Team Work of the Department of Public Health and Policy in the United Kingdom


 


Executive Summary


            The main goal of the report is to evaluate the current leadership and group dynamics of a certain organization. In this report, the company that has given emphasis dynamic system and development which operates in UK and this company has been able to have effective group dynamics. However, there are still issues that should be given attention in order to ensure that the company is implementing effective corporate governance. The report includes the analysis of the of the company as well as the issues concerning the work relationship of the group. All in all it can be concluded that the company has been able to have as strong and systematic group dynamics to ensure quality output.


 


Overview of the Company


            The Department of Public Health and Policy in the United Kingdom focuses on studies about environmental factors and health, health policy, health promotion and health services (2006). They have 150 employees. The main objective of this organization is to connect public health, policy and practice by doing research and analysis. This is done by their staff who studied different academic disciplines such as epidemiology, statistics, mathematics, economics and policy analysis, working with anthropologists, sociologists, historians, psychologists and geographers. The key health care professions are well-represented by doctors, nurses and pharmacists.          The Department have established a strong network correlating to public health, policy and practice through both primary and secondary research and analysis. Staff work together with many various public sector organizations, from public to government departments in the UK and other countries; international agencies such as the World Bank, European Union (EU), the World Health Organization (WHO); as well as private sector bodies, such as Oxfam, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Open Society Institute and the College of Surgeons of England (2006). Collaborations occur through scientific exchange, appointing or supporting research, and consultancies, when staff is asked to offer detailed recommendation. The center of the organization’s group efforts is on the edge between scientific research, application and strategy, and passes through all three research units in the Department, whether they are looking at present or historical concerns, or are focusing on low-, middle- or high-income countries.


            Teams in Organization


Teams can be considered as a fact of life down from medicine to the policeman, from management to modern warfare because teams carry out much of the workforce in the world. Individual tasks within the teams may be sufficiently delineated in order for the individual performance to be evaluated despite the reliance on teams that is accomplished in the society that will occur within a team that help account for differences in the work outcomes in organizations. (1998). A team could be of different people with different tasks who work together adaptively to achieve specific goals. Teams generally have distinct functions, such as the surgeon in the operating room but some teams divide up tasks to suit themselves and may change the distribution of tasks.


Moreover, teamwork could prove useful in selecting team members along to a more cohesive teams seem to perform better than less cohesive teams and that more cohesive team are more likely to want to continue working together. Some members may be more willing to correct errors or admit ignorance than others (1999).


            Teams are valued in large part for their outcomes whether the team won the basketball tournament, whether the army won the battle and so forth. However, such outcome often contains variance attributable to factors other than teamwork. Team process measures may give people a true picture of team functioning than do outcome measures. Over the past decades, much research has been devoted to the investigation of team leadership and performance (2000) more members of the teams providing information to others in the appropriate manner.


Team leadership includes the direction and structure provided by formal leaders as well as by other members (1995). Team leadership implies that planning and organizing activities have enabled team members to respond as a function of the behaviors of others. Monitoring team performance is a crucial component ( 2001) which refers to the observation and awareness of activities and performance of other team members and that team members are competent in their individual tasks and have a substantive understanding of the tasks of other members.


Therefore, before a group of individuals can function effectively as a team, the members must have the technical knowledge and skills to perform their own tasks (1996). In the workforce managers wants his team members to have positive attitudes toward the team and its task and support for accomplishing team goals and knows their own tasks and those of other members with whom they interact with as it allows the team members to coordinate their activities by monitoring the performance of other members, communicating with them and providing assistance when needed and then the team leaders and its members focus their attention and concern on improving teamwork rather than on individual success and performance.


Members of highly interdependent teams experience to receive more training in order to assure development of shared cognitive models (1998) Basically, teams have been most effective when the leaders are directive and the team members are open and not afraid to speak up (1995) as these traits may influence the leader’s and members’ abilities of how to interact with team members, thereby affecting positively on team leadership and performance. If a team member believes for the lacking of certain team performance it will alter the individual’s cognitive model negatively affecting its performance.


A condition of leadership teams is that the individual leaders form a coordinated and cohesive authority and decision-making structure presenting a unified front to the subordinate group. In particular, confusion over role definition and scope of responsibility between leaders can lead to an overlap of functions, lack of mutual trust and tension between the leaders (1996). In addition, because of absences during work, leaders must be able to step smoothly into higher level roles as well as trust and respect that leaders’ exhibit that could be crucial for such continuity of better leadership and performance in teams.  


