Team work in multicultural
teams
Presentation given at the SEB IP program organized at TEI Western Greece Patras
29.4. 2014, Principal Lecturer, HOD Lotta Saarikoski, VAMK UAS Vaasa Finland
VAMK / Lotta Saarikoski
3D ME
JOULUPUKKI/
FATHER CHRISTMAS/
SANTA CLAUS
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_Gustaf_Emil_Mannerheim
THE ”WHITE”
GENERAL
C-G MANNERHEIM
https://shapify.me/shapes/9a46f816c22ff935b6a514921e51be31fc70714b/share
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joulupukki
Now here in Patras:
Your first steps on your international
team work skills development path?
VAMK / Lotta Saarikoski
Themes for my sessions :
1) WHY (MULTICULTURAL)TEAMS AND TEAM
WORK ARE SO IMPORTANT TODAY ?
2) WHAT IS A TEAM ?
3) HOW TO BECOME A TOP TEAM ?
– DEVELOPMENT PHASES OF A TEAM -> team assignment
– IMPORTANT ISSUES IN TEAM DEVELOPMENT
- TEAM ”RULES” AND WAYS OF WORKING
NEXT WEEK:
- CHARACTERISTICS OF TOP TEAMS ? (Losada)
- DIVERSITY MANAGEMENT
- TEAM ROLES / PERSONALITIES
- CULTURAL ISSUES
VAMK / Lotta Saarikoski
1.WHY (MULTICULTURAL)TEAMS
AND TEAM WORK ARE SO
IMPORTANT TODAY ?
(this is NOT a team...)
VAMK / Lotta Saarikoski
HOW DOES THE WORLD
LOOK LIKE ?
VAMK / Lotta Saarikoski
Is it like this ? Clear targets, stable
conditions? Same rules all the time ?
Source : FLICKR Cap´n Surly
Source : FLICKR Maine
Flickr : by Enrico Webers – Amsterdam
Or unexpected situations ?
Changes all the time ? Different actions work in different places ?
VAMK / Lotta Saarikoski
If the world is like a rowing
competition then....
we would have:
• SAME (NOT CHANGING) PRODUCTS
-> SAME WORK TASKS AS ALWAYS
• SIMPLE WORK PROCESSES
• PRODUCTIVITY MORE IMPORTANT THAN
QUALITY AND CUSTOMER SATISFACTION
• WORKERS PREFERING ROUTINE WORK
• STABLE BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT - SAME
RULES IN ALL SITUATIONS FOR EVERYONE
VAMK / Lotta Saarikoski
BUT
If it is more like the rapid
shooting,then we see more :
• CONTINUOUS DEVELOPMENT OF
EXISTING PRODUCTS/SERVICES ->
CHANGING BUSINESS OPERATIONS
• COMPLICATED WORK AND PROCESSES
• RAPIDLY CHANGING BUSINESS
ENVIRONMENT – COMPETITION RULES
CHANGING ALL THE TIME
• CUSTOMER SATISFACTION AND QUALITY
BECOMING THE MOST IMPORTANT ISSUES
FOR COMPANIES -> INNOVATIONS NEEDED
VAMK / Lotta Saarikoski
WHAT KIND OF ORGANIZATIONAL
STRUCTURES
SUIT
CHANGING GLOBAL
BUSINESS ENVIRONMENTS
BEST ?
VAMK / Lotta Saarikoski
TRENDS CHANGING THE
ENVIRONMENT
GLOBALISATION AND INFORMATION SOCIETY
NEW COMPETITION AND NEW MARKETS EVOLVING
(ASIA, AFRICA, SOUTH AMERICA….)
WORKING IN GLOBAL NETWORKS
INNOVATION BASED COMPETITION
(ONLY CHOICE FOR EUROPE ?)
-> THIS MEANS THAT WE HAVE TO LEARN FAST AND
OUR ORGANIZATIONS HAVE TO LEARN
-> THE BEST LEARNERS SURVIVE
-> TEAM STRUCTURE IS GOOD FOR ORGANIZATIONAL
LEARNING AS TEAM LEARNING IS FASTER AND MORE
EFFICIENT THAN INDIVIDUAL LEARNING
VAMK / Lotta Saarikoski
Organization as
”brain”
Organization as ”machine”
Stable/
low
Nature of Environment/
rate of change
Changing/
high
Organizations moving from
”machine” to ”brain”...
