What is a "Team"?

A team is a small group of performers who solve a common task and possess complementary skills and qualities. 

To solve the task at hand, team members together formulate the goals and strategy of their work, for which they bear collective responsibility.

To more clearly understand whether your team is indeed a team or still just a working group of performers, you can use the following table.

Stages of team formation

A project life cycle and team formation process can be described by the following model.

«Forming» — During the initial stages of a project, it is important to acquaint employees with one another and to make necessary adjustments. The leader should communicate the scope of tasks, work plan, and desired outcomes to alleviate employees' anxiety due to the lack of information.

A meeting format would be suitable for discussing issues and gathering feedback from employees. This will help to ensure that everyone has a clear understanding of the project goals and progress, ultimately leading to increased productivity.

A leader must earn their status by demonstrating competence in making project decisions and leading the team. They must instill confidence in others by understanding the tasks and shielding the team from traditional project difficulties such as lack of resources, customer's nervousness, subcontractor's sluggishness, unfair anger from superiors, and time pressure.

«Storming» — As a group of individuals work together, it is common for differences to arise and conflicts to emerge. Participants may start with a positive outlook, but as they begin to assess the challenges ahead, they may express dissatisfaction with current issues, goals, and methods of achieving them. This can lead to the emergence of informal leaders and groups, which can increase the level of conflict.

To navigate this phase, it is crucial for the leader to monitor and manage conflicts, communicate with employees frequently, and organize team-building events. The goal is to move through this phase as productively as possible without prolonging the drop in productivity.

Regular group meetings can be helpful during this phase, where the project progress can be discussed and there is ample room for discussion and debate. It is important to negotiate with the informal leader of the group and divide responsibilities competently, fixing this division. If the informal leader is unconstructive, unwilling to make concessions, or insults the manager, the best option is to calmly remove them from the project and replace them with a specialist. Two leaders in one project can be problematic and should be avoided.

«Norming/Performing» — As the working group progresses, it transforms into a productive and cohesive team. At this stage, it is crucial to delegate responsibilities to colleagues, not only to optimize workload but also to motivate employees seeking recognition. The leader must consistently clarify the working rules, each individual's roles, track discontent, and act as an arbiter to resolve any old or new conflicts. At the "Performing" stage, the team's work quality and productivity reach their peak, and the competency level and desire for autonomy of group members grow. Although it may seem that the team can handle its responsibilities perfectly without the leader's intervention, it is dangerous to assume so. Regardless of how streamlined the work process may seem, the leader must carry out regular checks on the project's progress.

«Adjourning» — As a project nears completion, the motivation levels of the team members tend to decrease. The excitement and inspiration that the team members felt at the beginning of the project gradually fade, and a sense of routine sets in. Therefore, it is essential for the leader to keep motivating their colleagues. 

Informal meetings and heart-to-heart conversations can help overcome the pessimistic feelings of the team members. The leader should establish themselves as a father figure for the team by understanding the needs of the members and addressing their problems openly. Even if the leader holds team activities, the team members may still experience pessimistic feelings to some extent. 

As the project nears completion, many employees feel significant fatigue, emotional, and intellectual stress. While the need to complete the project on time forces the leader to focus primarily on the task at hand, it is important to shift focus to the people, support them, and recharge them with optimism and strength for the final push. Therefore, the leader should make motivation the focal point at the end of the project.

Praise is one of the most affordable and effective motivational tools available. The leader should not hesitate to use it generously. It's important to praise people publicly, during meetings, while delivering the project to the client, and when talking to managers of different departments. The leader should be sincere while praising people for specific achievements and for working overtime.

Team Structure

Effective team formation is a crucial aspect of project management.

Conflicts often arise between the formal and informal leaders within a project team. This conflict plays a vital role in the self-organization of the group and its transformation into a well-functioning team. The struggle for influence and power between the manager and the leader can either significantly advance the team forward or destroy it.