Many business organizations are concerned about team leadership and performance of their employees that deepens the skills and competencies of their leaders. Most organizations recognize that effective team leadership is one of the most powerful competitive advantages an organization can have which leads one to believe that few organizations are evaluating the effectiveness of their team  development programs that will result in improved team skills (2000). Companies as of today are facing a multitude of outcome-based demands regarding their team performance from a variety of driving forces including increased competition and national standards.


 


Performance improvement at the organizational level (2001) is implied and assumed as an outcome of team leadership development. Performance improvement  and high performance leadership competencies (1998) have recently been linked and provide a potential focus for team development programs and will make it easier to measure team outcomes. Team leadership is vital to the successful performance of a business team as the important factor that influences the success of team leadership is the structure of the working team that each of the team models imposes different challenges that should influence the team leadership performance as adopted by the respected managers as the team structures have evolved to reflect the changes in the structure of the organizations that perform business in lieu to the challenges that confront managers have evolved to reflect the nature and the implications of maximizing the workplace team and its team structure.


 


There are challenges that confront managers to varying degrees in each of the team structures. These challenges include (Stapledon, 1996).


 


Ø  Power struggles as boundaries of authority and responsibility overlap


Ø  Conflict with respect to the use of shared resources


Ø  The integration required to coordinate work across projects


Ø  The challenge of securing team member motivation and commitment to such outcomes


 


Many of the increased demands of managing a full complement of dedicated team members’ attention to team selection become more important. Working in a team with dedicated teammates increases the opportunity for role conflicts as well as interpersonal conflicts ( 2000). Furthermore, team priorities may become unclear as the team members impose priorities based on personal interests as influenced by the priorities of certain functional discipline. Selecting collaborative team members appears to be particularly important for the teams because the team members and the manager will work together almost constantly for the duration of the business project.


The high degree of team interaction suggests that team leadership and performance can be highly influenced by having attention to the skills and compatibility of the team members during the team selection process as each team member will learn more about each other’s roles as they are able to address each other’s concerns while performing their functions and developed the ability to compensate for absent teammates occasionally (2000). The team identity and interactions between team members provide an environment that is very conducive to interpersonal communication in enhancing better leadership and performance experience.


 


The manager need to primarily face certain barriers associated with eliciting the contributions of team members who dedicate only a small portion of their time to the workplace projects and need to consider for team member involvement against alternative priorities ( 1998). Furthermore, securing the commitment of team members who are not dedicated full-time can prove to be very challenging to the manager. As the team members dedicate the majority of their time to the workforce they can derive the direct experiential benefits that accrue from active work group involvement. Finally, the team members’ commitment may also wane over time as they may regrettably conclude that if the work project is not important enough to warrant the full involvement of their manager, then it certainly does not warrant their full commitment either.


The team members were aware that the project manager was monitoring their performance and they would be held directly and immediately accountable for any mistakes or problems they created. Basically, the team members in such case internalized the challenge of avoiding the confrontations associated with unsatisfactory performance (1999). A leadership approach that cultivates team identification and conducts team building activities across may result in improved team performance as the obstacle to team leadership is the lack of describing the lack of a defined team structure.


Excessive communication by the manager on teams can have a negative impact on team members’ interest and commitment. If meetings are too long, it is possible that meeting attendance will decline significantly, decreasing team performance (2000). Consequently, the manager needs to be selective when requiring team members to participate in meetings. The project manager should have to balance the needs for team communication in commitment from the perception that time spent in meetings is time wasted and that the work project does not merit the investment required. Future research should focus and provide an enough basis for adopting team leadership and performance that are suited for the characteristics of teams in order to improve the quality of team leadership and performance.


 


Team leadership and performance relates as to what  called virtual teams as a collection of members with real tasks and shared outcomes.


Instead, they examine virtual teaming issues such as the following (1998):


 


Ø  trust building


Ø  member selection


Ø  effective reward systems


Ø  effective technologies


Ø  conflict management


 


Virtual teams often lead to more diverse groups than traditional teams and the importance of finding members with related backgrounds (1999). Managers also need to devote time to building personal relationships among  workplace teams. Strong leadership becomes critical the development of clear goals and building trust. Many leaders today understand the basics and the importance of a commitment to a compelling team leadership and performance challenge and few realize the importance of continuing performance to ensure that every members of the team applies to the essential discipline. When the performance challenge remains clear and compelling then such instincts can be enough.  


 


Groups become teams through disciplined action and they sustain team performance as long as team discipline prevails (1995). Team performance is characterized as much by discipline and hard work as it is by empowerment and positive group dynamics as the teams are becoming more central to high performing organizations. Front-line workforce teams are commonplace in most industries, the functional teams are the best way to manage across complex situations and balanced leadership systems increasingly cultivate the added leadership capacity that comes from team capability closer to the top. 


