UNIT

10 Team Building

Names of Sub-Units

Meaning of Team Building, Features and Roles of a Team,Characteristics of High Performing Team,
Tuckman’s Stages of Team Development, Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing, Adjourning,
Team-building through Management Games, Team Handling, Leadership Resourcing and Team
Development, Work Teams, Cross-functional Teams, Virtual Teams, Self-managed Teams, Why Teams
Fail?

Overview
The unit begins by explaining the meaning of team building, its features, roles of a team and the
characteristics of a high performing team. Thereafter, the unit describes Tuckman’s stages of team
development, i.e., forming, storming, norming, performing and adjourning. In the later sections, the
unit talks about team-building through management games, team handling, leadership resourcing,
team development, work teams, cross-functional teams, virtual teams, self-managed teams, and why
teams fail.

Learning Objectives

In this unit, you will learn to:

 Explain the significance of team building
 Describe the different stages of team building
 State the importance of different management games
 Discuss different types of teams
 List the reasons for team failure
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Learning Outcomes

At the end of this unit, you would:

 Explore the importance of team building
 Identify the functions of different teams
 Recognise the reasons why do teams fail

10.1 INTRODUCTION
Nowadays, organisations carry out most of their work using the synergies of teams. As the formation
of a team empowers employees in various ways, greater importance is being given to team-building
and teamwork. When a definite number of employees are selected and assembled under a formal
team, they are expected to perform particular tasks or projects leading to the achievement of certain
organisational goals. At times, it becomes necessary to form teams because teams can achieve what
individuals cannot.

10.2 MEANING OF TEAM BUILDING

A team can be referred to as an official group consisting of inter-reliant individuals. A team is
responsible for the attainment of the mutual goals of an organisation. The concept of teams gained
significance in the 1970s. However, modern-day teamwork is blended into the profit-making activities in
business organisations and in general, in organisational culture. A team is formed to obtain collective
performance wherein the team members share accountability both individually and mutually as a
group. Therefore, organisations forge teams to bring together groups of people with complementary
skills and interests to strive towards a common goal. Some of the reasons for the formation of teams
are as follows:
 To provide voluntary support to all its team members
 To encourage mutual decision-making as a team
 To form an environment of sustenance and trust among team members
 To seek innovative suggestions to problems from team members
 To provide systematic and consistent feedback to team members for increasing their performance
 To facilitate problem-solving and provide new opportunities among team members
 To accomplish organisational goals through the commitment of team members

10.2.1 Features and Roles of a Team

A team is important for attaining organisational goals. A team refers to a group of individuals who
have been brought together to perform a specific task and contribute in achieving organisational goals.
Teams can be temporary, i.e., they may last for a week or a few years depending upon the need. Once
the teams are formed, they are allocated a particular task or project that has to be completed within
a specified timeline. Behavioural patterns of individuals are significant, and thus need to be studied
cautiously to construct an effective team culture by forming the right combination of team members.
For example, a team of five people should consist of two technical, one managerial, one social and one
unskilled team member.

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The features of a team are discussed as follows:

 Sense of unity: Team members come together to attain mutual goals for an organisation which
develops loyalty among them.
 Delegation of work: The work is distributed among the members of the group so that they can
display their potential.
 Increase in flexibility: The ability to tolerate, eagerness to learn and flair of free discussion increase
when individuals from various dissimilar backgrounds collaborate as a team to attain a mutual
goal.
 Improve decision making: There is an improvement in the process of decision making with
streamlined operations within the organisation with an organised structure. Organisations that
form teams facilitate the flow of information and knowledge to different levels, which further helps
in taking business decisions.
 Effective communication at all levels: Teams represent the hierarchical structure within an
organisation in terms of authority, which is clearly defined on the organisational chart. By making
teams, an organisation facilitates communication between employees and interlinked departments
and eliminates the miscommunication gaps.
 Operations are streamlined: Forming teams help organisations streamline their business
operations. Teams are formed based on various units, departments or divisions and the jobs or
responsibilities are assigned along with various business functions and processes.
 Improves employee performance: The overall performance of a team is improved by exploiting the
collective ideas, knowledge and skills of all the members of the team. Team members are well aware
of their roles and responsibilities. This, in turn, makes them aware of how much to deliver and strive
to accomplish organisational goals.

