Being part of a team is more important than leading it." Discuss.

A team is usually formed with a common goal in mind with team members with varied skills and experiences. Everyone comes from a different background, skills, knowledge and life experience and brings this to the table. Working in a team enables the individuals to learn from this shared pool of knowledge enhancing their own personal knowledge and skills. These skills can aid a person in job or personal progression. This phenomenon is often described as cooperative learning and can aid in areas as varied as social skills (communication, conflict management etc.) and technical skills. Current research on Cooperative Learning by researchers Brady and Tsay on students who participated in group activities exhibited collaborative behaviors, provided constructive feedback and cooperated with their group had a higher likelihood of receiving higher test scores and course grades at the end of the semester. This type of learning benefit cannot be experienced by being the leader of the team. Aside from the personal growth in the individual’s abilities and experiences, organizations can also benefit in the increased skills of their employees. Using a team as a learning mechanism allows a person a person to learn without fear of failure as mistakes and concerns can be openly discussed.

Further to the increased learning benefits, deep specialist skills can also be further developed. In some areas such as Medicine or scientific research being a leader of a team may not allow that person to participate in the output in a direct manner. However a team member can participate and increase a very specific set of skills that will help the individual in their area of expertise and perhaps the organization as well. Where an individual wants to purse deep technical skills in an area of expertise, being the leader does not present any benefits.

Being part of a team also provides increased motivation, Kreitner has defined motivation as ‘the psychological process that gives behavior purpose and direction.’  Increased motivation is what gets people up in the morning and deliver 110%. A team offers individuals the opportunity to work with other talented people which can be inspirational. This further adds to their own creativity and be more productivity. Working in a team is a mechanism used to deliver output in a more efficient manner as group spirit can motivate individuals to help stick to each other and help achieve organisation goals. All the ideas generated are directly contributed in the final result and hence the members of the team feel personally responsible for the outcomes or results of their work. This can be summarised by a statement by once US President Dwight D. Eisenhower that "Motivation is the art of getting people to do what you want them to do because they want to do it." Leading the team can reduce motivation as it can often lead to increased stress without the benefit of having team workers sharing the load.

Another important advantage of being part of team is Synergy. ‘Synergy is the effect that the combined return “whole” is greater than the sum of the individual parts'. The idea of synergy within a Group or Team has become one of the most vital parts for an organisation. People who work in groups are able to perform better and they confer greater quality of output than that produced by an individual and their productivity combine.  The ability of solving problems in a collaborative fashion, different frames of thought or views towards an issue is all contributed by synergy. There is a sense that help is always available and no one is own their own. A leader cannot experience synergy as they are coordinating the group and ensuring the group is performing. As stated by Jon R. Katzenbach and Douglas K. Smith in Harvard business review “Teamwork represents a set of values that encourage listening and responding constructively to views expressed by others, giving others the benefit of the doubt, providing support, and recognizing the interests and achievements of others. Such values help teams perform, and they also promote individual performance as well as the performance of an entire organization”.

Trust and commitment are a common result of working in team. This buildup of cohesiveness means that teams hold each member as mutually accountable for the performance. A well performing team can result in sense of common achievement. This can be an extremely rewarding experience. Again, research done by Jon R. Katzenbach and Douglas K. Smith has stated that team members of effective teams find the experience energizing and motivating in ways that their “normal” jobs never could match7. This “high” effect can be a powerful motivator and can further increase productivity and personal satisfaction. The common goal leads to a greater amount of cooperation which further aids job satisfaction.

Humans are a social group and our interaction with others has an impact on our behaviors and psyche. Being part of a group offers the opportunity for self-improvement in a myriad of ways such as learning that has been discussed previously but also it offers the opportunity for new friendships and thus builds our network. It also makes us more flexible and adaptable to change as we are forced in a group dynamic. A leader on the other hand does not have the same level of interaction to benefit highly in this regard. He/She must direct the group not befriend its members, at least not on the same level as the members itself. Tuckman’s model on team behavior – forming, storming, norming, and performing shows how team members adapt to the team and learn from the different stages to be effective in delivering their goal. This evolution leaves a mark on each team member throughout the process , the stages develops social skills and deep bonding within the team members , benefits of which can be used further down the road individually by the members. For e.g. conflict generated initially in the forming and storming stag can help teams work towards goals through healthy debate on the decision in question. Debating the issue helps the team reduce conformity and unhealthy agreement, solve problems better and overcome obstacles to group progress. It also helps teams achieve goals outside the box through continuous feedback from both internal and external sources. This can help. The norming and performing stages act further act as a positive reinforcement with increased harmony and bonding through the group.

Team oriented approach is the order of the day when it comes to successful organisations who have empowered their employees, motivated them and involved them in such a way that the existence of the organisation wouldn't have been possible without the existence of teams. Being in a team is a rewarding experience much more than leading it. Shared Accountability, enhanced Problem solving, increased creativity, innovation and shared vision are some of the key benefits. Further to that important factors such as personal growth, increased motivation as well as friendships that develop are reasons why being in a team is more important than leading it.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

Dwight D. Eisenhower Quotes, http://www.brainyquote.com,Accessed October 15, 2012, http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/d/dwightdei149102.html

Katzenbach Jon R, Smith Douglas K. “The Discipline of Teams”, www.hbr.org, 1993

Kiley David, “The Toyota Way to No.1”, , 26/04/2007.

Knoll Sebastian. Cross Business Synergies. Gabler Verlag, 2008

Kreitner R. Management (6th Edition). Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1995

Nippard William J. The Teamwork Ladder: 8 Steps to MAXIMUM Success For You & Your Organization. Bloomington:Westbow Press, 2011

Roberto Michael A, Carioggia Gina M, “Mount Everest-1996”, , 2002

Tsay,M., & Brady, M. “A case study of cooperative learning and communication pedagogy; Does working in teams make a difference?”, Journal of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, no 10 (2010): 78-89.

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