectively manage the team then interpersonal trust among the team members should be facilitated as this will enhance corporation. It will also assist in the reduction of the level that is needed for a manager to monitor each member of the team as well as reducing the level of dependency where some team members will tend to depend on others so much for assistance when performing their tasks.
The development of a culture of trust will lead to the development of an environment where the team members are will to take risks as well as being exposed to vulnerabilities since they tend to believe that trust exists between the team members. Trust, therefore, is the foundation of leadership and it enhances a culture where the team members are willing to accept and commit to their leader’s goals and decisions (Kenneth, 1988).
The last important factor is the Performance Evaluation and Reward Systems which in a real sense deals with how to make team members both individually as well as jointly accountable for their mistakes. This implies that a suitable reward system should be implemented which deals with Individual performance evaluations, fixed hourly wages, individual incentives which should always focus on the development of high-performance from team members. This requires proper evaluation of the reward systems for the team members so that every individual of the team is rewarded according to his/them. her efforts. This may include the development of group-based appraisals, profit sharing, gain sharing, small-group incentives, and other system modifications that will reinforce team effort and commitment (Robbins, 2005).
Helping team members
The major opportunities that I had to effectively manage the teams were through the creation of an environment through which team members were able to get some help which assisted them to successfully achieve their goals since through this the team members were able to build confidence hence minimizing any chances of conflicts. The other way which I used was the provision of training for the team members through which members were able to provide stronger performance as well as improvement of the team member’s technical and interpersonal skills.
This helped to the greater development of the team member’s abilities and confidence as well as the capability to deliver. Where confidence where is defined in terms of individual performance. Furthermore, this created an environment of openness where the team members were able to communicate openly and honestly, this created a way through which to confront differences and resolve conflicts, and to sublimate personal goals for the good of the team (Robbins, 2005).
The decisions which I made to direct an individual’s performance were to ensure that each individual was held accountable for the work he /she performs both at the individual level and team level. Furthermore, I initiated training sessions for all of my team members which helped the team players to effectively achieve their targets as well as the team goals. Through this training, the team members were able to improve their problem-solving skills as well as enhanced communication, negotiation, and at the same time conflict management.
In addition, a reward system which encouraged co-operation was developed rather than one which encourages competition and here it made all the team members work both at achieving team’s goals as well as the individual goals. In addition to the above, I implemented a strategic plan through which outstanding team members could be easily recognized hence deserving a reward this, therefore, indicated that all the team members worked hard for them to get rewarded rather than being ignored this enhanced the sharing of information freely among the team members which in the end helped in the resolution of conflicts among the team members (Robbins, 2005).
Conclusion
Overall I think my team was more effective since I developed a team through which co-operation was enhanced rather than the competition this created an environment through which the team members were able to work effectively well with one another without much conflict After running the second simulation was able to improve my results since learned from the first mistakes I made while doing the first simulation and this time was able to select more effective representatives to form the team. Employee involvement is a key factor towards the improvement of total quality management and here the major skills required include; communication, contact, response and adaptation, and coordination and sequencing.
Furthermore, teams are believed to provide a natural vehicle through which information, ideas are shared which leads to the developments as well as improvements in the team. Teams are seen as a primary organizing mechanism through which the desired organizational targets can be achieved. In addition, good teams should be of small size, properly trained, given authority to resolve the problems so that they can implement the corrective action and lastly the team members should be given enough time to work on the problems (Robbins, 2005).
Though teams are a means through which effective work targets can be accomplished teams need more resources to effectively work well as well as proper communication (Kenneth, 1988).
Availability of adequate resources example is the use of projectors, internet, and video conferencing was of great help since this equipment helped to make communication much easier as the information was able to be communicated on time which helped in the implementation of proper action too. The implementation of effective leadership enhanced cooperation which lead to the development of an environment where the team’s members could easily co-operate to share information confront differences and sublimate personal interests for the greater good of the team.
The development of a climate that enhances trust lead to a culture through which problems were easily solved, the decision-making process was made easier and high performance was received from the team members. Lastly, the implementation of a performance and evaluation system lead to high performance since all the team members worked towards achieving both team goals and individual goals (Robbins, 2005).
References
Laurie J. Mullins (1999), Management and Organizational Behaviour; Published by; Financial Times Pitman, 5th Edition: ISBN-0-273-68876-6.
Paul H, Kenneth H. B (1988), Management of organizational behavior: utilizing human resources; Published by Prentice-Hall, 5th edition: ISBN 0135512689, 9780135512685.
Stephen P. Robbins (2005), Organizational Behavior, Eleventh Edition, by: Published by Prentice-Hall. Copyright © 2005 by Pearson Education, Inc. ISBN: 0-536-98810.