Simple/
Low
Complicated/
Task characteristics/
High
degree of behavioral change required
VAMK / Lotta Saarikoski
Stable/
low
Nature of Environment/
rate of change
Changing/
high
From hierarchy to networks
GLOBAL NETWORKS
INTERNAL NETWORKS
CROSS-BORDER TEAMS
TEAMS
HIERARCHY (WORKING GROUPS)
Simple/
Low
Complicated/
Task characteristics/
High
degree of behavioral change required
VAMK / Lotta Saarikoski
TEAM WORK SKILLS ARE
VERY IMPORTANT IN ALL
COMPANIES
AND THAT IS WHY
YOU ARE HERE NOW…
PRACTISING…
VAMK / Lotta Saarikoski
2. WHAT IS A TEAM ? THINK 1 min
A team is s small number of people with
complimentary skills who are committed to a
common purpose, performance goals, and
approach for which they hold themselves
mutually accountable (Katzenbach & Smith 1993)
VAMK / Lotta Saarikoski
IT IS IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTAND THE NATURE OF THE WORK
NOT ALL WORK NEEDS TEAMS AND TEAMWORK !
IN SOME SITUATIONS (E.G. IN DOING A MARKET RESEARCH STUDY)
TEAM WORK CAN BE UNEFFICIENT AND CAUSE EVEN BUREAUCRACY...
INSTEAD A WORKING GROUP MIGHT BE BETTER ORGANIZATIONAL FORM THEN
SO CHOOSE THE RIGHT TOOL TO THE RIGHT SITUATION
VAMK / Lotta Saarikoski
How do real teams and working
groups differ ?
+ dialogue important way of communication
VAMK / Lotta Saarikoski
Top performance
Which one to choose ...
Y-model
A working group led
by an individual
In situations where no collective
results are needed and when
individual performances bring
the best overall results.
E.g. sales work.
Leader can choose the best ways
to work
Strong individual responsibility
IT DEPENDS ON:
Goals
Nature of tasks
Nature of results
Way of working
Real team
In situations where a combinatiosn
of individual skills and competences
are needed and collective work
results are being produced.
E.g. product development
Team members know best the best
ways of working in each situation
Collective responsibility also.
Efficient group
Responsibility
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Common purpose
Good communication
Clear roles
Efficient time
management
Acceptable
responsibility
Basis for an
efficient group
VAMK / Lotta Saarikoski
Source:Team Academy- Partanen 2007
and Katzenbach 1993
3) HOW TO BECOME A TOP TEAM ?
Do teams develop?
When do teams succeed?
What is a top performing team like?
What can/should a team leader/member
do/learn ?
Team performance development
Team productivity
High
Top team
Real team
not all teams become
top teams...
Working group
Low
Potential team
Fake team
Source: Jon R. Katzenbach and Douglas K. Smith, 1993
http://www.lmcuk.com/management-tool/the-team-performance-curve
VAMK / Lotta Saarikoski
Time
Team performance development
STAGE 4:
Effective team
PERFORMING
-successful
performance
-flexible, task roles
NORMING
-openness
-consensus
-leadership accepted -helpfulness
-delusion, disillusion
-trust established
and acceptance
-standards set
-new stable roles
-co-operation
STAGE 3:
Sharing group
STAGE 2:
Fractionated group
STAGE 1:
Immature group
FORMING
-confusion
-uncertainty
-assessing situation
-testing ground rules
-feeling out others
-defining goals
-getting acquainted
-establishing rules
STORMING
-disagreements
over priorities
-struggle for
leadership
-tension
-hostility
-clique formation
VAMK / Lotta Saarikoski
TEAM PRACTICE:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
GO AND JOIN YOUR TEAM AND FIND A NICE PLACE TO DISCUSS
THEN EVERYBODY PICKS UP ONE PICTURE (FORM THE PICTURES
GIVEN TO YOU IN THE ENVELOPE) WHICH REPRESENTS YOUR
OWN IDEA OF GOOD TEAM WORK ( IN OTHER WORDS: HOW
SHOULD YOUR TEAM WORK I YOUR OPINION)
SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS TO OTHER MEMEBERS OF YOUR TEAM TELL THE OTHERS YOUR THOUGHTS WHAT THE PICTURE
INSPIRED YOU TO THINK ABOUT GOOD TEAM WORK
THEN THE TEAM MAKES A CONSENSUS AGREEEMENT OF THE
3 MOST IMPORTANT ISSUES RELATED TO GOOD TEAM WORK
WRITE DOWN THESE 3 MAIN RULES FOR YOUR TEAM WORK
PRESENT YOUR TEAM WORK RULES IN YOUR FINAL PPPRESENTATION
GIVE YOUR TEAM A NAME, TOO
PRESENT THIS :
(in your presentation
slides or some other way)
• OUR RULES OF WORKING
ARE…
• OUR TEAM IS CALLED ….
(PLUS OF COURSE FOLLOW YOUR OWN RULES DURING THE IP …)
VAMK / Lotta Saarikoski