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What Leaders Can Learn About Teamwork and Developing High Performance Teams from Organization Development Practitioners

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What Leaders Can Learn About Teamwork and Developing High Performance Teams from Organization Development Practitioners “The irony is that while virtually everyone believes in teamwork, leaders passionately preach the importance of teamwork, an abundance of research supports the value of teamwork, and teamwork is almost always a central theme of text books and practitioner books on leadership and how to build successful organizations, most organizations do little if anything to build teamwork.” What Leaders Can Learn About Teamwork and Developing High Performance Teams From Organization Development Practitioners By D.D. Warrick Introduction supports the value of teamwork, and teamwork is almost always a central theme The ability of organizations to be skilled of text books and practitioner books on at teamwork and building high perfor- leadership and how to build successful mance teams is a major key to competitive organizations, most organizations do little advantage and may very well determine the if anything to build teamwork. In fact, future success or failure of many organiza- leaders are rarely trained how to build tions. The payoffs of teamwork are well teamwork and high performance teams, documented (see for example, Katzenback and organization cultures, designs, priori- & Smith, 1993; LaFasto & Larson, 2001; ties, pressures, and rewards often discour- McShane & Von Glinow, 2010; Hellriegel age teamwork. Yes, there are excellent & Slocum, 2011; Levi, 2011). Teamwork can examples of teamwork in some organiza- significantly improve performance, effec- tions, athletic teams, the military, and a few tiveness, efficiency, morale, job satisfaction, other organizations. However, excelling unity of purpose, communications, inno- at teamwork is not the norm. If you want vative thinking, quality, speed in getting a reality check on how effective organiza- things done, and loyalty to an organization. tions are at teamwork, gather a sampling By contrast, organizations that are not of people from your own organization or skilled at teamwork are sure to underutilize different organizations together and ask their potential and are just as sure to suffer the following questions: the many internal and external conse- a. Do you believe that teamwork is quences that a lack of teamwork brings. It important to the success of an makes sense that organizations of all types organization? and sizes from the private, public, non- b. Does your organization excel at team- profit, athletic, military, and other sectors work at the top, within teams, and should make teamwork a high priority and between teams? that leaders should be trained to be skilled c. Do you believe that your organization in developing high performance teams. values and rewards teamwork and The irony is that while virtually being a team player? everyone believes in teamwork, lead- d. What does your organization do to ers passionately preach the importance train leaders how to build high perfor- of teamwork, an abundance of research mance teams? 68 OD PRACTITIONER Vol. 46 No. 3 2014 The Valuable Contribution Organization Communicating the Important Difference team, and if a team even needs to be a high Development Practitioners Can Make in Between Experiential and Action Team performance team, will differ with each Training Leaders How to Build Teamwork Building team. The point is that there are many and High Performance Teams valuable lessons leaders can learn about To gain the interest of leaders in learn- teamwork and building high performance Organization development practitioners ing how to build high performance teams from OD practitioners, and that OD are uniquely qualified to address the teams, it is important to clarify the dif- practitioners can do a better job of transfer- teamwork dilemma by championing ference between experiential and action ring what they know to leaders. the importance of teamwork and by team building. If you ask leaders what multiplying their effects by training comes to mind when they hear the term A Prototype for Transferring What OD leaders in the fundamentals of what OD team building, they will typically say that Practitioners Know to Developing Leaders practitioners do to build teamwork and it means doing a series of experiential Skilled in Building Teams and Teamwork high performance teams. For purposes exercises such as trust walks and trust falls of this article, I am defining OD practi- that some would just as soon avoid. The There are a number of resources available tioners as those who are trained in OD field of organization development bears on how to build high performance teams and practice OD as a profession, or use some of the responsibility for misconcep- (for example, see Larson & LaFasto, 1989; OD in how they approach their jobs. For tions about what team building is as early Wheelan, 2005; Leading Teams published readers who may not be familiar with OD, team building efforts tended to be heavily by