Your Group Should Perform Like a Team

As I work in companies around the country, I often ask people what percent of their time do they spend in groups. Although managers report 60 to 90 percent of their time is usually spent in group activities, they also indicate that much of that time is wasted or ineffectively used and that they get little or no training in skills needed to work efficiently in groups.

Getting groups to work as smoothly and effectively together as possible should be a goal of every manager. Getting a group to perform like a team initially means getting the group to focus on producing results. Once this is done, the group is apt to feel good about itself as a unit and the climate will become more supportive and encouraging for yet more results to be obtained.

Seven Characteristics Of High- Performing Teams

Team members will better be able to produce results if they first are able to visualize how the group will work together. Two of my colleagues at Blanchard Training and Development – Drs. Don Carew and Eunice Parisi-Carew – and I have been studying for years what makes groups effective. Seven characteristics, depicted by the acronym PERFORM, best summarize the desired group behaviors we have identified that are necessary for a group to become a high-performing team. The seven characteristics are: Purpose, Empowerment, Relationships and Communication, Flexibility, Optimal Productivity, Recognition and Appreciation, and Morale. Here is what we mean by each of these characteristics:

Purpose. Members of high-performing teams share a sense of common purpose. They are clear about what is the team’s “work” and why it is important. They can describe a picture of what the team intends to achieve. They have developed mutually agreed upon and challenging goals that clearly relate to the team’s vision. Strategies for achieving goals are clear. Each member understands his or her role in realizing the vision.

Empowerment. Members are confident about the team’s ability to overcome obstacles and to realize its vision. A sense of mutual respect enables members to share responsibilities, help each other out, and take initiative to meet challenges. Policies, rules, and team processes enable members to do their jobs easily. Members have opportunities to grow and learn new skills. There is a sense of personal, as well as collective, power.

Relationships and Communication. The team is committed to open communication and group members feel they can state their opinions, thoughts, and feelings without fear. Listening is considered as important as speaking. Differences of opinion and perspective are valued and methods of managing conflict are understood. Through honest and caring feedback, members are aware of their strengths and weaknesses as team members. There is an atmosphere of trust and acceptance and a sense of community. Group cohesion is high.

Flexibility. Group members are flexible and perform different tasks and maintenance functions as needed. The responsibility for team development and leadership is shared. The strengths of each member are identified and used, and individual efforts are coordinated when necessary. The team is fluid and open to both opinions and feelings, hard work and fun. Members recognize the inevitability and desirability of change, and adapt to changing conditions.

Optimal Productivity. High-performing teams produce significant results. There is a commitment to high standards and quality results. They get the job done, meet deadlines, and achieve goals. The team has developed effective decision-making and problem-solving methods that result in achieving optimum results and encourage participation and creativity. Members have developed strong skills in group process as well as task accomplishment.

Recognition and Appreciation. Individual and team accomplishments are frequently recognized by the team leader, as well as by team members, by celebrating milestones, accomplishments and events. Team accomplishments are valued by the larger organization. Members feel highly regarded within the team and experience a sense of personal accomplishment in relation to their team and task contributions.

Morale. Members are enthusiastic about the work of the team, and each person feels pride in being a member of the team. Confident and committed, members are optimistic about the future. There is a sense of excitement about individual and team accomplishments as well as the way team members work together. Team spirit is high.

Of these seven characteristics, two are most important: Optimal Productivity and Morale. To be a successful team the group must have a strong ability to produce results and a high degree of satisfaction in working with one another.

The overall group’s level of productivity and morale is shaped by specific behaviors that may be performed by any member of the group. The needed behaviors must either provide direction (to increase productivity) or provide support (to increase morale).

Giving Direction

Providing direction helps to increase the productivity of a group. Direction can best be given in three forms: structure, control, and supervision.

Structure. Groups need structure, or a game plan, to make progress. Structure can come from an agenda or from asking questions to help to clarify roles and goals of the group.

Control. Once a plan is established, the group needs to stick to it. This involves helping the group to focus and limit its activities. For example, limit interruptions so that members can finish stating their ideas or put time limits on the discussion of various aspects of the agenda.

Supervision. Important in shaping any behavior is time for observation and redirection of behaviors as needed. For groups this means monitoring and evaluating how the group is doing and what it needs to reach its goals and then helping as appropriate. Helping can include providing additional information, making a suggestion, or summarizing and recasting what yet needs to be done.

Giving Support

It is also important for a smoothly functioning team that members provide support to each other. This support can best be given in three ways: praising, listening and facilitating.

Praising. Sincere, specific praise given in a timely manner has been proven time and time again to be one of the most effective means of reinforcing desired behaviors. In a group context, praise can be given for productive contributions such as new ideas, suggestions, or factual data. Praising encourages others to be involved with the group in a positive way.

Listening. Few behaviors underscore the value you place on another person as much as the ability to listen. Demonstrate that you have heard and understood other members by using both verbal cues (for example, paraphrasing) and nonverbal cues (for example, head nods).

Facilitating. This activity of assisting with members’ interactions can take many forms such as leading the discussion or encouraging quiet members to contribute to the group. A facilitator helps move the group toward its goal in a way in which participation and commitment to the group process are both high.

The responsibility for initiating behaviors that give direction and support to the group should be shared by all members. With practice, the timing of these behaviors will improve and they can become routinely used by all members. When this happens the group can easily assume the other characteristics needed to PERFORM and will be well on its way to becoming a high-performing team.