Introduction
A team set of employees working in a group for the purpose of the achievement of a comparative decision sharing. The rules are established within the organization. Group management involves group dynamics, instructing and progressing. The new team that emerged at Staples is a management type of a group. It came up when Lewis joined the company. This is after she graduated as a marketing manager. Team progress is also known as team building. This means that the team builds up by sharing knowledge and labors jointly. Every organization promotes this although the level of dedication varies. The process requires an external force where its duty is to critically analyze and identify the needs and areas that require to be improved. This is in order to enhance the performance of the team. The procedure exposes the behavior of teams. At the stage of its formation, the team is formed and parties involved will have to know each other. The parties forming the team must be comfortable with one another. The associates also define the personal roles in the team as well as those of the other associates and their purpose in the group (Ringer, 2002).
Staples’ Team Evolution
The company was expected to grow in size and performance by two folds as the century came to an end. The union failed by not having a motivating factor for a collective action especially in the marketing section. There was the need for the creation of the loyalty of the customers, the retention of the staff as well as the promotion of effective strategies of marketing. The need to make broader impacts that are more expansive across the entire organization called for teamwork (McGraHill & Menon, 2004).
The need for direct outreach of the market was a major element that necessitated the evolution of the teamwork which was the beginning of inventive marketing. For the purpose of dominating the market, it was necessary to wage a war which was only practical with the evolution of teamwork. The firefighting as well as the band-aiding required corporate as well as field teams. The recruitment plus the development of the talents warranted the evolution of the teams. This was to strengthen the positive attitude, learning eagerness, competition as well flexibility in lateral performance in the company which could promote entrepreneurial spirit (Ringer, 2002).
The inspiration of dialogue, as well as debate for the purpose of deep decision making, is another element that promoted the evolution of the teams. The exchange of the ideas was perceived to be intense as well as productive in the arrangement of physical interactions. the need to focus on the employees, the customers, the effectiveness of communication, execution and the appointment of the members also called for the evolution of the teams in the organization task force key managers. The sharing of the company’s goal, information exchange as well as decision and policy issues alignment had to be implemented thus calling for the teams (Ringer, 2002).
Elements of Team Evolution
The main elements that are essential for team development are trust, cooperation, solid leadership qualities and conduct. The process of keeping other people’s secrets creates trust among people in the company. This is a significant part of trust as people are able to interact freely without panic of leakage of delicate information. All the components were evident in Staples. Initially, people did not trust Lewis to hold a leadership position. Because of her hard work and efficiency, she finally won their trust her. In team cooperation, strength is essential in building a high working group. This is where the group offers a diversity of views. Good managers should appreciate this and use any chance to call employees for conferences and promote involvement and this is the time when associates swap thoughts and help one another with the present troubles.
The kind of cooperation present in the team was also obvious because without their cooperation, she would not have been able to lead the ever increasing number of workers (Ringer, 2002).
Team Management Mistakes
There are general mistakes made by managers in the organization when dealing with the staff. The following are the most ordinary management errors committed Sometimes a manager may over manage the employees. Under this situation, the personnel will not tolerate countless questions that will be posed by the management. Managers also should ensure that the employees are given free space with no scrutiny in their daily performance or execution of duties. Bad leadership leads to failure of the company in due time. Over controlling the employees in an attempt of proving individual worthiness is one of the major management mistakes. This type of over control is likely to demoralize the peak performers within the team (Kreitner & Kinicki, 2008).
The second mistake leading to team collapse relates to expertizing of the manager. There is a need to consult the team members in case of policy changes as they are the ones to bear the burden of the changes. The responsibility of the manager should be to enhance the implementation of goals through the members of the team and not assuming the hero status. This one is exemplified when the manager thinks that he recognizes all that is best for the company. The notion that since one was hired for the position of manager because of the expertise, has led to lack of accomplishment of the company’s goals. Therefore a manager should be in a position to consult with other group associates when effecting changes in the team. This is so because they are the persons to be affected by the modifications. Staff also knows better if a plan is feasible or not. Hence if permitted to contribute information would help in the efficiency of the company. This trouble thwarts the chance of bringing to job the joint knowledge of the team. This works against the management as it lessens the probability of team support on the final resolution (Ringer, 2002).
The failure of strengthening the bond of the team is another mistake of the management resulting to the collapse of the team. Regular meetings in which participation is encouraged allow for personal acquaintance among the members of the teams in the organization. The fourth management mistake is the absence of clear boundaries between the workers and their management (Scanlon, 2008).The team strength is necessary for a competing company to stay on top of the market. The group presents a variety of opinions. Character and knowledge when merged surpass any individual contribution. Good management should incorporate the character and knowledge of the staff in any matter affecting the company. It is supposed to use any chance to call employees to attend conferences as well as to encourage them to be free and contribute constructive ideas to the company for prosperity (McGraHill & Menon, 2004).