It is no longer good enough to rely on observation and instincts to identify team opportunities and motivate team behavior. Some very capable leaders pursue team behavior in situations whereas others are trying to avoid it (2000). Groups that have never functioned as a team need time to establish common levels of commitment and to learn how to shift roles and blend skills. A real team is never leaderless as it is able to draw on the leadership ability of each of its members in different ways. Real teams boost their leadership capacity by shifting the leader’s role back and forth among members. The leader’s function falls on the shoulders of whichever member has the knowledge to such issue at hand. The higher up in the organization a team effort occurs, the more challenging it becomes to shift the role of leader because of habits and overwhelming time pressures.


Nonetheless, the most effective team efforts at any level in the organization demonstrate the ability to lead the group at different times (1992).  This capability does not come easily to every team member and often requires an insight and support from the leader and other members. The more varied and complex team purposes and goals become, the more important it will be for every member to step up to the leadership challenges that fit his/her skills and experience.


Potential teams and work groups will need to be able to determine what a particular group task requires versus integration and synergy (2001).  They also need to be able to clearly identify and behaviors that are out of alignment with an experienced process observer. If the leader has the conviction that it is possible to run 100msf/machine hour then the team will start to analyze the real obstacles towards performance and start to eliminate them.


Great managers set the pace and know that team members don’t care of what they are saying as they hold themselves to the same standards they expect from their team members, knowing that applying a double standard will result in distrust as well as hypocrisy (1995) Good managers act as coaches by providing ongoing training and feedback for their team structure and that these managers practice leadership in attitudes and actions not just in words.


Leaders should be ready to ask for suggestions and opinions. Independent team members have earned the right to express refine procedures and offer new ideas. Team managers must be sure that a team member is ready to work independently before granting his responsibilities at work (1995) While there is a significant polarisation in the current thinking on the benefits of teams it seems that the picture is a little different upon a deeper examination of the issue. It seems that the notion of team structures itself is difficult to question. The defining factors that influence the success or failure of team structures depend on the environment that teams operate in. This view is supported by  (1995) who frames her research within the context of “describing the desirable conditions for effective teamwork and team leading in schools”. (1995)


Low-performing practice teams lack focus on a collective purpose. Each team member may well have a unique purpose of his or her own, but the team as a whole lacks a unifying vision. In an “every man for himself” atmosphere, the collective purpose is buried beneath blame, finger pointing, nitpicking, and gossip. Without harmony, the team struggles to produce uninspiring results. They use time and energy inefficiently, don’t like being at work, and have little fun. The team complains of feeling “stuck” and of being unsatisfied with their positions.


High-performing teams, on the other hand, share a strong sense of common purpose. They communicate well with each other. They build a climate of trust, openness, and honesty. High-performing teams welcome ongoing coaching in the skills, procedures, and attitude that generate success. They share a common game plan, and continually train, drill, and practice. They share responsibility and take credit for the success of the team. High-performing teams consistently produce excellent results.


Team members who do not share the purpose of the rest of the team are often motivated to work by their paycheck. They generally look for satisfaction outside of the practice. These team members are ‘time-clockwatchers’ who give the practice their time but not their energy. They don’t consider how their actions affect their teammates and results in a high level of absenteeism. Practices with a low sense of shared purpose show low numbers of office visits, clients and referrals.


Team members who share a common purpose work for a cause find satisfaction both in and outside of the practice. They give both their time and their energy, often staying late to finish work, share new ideas. Team members who share a strong sense of purpose are considerate of their teammates and go out of their way to make sure everyone’s needs are met. They come to work regularly and stay for the long term. These practices exhibit a high volume of office visits, new patients and referrals.


Any advice to managers in the school context to maximize the potential of workplace teams must revolve around creating an appropriate environment for those teams to function. Just as managers’ struggle with the balance between macro and micro processes in relation to having business as it must apply to macro and micro environments. The macro environment of marketing in the case must be viewed as finding a purpose and direction for the organization, getting the labor and expertise that matches a job requirement, motivating the staff, goal congruence and visibility, staff connectivity to each other and the organisation, and the levels of motivation. It is only when these issues are properly addressed that team structures can be implemented effectively.