the Harvard Business School Press, there are many definitions of OD (Cum- experientially-oriented, which sometimes 2006; Anderson, 2012). The most popular mings & Worley, 2001; Warrick, 2005; gave OD the reputation of being a “touchy model was developed by Tuckman and Jen- Rothwell, Stavros, Sullivan, & Sullivan, feely” field. sen (1977) that includes five stages of team 2010). The definition that I am using for Experiential team building typically development: this article is that OD is a planned and does indeed consist of a number of experi- 1. Forming: getting to know the team collaborative process for understanding, ential exercises. It has a valuable purpose members and the team; developing, and changing organizations in that it can be used to build camaraderie 2. Storming: team members struggle to to improve their health, effectiveness, and and help people understand important establish roles, norms, and goals; self-renewing capabilities. concepts. However, it would be a mistake 3. Norming: roles, norms, and goals are One of the early distinctives of OD to conclude that by doing experiential exer- established; was its emphasis on teamwork, collabora- cises a team will suddenly become a high 4. Performing: team members have tion, and team building, and on the core performance team. Doing a trust walk may learned to efficiently coordinate activi- value of transference, meaning that OD illustrate the importance of trust, but build- ties, resolve conflicts, and work together practitioners are committed to transferring ing trust takes time and real life actions with a high level of trust; what they know. Thus, OD practitioners that earn trust. 5. Adjourning: the team is about to should be well trained in how to foster Building a high performance team is disband and team members shift their teamwork and high performance teams hard work, does not happen overnight, and focus from a task to a relationship and should be willing to share what they comes primarily from action team build- focus. have learned. ing. Action-oriented team building involves The purpose of this article is to point participants in the specific actions needed While this is an excellent model, the focus out the need for organizations to excel to build a high performance team. For is primarily on forming new teams and at teamwork if they are going to succeed example, a team may need to agree on the showing the life cycle of teams. in these times of dynamic change and purpose of the team, on what it will take for Based on a review of various models unrelenting competition, and to encourage the team to be successful, on the vision and for developing high performance teams OD practitioners to champion the need mission of the team, on the responsibili- and my own experience in working with for teamwork, to help organizations build ties of the team and each team member, hundreds of teams, I have identified five teamwork, and to multiply their efforts by on the standards the team will operate by, fundamentals for championing efforts to training leaders in the fundamentals of and on the goals of the team. Once these improve teamwork and to train leaders what they know and do to develop team- fundamentals are established, it takes time, how to build high performance teams. work and high performance teams. The practice, and continuous improvement to Keep in mind that the goal is not to present potential payoffs of these efforts to organi- build a high performance team. one approach, but rather to encourage OD zations could be substantial and could even In preparing leaders to understand practitioners to develop their own approach determine their future success or failure. team building, it is also important to point based on what they know and have seen In this article, a prototype of how this can out that teams have different situations and work. Also, keep in mind that this proto- be done is provided to encourage OD prac- purposes, and that what it will take for a type addresses basic, fundamental con- titioners to create their own approaches. particular team to be a high performance cepts, and that once the fundamentals What Leaders Can Learn About Teamwork and Developing High Performance Teams From Organization Development Practitioners 69 TEAMWORK AND TEAM BUILDING QUESTIONNAIRE Directions: Rate your organization (company, university, division etc.) on each are learned, more advanced concepts can statement below on a ten point scale considering 10 the highest rating and 1 the be presented. lowest. Total your points to determine the overall rating of your organization on how effective it is at teamwork and team building. Then list the Major Strengths and 1. Provide compelling reasons to focus on Opportunities for Improvement of your organization regarding teamwork and team teamwork and building high perfor- building. Please use the following scale in selecting your ratings: mance teams. For OD practitioners, and I might add leaders who are willing Low Rating 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 High Rating to champion efforts to improve team- work, it is important to know reality _____ 1.
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