Projects
Improving Team Effectiveness
The Problem
An organization of 1,500 was transitioning from a traditional hierarchical structure to a team organization. The organization found that its teams were ineffective; time was wasted and conflicts often arose. Because the teams were not accomplishing objectives, the organization wanted to improve the effectiveness of teams for high performance.
The Solution
The organization set up 10 teams initially for process improvement. Each team sponsor was coached to develop and review the charter with his/her team to ensure that respective members knew goals, resources, and authority levels. The leaders met for 12 sessions of leadership training. Team members were also provided training to understand roles, clarify vision and expectations, identify team norms, and effectively progress through the stages of team development.
The program covered team skills such as decision making, problem-solving, conflict resolution, and other team processes needed to accomplish the charter.
The Outcome
Each of the 10 teams were able to meet the timelines and objectives. Each team member experienced the benefits of the team structure, creating a successful transition in the organization structure. Each member acquired skills that could be taken to the next team, so the teaming skills were reinforced consistently and expanded through the organization.