Fostering teamwork is a top priority for many leaders,
according to Suzanne Willis Zoglio, Ph.D., the author of Teams
At Work: 7 Keys to Success, The Participative Leader. There are
obvious benefits: increased productivity, improved customer
service, more flexible systems and employee empowerment.

A team is a group of people working towards a common goal.
Generally, the objectives that a team sets out to accomplish
can't be effectively achieved by individuals. Think of it this
way: TEAM = Together Everyone Achieves More.

Within a business, every employee serves as a crucial member
of the company's team. No matter where you are on the corporate
ladder, you add intrinsic value to your organization through
your strengths, talents, gifts and other assets.

Some companies are taking a more impersonal approach to
evaluating the assets of prospective and current employees.
They employ high-tech data mining programs or personality tests
to *crunch* information about employees' skills, qualifications,
experiences, workload and performance to assess their integrity,
loyalty and satisfaction. Or, job candidates are being analyzed
to predict their potential fit within the company's culture.

This non-personalized approach to evaluation provides a
quick, automated way to size up individuals. But it leaves less
room for human instinct, which can be an important barometer of
an employees true value.


Realizing Your Own Strengths, Talents and Gifts

Despite what any data mining software may construe, your
contributions as an employee form an integral link in the chain
of your company's success. And it's important to understand the
true value that you lend to your corporate team.

Whether you're part of a companywide or smaller work group,
you should understand your role and responsibilities as a valued
member. Picture yourself as a single, unique Lego building block
that can help form a wonderful creation when connected to other
pieces. But you have to be willing to add your block to the
pile, so others can build on it to produce a masterpiece.

It works the same way with our skills and talents. All of
us have different abilities and unique perspectives that can be
instrumental in solving complex problems. For example, if you're
an excellent organizer and coordinator, you should be open to
using these skills to produce a smooth work flow within your
department or project work group.

At the same time, you should acknowledge and appreciate the
contributions of other members of your team. Rather than hinder,
try to help teammates employ their skills to the fullest. No one
person knows and can do everything. Think of these quotes
relating to teamwork:

§ *Coming together is a beginning. Staying together is progress.
Working together is success.* Henry Ford

§ *We must indeed all hang together, or, most assuredly, we
shall all hang separately.* Benjamin Franklin

§ *If I could solve all the problems myself, I would.* Thomas
Edison, when asked why he had a team of twenty-one assistants

§ *The strength of the team is each individual member...the
strength of each member is the team.* Coach Phil Jackson -
Chicago Bulls

§ *None of us is as smart as all of us.* Ken Blanchard


How To Help Build A Winning Team

So how do you help build an effective team that contributes
to a positive, successful work environment? Here are four tips
to help you:

Contribute. Everyone is responsible for the success of their
team. At group meetings, for example, be an active participant
who contributes valuable content. If you're not familiar with
the discussion topic, silently observe the team's process and
find ways to facilitate its progress.

Communicate. Good communication is essential to success in the
workplace. We've all had experiences of hearing the wrong
message, assuming incorrectly, misinterpreting others' behaviors
and feeling offended. That's why it's important to use clear
communication, as well as active listening skills with fellow
team members. Don't just seek to be understood, but also seek
to understand.

Be Committed. Commitment equals buy-in. A good work team needs
to agree on and believe in its basic purpose - its mission or
reason for existing. Work teams that have clarity of purpose
can easily visualize their connection to organizational success.
With strong commitment to move toward the same goal, the team
creates a synergy - a force that is greater than the combined
energy of its individual members.

Be Supportive. Good work teams are like close-knit families.
They require acceptance, nurturing, patience and support. They
won't always agree and often need to compromise their personal
preferences to achieve the best results. Effective work teams
need continued support and feedback to stay focused and to feel
good about what they are doing. For a team to reach its full
potential, members must be able to share their thoughts and
ideas, and to see that these are valued and heard.

Copyright 2004, Kate Smalley
Connecticut Secretary
mailto:kms@connecticutsecretary.com
http://www.ConnecticutSecretary.com
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