Teamworking

Team Role Behaviours

Meredith Belbin recognised that there are nine team role behaviours. Each of the team roles have got different strengths and weaknesses associated with them, and therefore each have an important and unique contribution to make to any group.

“A tendency to behave, contribute and interrelate with others in a particular way.” (Belbin, 2007)

The Belbin self-perception inventory is an analytical report, which fingerprints an individual’s Team Role preference, or preferences.
People who work in groups throughout their lives may find their roles change over time. This is because many people will take the group role that needs assigning, and also personalities and abilities can evolve.
The following are summaries of the nine team roles:

A ‘Plant’ is a good solver of difficult problems, but pre-occupied and lacking in communication skills.
‘Resource investigators’ like to explore positive opportunities, but may lose interest beyond the initial enthusiasm.
‘Co-ordinators’ are the promoters and clarifiers of goals and decisiveness, although often manipulative.
A ‘Shaper’ enjoys tackling most challenges and obstacles, but can also be offensive and provocative.
‘Monitor/Evaluators’ make accurate judgements, despite a lack of drive.
‘Team workers’ are very co-operative with others and evasive of friction, but at the same time can be very indecisive.
An ‘Implementer’ will efficiently turn ideas into actions, but can be slow in response to new possibilities.
A ‘Completer/Finisher’ is a perfectionist and locator of errors, but prone to worry over the insignificant.
‘Specialists’ are self starting and dedicated, but are known to dwell over technicalities.


The band Tramp Etiquette recently took part in a record company showcase at the O2 Academy in Islington, on Sunday 28th March. They had to work as a team to create a performance which met the criteria set by the record label. The whole group knew this would have to be planned and structured to a high level of precision.
The reason that the group were able to work so well together, was because they had a highly compatible collection of team role personalities.
The drummer is a ‘Team worker’ and so is very co-operative with the other band members. His evasiveness of friction and indecisive nature means he allows room for others that have big ideas. This role is complemented by the Bassist, a ‘Co-ordinator’ who promotes and clarifies the goals, making the decisions for the team worker and other group members. The ‘Implementer’, a role held by the lead guitarist, is able to efficiently turn the bassist’s ideas into actions. So then the ‘Monitor/Evaluator’ of the group, the rhythm guitarist, can then form his accurately analysed judgements on the group’s ideas. This guides the work into a logical direction. Finally, as the vocalist is a ‘Completer/Finisher’ and so locates any final blemishes within the product, and eliminates them, leaving the group with a perfected product.


Team Stage Model

Bruce Tuckman created a theory known as the ‘team stages model’. It was a theory created in 1965, and is now well established and used for effective team building and leadership (The Happy Manager, 2007). The model shows how groups of people cannot begin as a fully functional body, but in fact the team evolves in phases. These clearly defined stages are known as: forming; storming; ‘norming’; and performing.

Forming means the initial orientation stage, which tests the groups compatibility.

Storming is the conflict that occurs between personalities within a group.

When the team are ‘norming’, it means the conflicts are being resolved, and the group begin to become more socially cohesive.

The performing stage is when the group is at its most functional stage, where each individuals role is clear and understood.

Tuckman's model shows how it takes time before the performing stage is reached, and ups and downs within a team should be seen as a normal thing to happen.


Earlier this year a group was formed to carry out an assignment on Content and Process theories. Tuckman’s team stages model can be used as an explanation of why the group did not work as effectively as it could have.
The forming stage was when the group seemed to be very decisive about what they wanted to do, and how they wanted to do it. At the time, this seemed like a wise way of organising the group, because it would bypass the lengthy traditional forming stage. Usually, the forming stage would consist of getting to know one another, so that each person could make their own judgement of where to place themselves, by analysing the roles of others.
However, by bypassing this stage, the group set themselves up for an even lengthier ‘storming’ phase. This gave little time for the ‘norming’ phase, in which they began to understand each other’s roles properly. So their performance was not as good as it could have been, because they did not entirely fulfil the four stages of Tuckman’s model.


Top Companies To Work For

P3 is a social inclusion charity, which in 2010 made the number one company to work for (Times Online, 2010). It won this title because 90% of its employees say they are proud to work for it. 87% feel confident with their managers’ leadership skills, and that their team of colleagues will always do what they can to help each other out. 88% also feel that their contribution is valued as an important factor of the organisations success. When asked if there was much pressure from the organisation to perform well, 86% replied no, as they find their work and environment is stimulating enough on its own. Employees really feel listened to by senior management. This must reduce conflict, and explains the open and honest working environment which satisfies the employees of the organisation.

The winner of 2009’s competition, and this year’s number 3, was Beaverbrooks the Jewellers (Times Online, 2010). The company offer its staff many appealing benefits, such as 5 weeks of holiday a year, as well as perks such as elaborate party evenings for high performing employees. This must give the employees a positive work ethic, as well as improve relationships beyond the working formalities.


References:

Belbin associates (2007) Belbin team role theory [online]. Available from: http://www.belbin.com/rte.asp?id=8 [Accessed 17 April 2010]

The happy manager (2007) Tuckman’s stages of group development [online]. Available from: http://www.the-happy-manager.com/teamwork-theory.html [Accessed 17 April 2010]

Time Online (2010) Beaverbrooks the jewellers [online]. Available from: http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/career_and_jobs/best_100_companies/article7030215.ece [Accessed 17 April 2010]

Times Online (2010) P3 [online]. Available from: http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/career_and_jobs/best_100_companies/article7030217.ece [Accesses 17 April 2010]