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

https://shapify.me/shapes/9a46f816c22ff935b6a514921e51be31fc70714b/share

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_Gustaf_Emil_Mannerheim

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joulupukki

3D ME

JOULUPUKKI/FATHER CHRISTMAS/SANTA CLAUS

THE ”WHITE” GENERALC-G MANNERHEIM

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 ?

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, stableconditions? Same rules all the time ?

Or unexpected situations ?Changes all the time ? Different actions work in different places ?

Source : FLICKR Maine

Flickr : by Enrico Webers – Amsterdam

Source : FLICKR Cap´n Surly

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 EVERYONEVAMK / 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

Task characteristics/degree of behavioral change required

Simple/Low

Complicated/High

Nat

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Organizations moving from ”machine” to ”brain”...

Organization as ”machine”

Organization as”brain”

VAMK / Lotta Saarikoski

Task characteristics/degree of behavioral change required

Simple/Low

Complicated/High

Nat

ure

of

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nm

ent/

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HIERARCHY (WORKING GROUPS)

TEAMS

CROSS-BORDER TEAMS

INTERNAL NETWORKS

GLOBAL NETWORKS

From hierarchy to networks

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

Which one to choose ...Y-model

Source:Team Academy- Partanen 2007and Katzenbach 1993

A working group led by an individual

Basis for an efficient group

1. Common purpose

2. Good communication

3. Clear roles

4. Efficient time management

5. Acceptable responsibility

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.

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

Top

per

form

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E

ffici

ent g

roup

IT DEPENDS ON:

Goals

Nature of tasks

Nature of results

Way of working

Responsibility

Real team

VAMK / Lotta Saarikoski

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

Source: Jon R. Katzenbach and Douglas K. Smith, 1993http://www.lmcuk.com/management-tool/the-team-performance-curve

Tea

m p

rod

uct

ivit

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Low

Hig

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Time

Working group

Fake team

Potential team

Real team

Top team

not all teams becometop teams...

VAMK / Lotta Saarikoski

Team performance development

STAGE 1:Immature group

STAGE 2:Fractionated group

STAGE 3:Sharing group

STAGE 4:Effective team

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

NORMING-consensus-leadership accepted-trust established-standards set-new stable roles-co-operation

PERFORMING-successful performance-flexible, task roles-openness-helpfulness-delusion, disillusion and acceptance

Increasing group effectiveness

over tim

e

VAMK / Lotta Saarikoski

TEAM PRACTICE:1. GO AND JOIN YOUR TEAM AND FIND A NICE PLACE TO DISCUSS

2. 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)

3. 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

4. THEN THE TEAM MAKES A CONSENSUS AGREEEMENT OF THE

3 MOST IMPORTANT ISSUES RELATED TO GOOD TEAM WORK

5. WRITE DOWN THESE 3 MAIN RULES FOR YOUR TEAM WORK

6. PRESENT YOUR TEAM WORK RULES IN YOUR FINAL PP-PRESENTATION

7. 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 ….

VAMK / Lotta Saarikoski

(PLUS OF COURSE FOLLOW YOUR OWN RULES DURING THE IP …)