Introduction
Management of teams or groups experiences varied challenges, which the administration should be aware of to ensure they provide effective measures to deal with them. As a team member, I have followed the activities of a team and learned about how they operate. Numerous factors lead to the development of the group or team dynamics. Such problems are linked to the existence of a variety of factors since teams are made up of several individuals with varied traits and behaviors. Due to this reason, conflicts are bound to develop, especially during different stages of its development and operations. In this case, the effectiveness of the management of the teams and their interactions plays a critical role in ensuring that the underlying task is perfectly executed. The existence of multiple factors that lead to the development of group dynamics makes it complicated for management to identify the root cause of the problem and ensure maximum performance.
Concrete Experience
Working with groups has been a great experience, as it has enabled me to gain significant knowledge and skills in teamwork. As a team member, I learned that effective communication and leadership play a critical role in the team’s functioning. In my experience, I experienced a team breakdown resulting from miscommunication using the wrong channels to pass communication. Such an aspect led to a lack of cohesion among the team members due to a lack of understanding. While we were engaged as a team, most activities could have been better executed due to the ambiguity of roles. The lack of effective communication and poor team leadership challenged the team’s operations, making it challenging for the members to attain the team’s goals within the specified time.
Reflective Observation
My experience with teams has enabled me to learn different aspects of organizational behavior, especially concerning team or group management. Based on my observations during my team involvement, leadership and communication are key to any team or group performance. Leadership is important, as it forms the basis for the success of every team or group. Effective leadership enables the management of tasks to ensure that all the studies are well planned and that goals are set to attach the functions to a given timeline (Wiese & Burke, 2019). The root cause of all issues related to the development of dynamics within teams or groups is a lack of effective leadership.
Where leadership is not emphasized, communication becomes challenging, and ambiguity develops. Due to this reason, it is important to understand team leadership to ensure that all the operations are well executed and that the team members understand their roles within the team. In addition, working with a group requires considerable skills that enable individuals to collaborate and coordinate for the team to succeed (Wiese & Burke, 2019). In this case, team leaders should develop team goals and undertake scrutiny of the various individuals to ensure that they have interpersonal skills to enable them to deal with issues that arise (Hamilton, 2019). Therefore, it is important to create a strong foundation through which the team can execute its tasks.
Abstract Conceptualization
Team dynamics is a problem that requires managers to have excellent leadership skills to analyze the various issues that arise during team operations. The Turkman model enabled the understanding of the various group development phases. Through the model, I learned that his struggles for dominance in the group would lead to deference to authority, making it difficult for most people to hold back their opinions on critical matters concerning the team. In addition, I used the DISC framework to understand the personality traits of different team members to learn about conflict management (Nash, 2019). Team dynamics is a complex issue that can only be easily solved by examining the underlying issues and developing mechanisms that enable the leader to solve the problem.
Theoretical perspectives are important as they provide useful information and models that can be used to understand the situation and develop effective measures to solve the issues. Among the models critical in understanding group dynamics is Lewin’s force field analysis, which plays a crucial role in understanding problems that influence the performance of teams or groups (Nash, 2019). Kurt Lewin developed the model in 1951 to describe the specific performance levels or being in a state of equilibrium between the upward movement, driving forces, and restraining forces (Kneisel, 2020). The theory focuses on the root cause of a problem, which enables managers or team leaders to develop an action plan once the root cause of the problem is identified. Lewin developed the theory, basing his argument on the assumption that every situation develops due to the forces that operate for and against the current state of equilibrium (Tutor2u., 2016). Based on my experience, I utilized the model to identify the forces that made the working conditions unbearable, and an analysis of the forces helped me understand the root cause of the issue.
Active Experimentation
Understanding Lewin’s force field analysis, Turkman’s model, and the DISC framework provide me with the knowledge and skills to analyze any situation and identify the various issues that may cause team dynamics. Such skills have made it easy to examine the effectiveness of teams and groups at any given time since I can examine the various forces operating within (Kneisel, 2020). Knowledge from the force field model has made it easy to analyze the points causing misunderstandings or barriers to the effective operation of the team or group (Nash, 2019). I will utilize such skills to examine the team’s functions, identify the various forces operating for and against them, and use such information to develop strategies to deal with the situation. The model provides an easy mechanism through which team dynamics can be examined and analyzed, and effective methods developed to solve the various problems that may arise when working with a team or group.
Conclusion
Working in teams is challenging as teams are made up of individuals from different cultural backgrounds. Diversity among individuals makes people develop varied traits and behaviors, making it challenging to work together. Due to the irrational nature of humans, managing them in teams becomes a challenge that requires strong leaders to make them put their differences aside and work together as a team. My experience as a team player has made me encounter significant issues rooted in aspects such as weak leadership and ineffective communication. Due to the diverse nature of team dynamics, identifying the main cause of the challenges can take time and effort. Understanding Lewin’s force field analysis provides crucial information about the various forces that operate for and against any given issue, causing it to be in equilibrium. Such information is useful as it will enable me to identify the problems that would cause challenges working in teams or groups.
References
Kneisel, E. (2020). Team Reflections, team mental models and team performance over time. Team Performance Management: An International Journal, 26(1/2), 143–168. Web.
Nash, M. M. (2019). Applying Lewin’s force field theory to facilitate SWOT analysis: An effective and efficient approach. Preparing for High Impact Organizational Change, 140–149. Web.
Tutor2u. (2016). Lewin’s force field analysis model [Video]. YouTube. Web.
Wiese, C. W., & Burke, C. S. (2019). Understanding team learning dynamics over time. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, 1–13. Web.