The manager should permit his staff tell the tasks. The manager should not over socialize with them to the extent that they lack his or her trust. They should not share unsuitable thoughts on personal life. This together with over management of employees leads to passing on of mixed messages about the manager’s rank and responsibility. At job, the boss should distinguish between the time to behave as a peer and the time to act with regard to his rank. The relations between the manager and staff are bound to alter (Scanlon, 2008). Peer relationship should never arise especially in the case of the promoted workers who initially enjoyed personal and peer relationships with the employees that they should control. They should learn their new roles as they adjust the alignment in as far as the new peers are concerned. The absence of vision is another cause of failure of the team.
Lack of dream is one of the mistakes that managers commit when they begin knowing one other. The personnel anticipate leadership in the manner of vision and course. Without it, they sense as if they are stagnating and lacking inspiration. Therefore every manager needs to inspire the significance of a vision and the necessity of laboring towards its achievement.
Opposition to feedback
This occurs when communication is not efficient and the manager does not know the contribution of the personnel. This is so when it comes to organizational troubles. Good managers require searching for vocal and non spoken communication from their employees. They should not defend their deeds but instead look for feedback as an opportunity to nurture (Ringer, 2002).The management should be in a position to influence the workers to come up with joint visions. Another management problem is to resist the feedback of the subordinates as well as the acquisition of new skills while imposing expertise (Scanlon, 2008).
The above-named mistakes did not fully exist in the marketing team led by Lewis. The only one which existed was that of not listening to her followers. She did not listen to them but instead replaced those who could not handle the modification. She may possibly have had much success if she could have listened to their problems and assist them out of such situations (McGraHill & Menon, 2004). Lewis has been observed to have a control on the people that is tight fisted attempting to achieve the goals and the objectives of the company. She has been documented to pose some particular questions whose consequences are the provocation of the realistic interaction. Any efforts to make her support a particular issue needs some bit of quantification.
Building Trust
For the purpose of the development of a trust with a specific team it is important to arrange for meetings with the members. It is of critical importance to hold dialogues the team must strive to know as much information as possible about the other teams for the purpose of the expansion of the knowledge circle. Faith is the act of placing reliance on somebody else. Don’t essentially need to be in performing a social bearable act. Among the guidelines for building trust is the diagnosis of the plight and then solving it. Team strength is essential building trust which will aid in tackling some of the tribulations in a company (Kreitner & Kinicki, 2008).
In the context of Staples, we see that security of the organization as a whole was achieved. However, at the time of her entry into the organization, it had been faced with total distrust. Since the company had acquired its major competitors, all stakeholders believed in the leadership. They had confidence that there will be a continued growth in the company with the leadership they had. The upholding of other persons’ affairs creates trust among individuals in any association. This is a significant part of trust as people intermingle. Crucial information about the company will not be spread to other competitors. This is achieved if there is trust among the employs (Kreitner & Kinicki, 2008).
Encouragement of vision by the management has brought every manager needs to inspire the significance of a vision and the necessity of working hard to make the company be on the top of the market and maintain there. This will act as a guiding principle to the staff hence integration of much effort in order to understand it. In the case of this company, it is clear that everyone had trust in Lewis. She didn’t discuss other people’s affairs with her colleagues (McGraHill & Menon, 2004).
Types of Team
The Office Depot marketing and advertising merger team can be categorized as an action team. This is so because its main aim was to market the merged organization. It can’t be categorized as a consulting team. The only consulting team in the organization would be the team selected to advise on whether it was feasible or not to participate in the merging process. The project team meant to undertake a certain project installation of new technology in the company. A project is any task which uses resources and is anticipated to provide returns. The branding team was to innovate and generate novel products in the organization. The tactic planning team on the other hand was responsible for revolution and any adjustment made in the organization. Such groups were engaged in daily events of the Staples Corporation (Ringer, 2002).
In conclusion, the Lewis’ organization is an example of those organizations which employ good organization practices such as scheduling and directing. The company under the management led by Lewis profitably initiated the concept of team work and apt leadership. This is why it has been recording good performance. To a greater extend the organization obtained a high level of performance from workers. They worked for extra hours and were even called at odd times to attend to agent issues. The organization was profitable and productive based on the pretax proceeds that had been gained for the years. This was an indicator that the organization was getting profit. The organization was reputable in the society. This is because of its contribution and the collective responsibility it had demonstrated since its creation. Customers outside perceived the Staples as a very successful one as it had most competent and well paid personnel. They considered people working for such an organization to be very lucky. Even though this was true, the need for change within the organization was aimed at streamlining a few areas so as to achieve greater heights and prosperity.
References
Kreitner, R. & Kinicki, A. (2008). Organizational Conduct (8th Ed.). Boston: Irwin.
McGraHill, & Menon, A. S. (2004). Group Deeds and Team Construction. New York: Camborne: Printing Press.
Ringer, T. M. (2002). Group action: Group dynamics in educational, Remedial and Mutual Scenery. London: Jessica Kingsley.
Scanlon, J. (2008). Staples’ Evolution. Waltham: Massachusetts. Web.