David Newton Unit 19 M1
Importance of teams
Formal and Informal teams
A formal team is usually created for a specific purpose for example, interview applicants for a certain
job. Members of the team will have specific tasks to carry out and do. Formal teams are recognised
as being official and will normally be set up to perform a certain task or group of tasks. Another type
of formal team in business is the ‘Quality Circle’. This would be made up of 8-12 employees who
would meet up regularly to discuss the ways that they carry out their work. For example, for our
Welsh Baccalaureate we had to go into an informal group to complete one of the tasks.
An informal team develops in a much less structured way. For example, a group of new employees
might start a discussion about a way of improving a practice in work. Then they may suggest this to a
supervisor or manager. The difference between the two types of teams is that formal teams have
much more expectations and have clearer rules.
Size of teams
The size of the team has to be appropriate to the mix of individuals that are needed in the team. If
an important decision needs to be made quickly there is almost no point in having a large team as
this will slow things down as there are more opinions about to be discussed for them to finally come
to a conclusion.
It has been suggested though that the best team size to have is five people, because:
The odd number will prevent deadlock in decision making
The team is large enough to avoid mistakes that result from insufficient information
The group is small enough to involve everybody
If the team size does grow too big it makes it difficult for members to manage themselves
successfully.
Temporary and permanent teams
Temporary teams are usually set up for a relatively short period of time to complete the task. They
would come together on an agreed team plan and split up once the project is then completed. For
example, when creating an advertisement it involves bringing together teams of marketing
specialists with different skills together. So they may go and make the advertisement for whoever
has hired them. But once the project is completed they would then all split up. Overall a permanent
team is one that works together continuously and their work is frequently ongoing.
Benefits of teams
Teamwork can make a very big contribution to departmental and organisational productivity and
effectiveness. Teams are usually smaller components in much larger departments. It is very essential
that each team is clear about all of its targets that have been set and to see how they can contribute
to helping the department to achieve their aims and objectives. This makes them a very powerful
driving force in any business.
Importance of teams
Formal and Informal teams
A formal team is usually created for a specific purpose for example, interview applicants for a certain
job. Members of the team will have specific tasks to carry out and do. Formal teams are recognised
as being official and will normally be set up to perform a certain task or group of tasks. Another type
of formal team in business is the ‘Quality Circle’. This would be made up of 8-12 employees who
would meet up regularly to discuss the ways that they carry out their work. For example, for our
Welsh Baccalaureate we had to go into an informal group to complete one of the tasks.
An informal team develops in a much less structured way. For example, a group of new employees
might start a discussion about a way of improving a practice in work. Then they may suggest this to a
supervisor or manager. The difference between the two types of teams is that formal teams have
much more expectations and have clearer rules.
Size of teams
The size of the team has to be appropriate to the mix of individuals that are needed in the team. If
an important decision needs to be made quickly there is almost no point in having a large team as
this will slow things down as there are more opinions about to be discussed for them to finally come
to a conclusion.
It has been suggested though that the best team size to have is five people, because:
The odd number will prevent deadlock in decision making
The team is large enough to avoid mistakes that result from insufficient information
The group is small enough to involve everybody
If the team size does grow too big it makes it difficult for members to manage themselves
successfully.
Temporary and permanent teams
Temporary teams are usually set up for a relatively short period of time to complete the task. They
would come together on an agreed team plan and split up once the project is then completed. For
example, when creating an advertisement it involves bringing together teams of marketing
specialists with different skills together. So they may go and make the advertisement for whoever
has hired them. But once the project is completed they would then all split up. Overall a permanent
team is one that works together continuously and their work is frequently ongoing.
Benefits of teams
Teamwork can make a very big contribution to departmental and organisational productivity and
effectiveness. Teams are usually smaller components in much larger departments. It is very essential
that each team is clear about all of its targets that have been set and to see how they can contribute
to helping the department to achieve their aims and objectives. This makes them a very powerful
driving force in any business.