10.2.2 Characteristics of High Performing Team

High-performing teams are composed of individuals with specialised expertise and complementary
skills who are goal-oriented and hyper-focused on achieving clear, outstanding results. Together they
collaborate and innovate to produce work at the highest levels. But building a high-performing team
requires more than just pulling together a group of talented people with the right skills. It requires
careful development and the nurturing of key characteristics, behaviours and best practices.
The following are the characteristics of high-performing teams:
 They have clear goals tied closely to the team and organisational priorities.
 They understand how their work fits into the organisational mission.
 They have defined roles and responsibilities.
 They communicate clearly and respectfully.
 They manage work and deadlines based on priorities.
 They trust and respect each other.
 They celebrate success together and recognise contributions.
 They practice continuous learning.

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10.3 TUCKMAN’S STAGES OF TEAM DEVELOPMENT

Group/team development is described as the process of associating people to work together and
directing their actions towards the fulfilment of a common goal. For example, a group can be built
based on geographical areas such as a separate group for each state in India. Another example can be
a large-scale organisation in which groups are formed based on functionality such as marketing group,
advertising group and promotional group. Interdependency is evident within the group members
for support and help. Therefore, the performance of one group member affects the overall group’s
performance. Figure 1 represents various stages of team development:

Forming

Adjourning Storming

Performing Norming

Figure 1: Stages of Team Development

Let us discuss these stages in detail.
1. Forming: It is the initial phase of group development in which members of a group are introduced to
each other. In this stage, behaviour of individuals is mostly restrained as they intend to know each
other properly.
2. Storming: This is the next stage after forming. This stage is deemed as the most difficult and critical
stage in group building. In this stage, conflict and competition among group members may emerge.
Group members may not agree on group goals, tensions may arise and subgroups within a group
may form as well. To sail through this stage, group members ought to strive to overcome hindrances,
accept individual differences and manage work despite conflicting ideas.
3. Norming: In this phase of group development, differences among group members are sorted out.
Group members begin to acknowledge and appreciate each other’s strengths. To a certain degree,
personal differences are ignored and each individual starts to perform as a unit. During this stage,
there is gradual elevation in group performance level as members learn to cooperate and initiate to
emphasise group goals.
4. Performing: At this stage, the performance of the members of the group reaches its maximum limit.
Consensus and cooperation can be witnessed among group members. There is a lucid, viable group
structure and members are motivated towards the group’s mission.
5. Adjourning: It is the last stage in group development and is only applicable for temporary groups.
In this stage, the group is dissolved as the objective of the group is fulfilled.

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10.4 TEAM-BUILDING THROUGH MANAGEMENT GAMES

