28 - Team building

Summary

A LARGE PROPORTION of the work carried out in LKS is carried out by teams. Teams are important because they can achieve more than individuals working alone and can allow those individuals to play to their strengths. Being a member of a high-performing team allows individuals to develop, provides motivation and can make work more satisfying and fun.

What makes a team?

Teams can be made up of different numbers of individuals. In some organizations the team may be as small as two people, in others it will be much larger. In many places people can be a member of more than one team. Teams can have clearly defined roles such as working on a specific project or function, for example managing stock or running information literacy training. Alternatively they can have a broader remit, particularly where there are only a small number of individuals employed to undertake this type of work and be responsible for all the tasks carried out in respect of LKS. Increasingly individuals may work in geographically dispersed teams where the only communication is digital or they may be working on specific projects with people employed by other organizations.

Effective team working

If you are in the position of bringing a team together then it is important for you to think about what is the objective of the team and the skills, knowledge and experience you require from the individual team members to fulfil it. More often you will be inheriting a team from someone else or you might be promoted to lead a team of which you were previously a member. Whatever the circumstances, as a manager of a team you have a responsibility to ensure the individuals work together in an effective and efficient manner. For teams to work effectively, individual members need to have a clear understanding of what they are expected to contribute and what the roles of the other members are. Team leaders need to understand the individual strengths and development needs of the team members whilst offering guidance and direction to ensure that the task in hand is completed to a satisfactory level. Communication from and to the manager and amongst team members is crucial to success. How this is facilitated should be agreed early on and then should be subject to regular review.