In addition to this, external factors can also impact this confrontation and accelerate the process of structuring the group. Schindler's role-based dynamic group model suggests that a group becomes an effective team by establishing its identity and boundaries in opposition to external influences such as people outside the group, other groups, or external circumstances. While external influences aren't always negative, they must be intensive to aid the formation of the group (G).

When a group is confronted with external factors, it tends to become more structured quickly. As a result, certain roles become established within the group:

• Alpha is a group member who is expected to demonstrate success and resistance to external threats. They lead the group and guide it towards achieving its goals.

• Beta is a group member who takes on the role of observer or professional advisor.

• Gamma consists of group members who support the Alpha and follow their lead, at least as long as they expect the Alpha to be successful.

• Omega is a group member with an independent view and fresh ideas, who is positioned at the maximum distance from the Alpha. Often, Omega has a negative image within the group, and they may provoke aggression, condemnation and even face the threat of exclusion.

In a group setting, Alpha represents security and stability while Omega symbolizes uncertainty, change, and novelty. Beta typically remains neutral and observes the conflict between Alpha and Omega, but they are usually Alpha's right-hand person. Beta has the role of an external independent observer. The prerequisite for such a position is recognition of Beta's professional qualifications by Alpha.

These roles are not fixed and can change depending on the situation. Beta can shift the balance of power between Alpha and Omega by supporting either side. Alpha can lose authority and swap places with one of the Gammas or Omega.

Omega is an important source of new ideas for Alpha, so a wise Alpha listens to them and uses the most successful ideas. It is important for Alpha not to view Omega negatively, but rather see them as a valuable contributor to the group.

Team players

A valuable team player requires minimal coaching and management while creating value.

According to Patrick Lencioni, an ideal team member should possess the following traits:

• Humble (Modest): They prioritize the common good over personal interests and egos. They recognize the team's accomplishments and talk about their skills to benefit the team, without bragging.

• Hungry (Motivated): They are diligent, internally motivated, and always strive for more. They take the initiative to fill in the gaps in the team's competencies, think about the next steps, and the best ways to achieve team results.

• Smart (Insightful): They have a deep understanding of people, team dynamics, emotions, and motives. They practice emotional intelligence, ask good questions, and tactfully participate in constructive discussions.

The ideal team member has all 3 qualities: energetic, enthusiastic, takes responsibility, strives for results, cares about the team, helps build constructive communication.

These 3 qualities that can be combined in 8 different ways. We don't consider "zero" combination, and we've already discussed the combination of all 3 qualities. Now, let's take a closer look at the remaining 6 combinations and their characteristics:

1. Only modest - "The Pawn" - is sweet and kind but lacks the drive to achieve results and doesn't know how to build relationships with people.

2. Modest and hungry, but not insightful - "Accidental Mess-Maker" - can achieve impressive results but tends to ruin relationships in the team with their words and actions. They desire to do well and are receptive to feedback.
   Tip:  Cultivate a positive attitude towards everything and everyone. Take the time to listen to others in order to better understand them actively. Communicate effectively with people to build strong relationships.

3. Only the hungry - "Bulldozer" - is energetic, ambitious, and focused on results, but thinks only of personal gain and doesn't care about the team or building relationships.

4. Hungry and shrewd, but not modest - "Skillful Politician" - is ambitious and hard-working; they know how to show good intentions while looking out for their own benefit. Team members may not immediately see their manipulation.
   Tip: It's important to remember that taking care of others is just as crucial as taking care of yourself. Don't forget to express gratitude by saying "thank you" more often.

5. Only insightful - "The Charmer" - is cheerful and funny, but their contribution to the common cause is negligible. They are not focused on the team's success or building long-term relationships.

6. Astute and modest, but not hungry - "Loveable Slacker" - gets along well in organizations and takes care of the team but doesn't improve team performance. They require oversight and may confuse the team by doing only what's required and nothing more.
   Tip: It's always beneficial to push yourself beyond your comfort zone and do a little extra.

What if An existing team membera lacks certain qualities?

Important!
It is possible to develop these qualities. Share the model with teammates, offer to participate, and create a development plan.