Team building activities are conducted for various reasons such as improving communication, boosting
morale and increasing motivation level. Apart from that, these team building activities act as ice
breakers and make team members aware of each other’s strengths and weaknesses, thereby improving
productivity. In a nutshell, it can be said that the overall goal of these activities is to promote better
teamwork in the workplace because great teamwork is the key to a successful business and reputation.
There are four main types of team building activities, which are explained as follows:
1. Communication: To improve communication within the team, the following team activities can be
conducted:
 Two truths and a lie: In this game, each team member is asked to write down two truths and
one lie about themselves on a small piece of paper, but they are not to reveal the answers. Once
everyone’s answers are written down, 10-15 minutes are allowed for open conversation so that
everyone gets to know each other’s personalities to some extent. People can get sneaky and try
to trick others to believe their lies. Once time is up, each team member is asked to read aloud 3
statements to everyone and have the group vote on which one they think is the lie. This game
encourages stronger communication in the office and gives a chance to co-workers to know
each other better.
 Life highlights game: In this game, everyone participates. The participants close their eyes for
one minute and think of the best moments of their lives that have already happened: personal,
professional or life adventures. Once the participants have thought of all those moments, ask
them what one of those moments they would want to relive if they only had 30 seconds left of
their life. They then have to share their last 30 seconds with the group and explain why they
chose it. The first part of this game allows participants to reflect back on their lives, while the
second part enables them to get to know their co-workers’ passions, loves, and personalities.
 Coin logo: Begin by asking all participants to empty their pockets, purses and wallets of any
coins they may have and place them on the table in front of them. Instruct participants to create
their logo using those coins in just one minute. They can also use other materials, such as pens,
notebooks and wallets, to create the logo. Once finished, each participant can explain their logo
to the group. Not only does this activity promote self and mutual awareness, but it also allows
participants to get to know each other on a more personal level.
2. Problem solving/decision making: To improve the problem solving/decision making skills, the
following games are conducted:
 Picture pieces game: This problem-solving activity requires that the leader choose a well-known
picture or cartoon that is full of detail. The picture needs to be cut into as many equal squares as
there are participants in the activity. Each participant is given a piece of the “puzzle” and asked
to create an exact copy of their piece of the puzzle five times bigger than its original size. They
are posed with the problem of not knowing why or how their work affects the larger picture.
Once everyone is finished, ask them to assemble their pieces into a giant copy of the original
picture on a table. This activity teaches participants how to work in a team, all while getting
everyone to understand that each person working on their part contributes to an overall group
result.
 Sneak a peek game: This problem-solving activity requires a set of children’s building blocks. The
instructor will build a small sculpture with some of the blocks and hide it from the group. The
participants should then be divided into small teams of four. Each team should be given enough
building material so that they can duplicate the structure already created. The instructor should
then place their sculpture in an area that is an equal distance from all the groups. One member

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from each team can come up at the same time to look at the sculpture for ten seconds and try
to memorise it before returning to their team. After they return to their teams, they have 25
seconds to instruct their teams about how to build a replica of the instructor’s sculpture. After
one minute of trying to recreate the sculpture, another member from each team can come up
for a “sneak peek” before returning to their team and trying to recreate the sculpture. The game
should be continued in this pattern until one of the team’s successfully duplicates the original
sculpture. The game teaches participants how to problem solve in a group and communicate
effectively.
 The great egg drop: Split the room into two large groups with the task of building an egg package
that can sustain an eight foot drop. A variety of tools and other materials can be provided to
the teams. After the packages have been built, each team must also present a 30-second advert
for their package, highlighting why it is unique and how it works. Then each group will have to
drop their egg using their package to see if it works. Not only does this teach the groups to work
together and communicate, the game also brings them together with the common goal of both
winning the egg drop and successfully creating an egg package.
3. Adaptability/planning: The following games are conducted for facilitating adaptability in the team:
 The paper tower: Each participant is given a single sheet of paper and told that they must
construct the tallest free-standing structure in just five minutes using no other materials. After
the five minutes and a review of the structures, discuss who planned out their structure, who
ran out of time and what could be done differently next time. This exercise teaches participants
the importance of planning, timing and thinking on their feet.
 Road map game: The participants need to be split into two groups with an equal amount of
players in each group. Every group should have paper, pens and a map. The map can be of a
state, the whole country or a specific area. Each group needs a copy of the same map. Instruct
the teams to plan a vacation, which must be planned within certain parameters. Each group
should be given a list of what they have for their trip, how much money they can use, what kind
of car they will have, the size of its gas tank, m.p.g., the price of gas, the beginning and ending
destination and anything else you can think of. Each group should write down their travel
plans and any group that runs out of money or gas will be disqualified. The goal of this building
exercise is to get co-workers working together as team with the common purpose of planning
this trip in 30 minutes.
4. Trust building: Trust is main factor for any team’s success. To build trust, the following activities are
conducted:
 Mine field: This exercise requires set up time and a large, empty area. The leader must distribute
“mines” around the area. These “mines” can be represented by anything. In pairs, one team
member must be blindfolded and cannot talk, while the other can see and talk, but cannot
enter the field or touch their blindfolded teammate. The challenge requires each blind-folded
person to walk from one side of the field to the other, avoiding the mines by listening to the
verbal instructions of their partners. This exercise gives co-workers a chance to work on their
relationships and trust issues, which is why they are paired into teams of two. This activity
gets team members to trust their partner’s directions and teaches them to communicate more
effectively.
 Eye contact: Making eye contact is sometimes difficult for people, as it requires a certain amount
of trust and respect. Some people avoid it, while others simply are not very good at it. For this
activity, have people group into pairs and stand facing each other. The idea is to have them stare
into their partner’s eyes for at least 60 seconds. Neither participant should be wearing glasses or

