We all have our own strengths, personal traits and particular abilities, while working together we can combine our strong points and cover up the holes created by the individual weaknesses. In theory, teamwork is the ultimate solution for solving a task, however it isn’t always as easy as we would like.
Having multiple leaders can cause a battle for power, while a group without decision makers can make the task difficult to lift off the ground. A number of brilliant minds have spent their lives learning from workplaces to built a teamwork theory, which results in happy team members and the objective being completed efficiently and effectively.
These theories are largely based around following particular procedures and protocols.
Belbin introduced the ‘team roles’ theory, which was based around the concept that you needed to understand each individuals particular strengths and weaknesses, in order to assign them the most pertinent role.
Contrasting to Belbin’s view, Tajfel shared the Social Identity Theory, which was focused on the grouping environment rather than the individual. He found that when people were placed in groups, they would often show favouritism to people within their group, as they felt a sense of social identity.
All of these theories are fully supported and are backed by thorough research and evidence. Reading and learning from this research can help you to improve the collaborative work of your team and can help everyone to work towards the overall goal.
Each week we will be bringing out a new Team Building Theory:
1 – John Adair’s Leadership Theory
2 – Belbin’s Team Role Theory
Take a look at our Team Building page if you’re interested in arranging an activity for your workplace. We run programmes all over the country, both inside and outside, so we can work with you to set-up the best possible event.