Communication in the Work Team


 


            Yes, it is true that organizational communication in the area of Human Resource processes involves the integration of such roles addressing to positive communication climate as effective communication is a major factor for the strengthening of work values and attitudes in the diverse workforce and I believe that the most basic function of a Human Resource Manager is to plan out, realize and apply actual ways in order for the staff employees to be versatile and effective in their work most in engaging into business interaction to the key players within the organization and in dealing greatly to the customers as well as to improve self confidence and drive better motivation for every situation. The HR manager should need to consistently promote good communication lines and channel for cooperation to achieve a sustainable work dynamics and synergy in individual staff and work team in terms of providing essential work environment for the success of the organization and achieve its vision for the benefit of the people. It is said that, organizational communication as of the modern times offers a new approach in developing an understanding of diverse work scenarios and skills for work and other organizational activities relating to the process of making decisions, work training and managing conflicts to enhance better skills in communication as well as encourage useful teamwork but also rewarding individual performance facing  crucial organizational players. Human resource leaders can help enhance employee morale, individual performance and organizational success. In these uncertain and always changing times and that in situation, communication is critical between managers and its members in order to assure a steady flow of information, HR managers should play a major role in assuring effective communication and be delivered in the useful process of communication.


 


            Communication involving work team is an important aspect of developing skills of communication within the staff employees of an organization. Thus, in order to achieve appropriate communication in the work team, it is relevant to consider and apply certain communication strategies in a systematic pattern of making it a realization like for instance, formulate and implement motivational processes as communication actions amicably desire to satisfy different goals described as being effective by work team that consider goals by integrating strategies. HR Managers emphasizes on staff motivation that is constructed as central to employee performance and organizational performance and profits, it is no wonder that organizations spend dollars to train managers in the skills needed to communicate properly to the staff and work team as communication may have instrumental goal of energizing, directing as well as sustaining the behavior of another. For example, in virtual teams members need to choose an appropriate communication channel for their purposes and be sure to balance work with face-to-face communication as team leaders will have to encourage open communication and avoid assignment of blame and strategies include: network development of good relationships built on trust and understanding and the showing of respect for cultures and languages as well as understand how communication practices strengthens the team and maintain better work team in the future and changing the work environment for organizations allowing companies to compete in the global market (2000). The work team needs to understand the advantages and limitations of technology for conducting their work as it offers opportunity for easy, around-the-clock communication, it can be an unreliable variable that affects the outcome of team communication and collaboration (1999). Problems occur when the network goes down, the technology does not work as the team member needs more training in how to use the communication tools. Technology and the communication it enables give companies a competitive advantage in the international environment. Technology helps people in distant places to connect and build relationships without travel. Employees who travel can stay in close touch with the home office. Virtual teams enable companies to accomplish things more quickly and efficiently (Overholt, 2002). The team will benefit from face to face contact as this helps establish the working relationship and build trust. The HR manager understands employee resistance to humanize interaction via technology, work team members use personal touches in their communication as a strategy to promote interpersonal communication, they may celebrate birthdays, engagements and children’s achievements as some teammates discover that it is possible to make friends for life with people they have not met.


 (2001) discusses other important effects of culture on team dynamics, such as the giving and receiving of criticism and feedback, willingness to participate and offer ideas, and contradiction of superiors. In their intercultural team experience, the graduate business students commented on these tasks as well as the opportunities and challenges of working on intercultural teams as they use face-to-face meetings to carry out their communication within the enjoyment of working (1996) as critical for the success of a communicating work team.


            Teams found it challenging to work with people from different language backgrounds on how the other person may understand something different from team communication as  (1999) believe that team members need to understand how cultural differences affect team dynamics and individual ideas about how teams should function and adapt to different communication styles and ways listening to each other attentively that helped overcome communication problems. Clearly, face-to-face makes an effective communication channel that builds trust and confidence as teams can benefit from face-to-face meetings to establish relationship and reached levels of understanding as team members can create an environment that encourages open communication and brainstorming. It is important to avoid blaming individuals for problems and should address problems together as they share the responsibility and rewards of success, they can celebrate victories together. The HR managers can use a number of communication strategies to help them get their message successfully with teams.


 


 


 


These include:


Ø  Communicate continuously


Ø   Use active listening


Ø  Keep communication simple and clear


Ø  Use different technologies to advantage


Ø  Build relationships and trust


Ø  Show respect for other cultures


Ø  Be sensitive to cultural differences


Communication Strategies for Teams      Ø  Choose the right communication channel to achieve purpose  Ø  Know strengths and weaknesses of communicating  Ø  Encourage open communication Ø  Avoid assignment of blame  Ø  Share the responsibility and rewards of success  Ø  Focus on the team Ø  Use the power of the team   

            In conclusion, I have learned that communication process and skills within the organization implies a significant role for the HR managers and staff as well as work team to be able to work in appropriate paradigm to realize goals and purposes of work functions and always aim to produce better channels of communication as poor communication among teams can weaken trust and loyalty in many aspects of the work environment. Therefore, communication climate and its promotion is a must in order for organizations to apply useful techniques to arrive into a well planned vision along with the integration and coordination of effective presentations with effective tools and materials to be used that can lead to a successful performance interviews in the appraisal process.


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 



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