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sunglasses of any kind. There may be some laughing, as it can feel somewhat awkward during
the first try, but as participants get the hang of it, it should become easier for them to make eye
contact for longer amounts of time. This exercise can help co-workers become more comfortable
and trusting of each other through using eye contact.
 Willow in the wind: This exercise is best suited for co-workers who already know each other
fairly well. One participant must volunteer or be chosen to be the “willow.” The willow must
stand in the middle of a group with their eyes closed, feet together and body upright. They will
perform a series of “trust leans” against the other participants, whose job is to hold up the willow
and pass them around without allowing them to fall or feel frightened as if they are going to
fall. Those who are not the willow must have one foot in front of the other, arms stretched out,
elbows locked and are ready and alert. This will ensure that they will successfully pass the willow
around without any trouble. This technique helps co-workers establish and build trust with each
other in an open and fun environment.

10.5 TEAM HANDLING

Handling a team is an important life lesson learning as it has to do with different people, different
thinking in different mindsets. No one method to manage a team can ever give successful output. Rather
than stating specific hurdles. The following are important aspects of effective team management:
 Understand the need and traits of all team members. One may opt challenging work, freedom of
work and appreciation. To do so, generally, managers refer to the Maslow’s need hierarchy model.
 Geography matters when it comes down to working style and pattern because each land has
a working style, some opt formal approaches, some opt more one on one personal interactions.
Managers need to gel up with people involvedto get work done.
 When it comes to managing team, people are looking for means to connect, looking for the comfort
zone. Managers need to make the team members comfortable so that they can open up and work.
 Managers need to set an example by leading from the front and let team members initiate discussions
in a meeting. Also, they need to provide feedback from time to time.
 Managers should try to create leaders rather than solely focus on the job at hand.

10.6 LEADERSHIP RESOURCING AND TEAM DEVELOPMENT

Leadership is a social process that involves influencing others. The systematic development of good
leaders is fundamental to long-term organisational success, yet organisations often overlook it or
haphazardly undertake leadership development. The following points explain how to develop a team of
leaders:
 Balanced roles: People with different work preferences must gain entry into teams rather than like-
minded people.
 Open communication: Communication should be open, flexible and capable of building trust
between people.
 Handling stress: Working with others in close proximity can itself be stressful. Additionally, tend
to react differently to various work pressures. The key skill which effective teams develop is the
ability to recognise when either individual or collective stress is becoming a problem and to reduce
it together.
 Team choices: These choices must be made explicit. Once the range is known, alternatives could
be ascertained. Suppose someone from the team says, “I think teams are good in principle, but in

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practice they can be a complete waste of time.” Once such a response comes out, the team can begin
to deal with it.
 Team goals: Teams make sense only when there is a common goal, which requires collective action.
Defining the team’s purpose is vital. What are we trying to achieve and why? This, then, gives team
members a focus for their energy and action. It is also helpful to set some short-term goals to create
gains, which sustain the team as it pursues longer-term goals.
 Review mechanisms: For a team’s success, there must be proper control over the team’s activities
and outcomes. A periodical review is needed to keep everything on track. If it is missing, team work
will become just another ‘flavour of the month’.
 Shared leadership: Teams need different forms of leadership at different times. Both the leader and
the members must be willing to exchange roles, depending on the situation.
 Facilitation skills: Ensure that the team meetings are well organised, allowing enough room for all
to express their feelings and thoughts properly.
 Shake off the constraints of the past: All relevant issues affecting the functioning of a team must
be discussed, debated and resolved.
 Consensus: Team decisions need to be based on consensus so that all members can agree with
and be committed to implementing important decisions. Consensus building does not imply 100%
agreement on the part of members. It only indicates the willingness of a member to support the
decisions on reaching a certain stage or point.

10.7 WORK TEAMS

Work teams are those teams where everyone has the same skills but is assigned a specific task. Employees
often form groups that have little to do with completing tasks required by their employers, such as
bowling leagues and parent support groups. Only some groups in an organisation are formed to do the
organisation’s work.

10.7.1 Cross-functional Teams

Cross-functional teams consist of a group of employees from about the same hierarchical level, but
from different work areas who come together to accomplish a task. A task force or a project team comes
under this category. These teams are created to deal with a specific problem and are usually disbanded
when the task is completed or the problem is solved. A team is a formal organisation team usually
relatively long lived, created to carry out specific organisational tasks.

10.7.2 Virtual Teams

Virtual teams are the group of individuals spread across different time zones, cultures, languages or,
ethnicities that are united by a common goal. According to Powell, Piccoli and Ives, a virtual team is
defined ‘as groups of geographically, organisationally and/or time dispersed workers brought together
by information and telecommunication technologies to accomplish one or more organisational tasks’.
Generally, virtual teams are formed for a temporary period to achieve a critical task say, problem
solving or new product development. A classic example is that of the virtual team formed by Whirlpool
Corporation in the late 1990s for its new product development division. The experts from the United
States, Brazil and Italy were brought together to form a virtual team to develop a chlorofluorocarbon-
free refrigerator.

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10.7.3 Self-managed Teams

Also called an autonomous workgroup, it is a workgroup given responsibility for a task area without day-
to-day supervision and with authority to influence and control both group membership and behaviour.

10.8 WHY DO TEAMS FAIL?

The following are some of the common reasons why the teams in an organisation may not be succeeding:
 Lack of vision: An absence of a clear and well-communicated purpose or vision to work will never
allow a team to align themselves for success. Everybody sways in different directions when they do
not know why they are working together, which leads to everyone making different assumptions.
Sometimes a team starts some projects with a vision, but just because team members interpret it
differently, the vision gets muddled.
 Unclear roles: There is nothing worse than not knowing exactly what you are supposed to do. When
roles are not clear, it leaves people struggling to decide what to do next. This leads to team members
focusing on some very primary tasks that help them feel productive, only to find out later that they
had been wasting their time.
Without clearly laid out roles and expectations for each team member, they may take on a task that
does not suit their experience and expertise, which only sets up the team for failure.
 Poor decision making: Most teams miss out on coming up with a good approach for decision-
making and fail in two areas. The first is when they over think decisions and waste a lot of time in
the decision-making process. This leads to not deciding at all.
The second is when they don’t spend enough time thinking through the decisions they make and
get into implementation and thrash mode, only to give up later or making it through bruised and
wounded.
 Fixed mindset: Many teams fail to grow or inspire due to their fixed mindset approach. Most of
them fail because they have already assumed that they could not improve, change or reframe their
situation. This often means that the smartest or the most technical of the teams might get stuck
right at one spot. It is natural for some teams to assume that if they can not solve a particular issue
quickly using their standard approach, there is no solution.
 Lack of resources: Lack of enough or appropriate resources is sometimes one of the major killers
of a team as a whole. Sometimes this is the team’s fault, but most often it is the organisation that
chartered the team in the first place. Not having the right tools, authority and equipment will lead
to a dip in the team morale and their commitment will also ultimately start waning.
 Poor dynamics: Mutual respect is a must for a team to achieve results and maintain cohesion.
Team members need to interact in a productive manner. It is not enough to be an expert in one’s
field. What’s required to get the team dynamics right on track is to be an expert in communicating
with fellow team members. If team members distrust each other or overindulge in other’s work
territories, they cannot achieve results. Team members must feel a sense of loyalty to the team as
well as to each other.

Conclusion 10.9 CONCLUSION

 A team can be referred to as an official group consisting of inter-reliant individuals. A team is

responsible for the attainment of the mutual goals of an organisation.
 The features of a team include a sense of unity, a delegation of work, flexibility, etc.

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 High-performing teams are composed of individuals with specialised expertise and complementary
skills who are goal-oriented and hyper-focused on achieving clear, outstanding results.
 Group/team development is described as the process of associating people to work together and
directing their actions towards the fulfilment of a common goal. Various stages of team development
include forming, storming, norming, performing and adjourning.
 There are four main types of team building activities, namely communication, problem solving,
adaptability and trust building.
 Handling a team is an important life lesson learning as it has to do with different people, different
thinking in different mindsets.
 Leadership is a social process that involves influencing others. The systematic development of good
leaders is fundamental to long-term organisational success, yet organisations often overlook it or
haphazardly undertake leadership development.
 Cross-functional teams consist of a group of employees from about the same hierarchical level, but
from different work areas who come together to accomplish a task. A task force or a project team
comes under this category.
 Some of the common reasons why the teams in an organisation may not be succeeding include lack
of vision, unclear roles, poor decision making, fixed mindset, lack of resources, etc.

10.10 GLOSSARY

 Maslow’s need hierarchy: A theory of motivation which states that five categories of human needs
dictate an individual’s behavior, namely physiological needs, safety needs, love and belonging needs,
esteem needs and self-actualisation needs
 Cross-functional team: A team that consists of individuals belonging to different functional
departments, but having the same hierarchical level
 High-performing teams: Synergistic social entities that work toward the achievement of a common
goal or goals—short term and long term

10.11 CASE STUDY: TEAMS AT RVAN SV

Case Objective
The case study explains the importance of team-based culture.

‘Rvan SV’ is a wholesale supply and distribution company. The company deals with the selling of
equipment, parts and supplies for recreational vehicles, motor homes, campers, travel trailers and
various other similar vehicles. Repair and servicing of SV vehicles are handled by the service department
of the company. Five years ago, Aditya Roy, the present owner of the company, had purchased the
company from its original owner when the company was making losses. Post-purchase, Aditya changed
the name of the company and worked hard to make it a profitable company from a loss-making company.
Aditya continued running Rvan SV with its three divisional setups that existed since its inception. The
three divisions were wholesale parts and supplies, retail parts and supplies and service. Aditya is also the
CEO and President of the company. He has also appointed a Vice President for each operating division.
In addition, he has also been appointed a Vice President of finance and operations. All divisions and
positions are represented on the organisational chart too. The ‘wholesale parts and supplies’ division

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operates as a warehouse. There are three teams in this division, namely the receiving team (checks
orders for completeness, defective merchandise returns, stocking the shelves, filling orders, etc.), service
parts team and order-filling team for outgoing shipments. The wholesale parts and supplies division
has responsibility for activities associated with receiving, storage and shipping of parts and supplies.
The retail parts and supplies division comprises all functions that are related to parts and supplies
sales at two stores and in the mobile sales trailer too. The personnel of the retail division team comprise
salespeople and cashiers. The warehouse is also used as a showroom for walk-in customers. So, retail
salespeople also worked in the warehouse.
The service division team comprises one scheduler, service writers, lead technicians and mechanics. The
service division also consists of the collision repair team at the main store and the service team at the
satellite store. The collision repair team has two service writers who have special expertise in collision
repair and insurance regulations. Two drivers who move SVs around the “yard” also work in the service
division.
The finance and operations division handles all monetary aspects of the business. Its group members
comprised personnel handling accounts payables and receivables, cash management and payroll. In
addition to this, one person to take care of all of the traditional personnel functions was also included.
Rvan SV has been following a conventional hierarchical organisational structure. Aditya has worked
hard to develop good work ethics among old-timers and younger employees. Post purchase of the
business, Aditya also introduced new, modern and employee-centred human resource policies. As Aditya
bought the company, he practically applied good management, marketing and cash management
principles to make the company a profitable company. Though this was not the only single business
in town, it has competitors too but the company had a good local following. It was about three years
ago that Aditya noticed that there is a change in the nature of the business he was doing. Firstly, he
noticed that the countrywide retailers/competitors were moving into town. The competitors had large
warehouse-type stores and used a discount-pricing strategy. The competitors’ large retail stores had
the advantage of allowing volume purchasing at lower prices from manufacturers as they had large
stores essential to store and shelve large inventory. Aditya with only two stores was not getting such
low prices from manufacturers. He also noticed that the lowest price shopping is the main aim of the
retired people and they also valued good, friendly customer service. Shopping through catalogues for
recreational items also seemed to be trending nationwide. Overall, competitors also followed a team-
specific approach in managing stores by delegating the authority and giving responsibility to the teams
of the stores. Aditya also started extending his business and began to develop a wholesale business by
becoming a wholesale distributor and supplier of equipment and parts in the nearby towns, cities and
states. In parallel, the first catalogue for SV parts and supplies, containing all brand names of the parts
and supplies as per category and supplier was also published. The cover page catalogue also had a very
attractive camping scene. The catalogue was a combination of images of attractively displayed items
and various pages full of images of all the possible parts and supplies. Order placing was also made very
easy. It mentioned order placement by phone, mail or fax and accepted several easy payment methods
also. Orders received through distributors and catalogues, both orders were filled from the warehouse
in the main store and standard mail and parcel delivery services were used for the order fulfilment. The
full delivery costs were charged to customers. According to Aditya, the survival of the company so far
was due to his idea of diversification into the warehouse and catalogue business. He also believed that,
through this, he was directly able to compete with national chains.

Even though it is now hardly profitable, Aditya Roy is concerned about competition and changes in
the industry. He was also worried about making monthly instalments he needs to pay on ` 5 million
loan he got from the bank to buy the business in the first place. He also attended several professional

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Managerial Effectiveness and Ethics

conferences across the country and read about the latest management techniques. During all this, he
became aware of team-based ideas. He thought to implement the idea of a team-based organisation to
take the employees to the next level of performance and profitability.
Source: http://college.cengage.com/business/moorhead/organizational/6e/students/cases/ch12.html)

Questions:
1. What errors has Aditya Roy already made in developing a team-based organisation?
(Hint: Not defining team responsibilities, decentralising the work responsibilities, etc.)
2. Prepare an organisation chart for ‘Rvan SV’.
(Hint: Hierarchy-wise designations in the chart)

10.12 SELF-ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS

A. Essay Type Questions

1. What do you mean by the term ‘team building’?
2. Discuss the features and roles of a team.
3. Explain Tuckman’s stages of team development in detail.
4. Discuss team building through management games.
5. What are the aspects of developing a team of leaders?

10.13 ANSWERS AND HINTS FOR SELF-ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS

A. Hints for Essay Type Questions

1. A team can be referred to as an official group consisting of inter-reliant individuals. A team is
responsible for the attainment of the mutual goals of an organisation. The concept of teams gained
significance in the 1970s. However, modern-day teamwork is blended into the profit-making activities
in business organisations and in general, in organisational culture. Refer to Section Meaning of
Team Building
2. A team is important for attaining organisational goals. A team refers to a group of individuals who
have been brought together to perform a specific task and contribute in achieving organisational
goals. Teams can be temporary, i.e., they may last for a week or a few years depending upon the need.
Once the teams are formed, they are allocated a particular task or project that has to be completed
within a specified timeline. Refer to Section Meaning of Team Building
3. Group/team development is described as the process of associating people to work together and
directing their actions towards the fulfilment of a common goal. For example, a group can be built
based on geographical areas, such as a separate group for each state in India. Another example can
be a large-scale organisation in which groups are formed based on functionality, such as marketing
group, advertising group and promotional group. Interdependency is evident within the group
members for support and help. Therefore, the performance of one group member affects the overall
group’s performance. Refer to Section Tuckman’s Stages of Team Development
4. Team building activities are conducted for various reasons such as improving communication,
boosting morale and increasing motivation level. Apart from that, these team-building activities act
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as ice breakers and make team members aware of each other’s strengths and weaknesses; thereby
improving productivity. Refer to Section Team-building through Management Games
5. Leadership is a social process that involves influencing others. The systematic development of good
leaders is fundamental to long-term organisational success, yet organisations often overlook it or
haphazardly undertake leadership development. Refer to Section Leadership Resourcing and Team
Development

@ 10.14 POST-UNIT READING MATERIAL

 https://www.teambonding.com/6-reasons-for-team-building/
 https://desktime.com/blog/best-employee-team-building-activities/

10.15 TOPICS FOR DISCUSSION FORUMS

 Visit an organisation that is in the construction sector. Ask the manager or the owner about the type
of team formed in this sector and how it is conducive for the organisation.

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