Development Of Team Performance Research Articles

Team reflections, team mental models and team performance over time

Purpose Although previous research proved positive impacts of team reflection on team outcomes, especially team performance and innovation, there are only a few insights in to which factors (mediators) account for these positive effects and over what period these effects unfold (temporal effects). To close this gap, this paper aims to investigate the direct effects of team reflection on team performance over time, as well as indirect effects because of the development of similar and accurate team mental models to explain this relationship. Design/methodology/approach Within a longitudinal experimental study on 22 student project teams working on a complex problem-solving task, the effects of repeated team reflection interventions on the development of team performance and team mental models over six measuring times were analysed. Findings Results show that team reflections caused significant increases in team performance and team mental models over time. Results also provide evidence that team mental models’ quality mediates the effects of team reflections on team performance. Research limitations/implications The results are interesting for both research fields, team reflection and team mental models, as the findings indicate the merits of recurrent reflection for improving team mental models’ quality. Practical implications For organisational practice, the question of how reflection processes can be deliberately triggered in teams and effectively integrated into the daily routine should be considered. Originality/value The findings accentuate the role of team reflections for improving team performance team mental models over time. By continuous reflecting teams increase awareness and insights into effective team processes and strategies (i.e. shared and accurate team mental models), which lead to better performance.

Modeling team performance from the perspective of politics and ethical leadership

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to develop and test a model of team performance by applying social exchange and social capital perspectives in a single model setting. It hypothesizes that team performance is indirectly affected by politics through leader–member capitalization (LMC) and by ethical leadership through leader–member exchange (LMX). Meanwhile, team identification is hypothesized to moderate the relationships between politics and LMC and between ethical leadership and LMX. Design/methodology/approach The hypotheses of this study were empirically tested using a survey of work teams from the banking and insurance industry in Taipei, Taiwan. Findings The relationship between team performance and ethical leadership is fully mediated by LMX, while the indirect relationship between team performance and politics is mediated via both LMC and LMX. Team identification positively moderates the relationship between ethical leadership and LMX. Originality/value This study is one of the few to examine the mediating roles of LMC and LMX simultaneously in team performance development. This study provides several key findings that complement the existing literature by evaluating fresh associations among LMC, LMX and their determinants and moderator.

Modeling knowledge sharing and team performance

PurposeTo deepen our understanding about the development of team performance, the purpose of this paper is to develop a model that explains how ambidexterity and ethical leadership affect knowledge sharing and team performance through within-team competition.Design/methodology/approachThis study demonstrates the applicability of ambidexterity and within-team competition by surveying 78 teams from the high-tech and banking industries. This study further presents a three-way interaction among ambidexterity, politics and job complexity.FindingsThis study finds that both ambidexterity and ethical leadership are positively related to knowledge sharing and team performance through the mediation of team development competition.Originality/valueThis study confirms that ambidexterity and ethical leadership play critical factors for improving knowledge sharing and team performance through the mediation of team development competition. Furthermore, the moderating effects of politics and job complexity are also confirmed in the research.

Modeling leadership and team performance

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to develop a research model that explains team performance based on social cognitive theory and social exchange theory. In the model, team performance indirectly relates to three kinds of leadership (i.e., charismatic, autocratic and considerate) via the full mediation of collective efficacy. At the same time, team justice as a focus in this study is examined as a moderator in the model.Design/methodology/approachThe research hypotheses of this study were empirically tested using two-wave data collection across insurance sales teams from a leading bank holding company which is the largest bank holding company in Taiwan. In the first-wave data collection, researchers of this study surveyed six people anonymously from each sales team, including a team leader and five team members. Three months later, the researchers conducted the second-wave data collection by obtaining team performance data from the department of human resource management, which was an independent rater for each team’s performance. Two-wave data collection from 59 teams was achieved for verifying the hypothesized effects.FindingsThe team-level test results show that collective efficacy fully mediates the relationship between charismatic leadership and team performance and between considerate leadership and team performance. Justice moderates the relationship between collective efficacy and team performance and between charismatic leadership and collective efficacy.Originality/valueThis study has two major theoretical implications. First, this study conceptualized three distinct kinds of leadership as major determinants of team performance from a social exchange perspective. Such a theoretical conceptualization of leadership not only broadens the boundary of leadership beyond traditional one such as transactional leadership based on the theory of contingent reward but also closely reflects the practical status quo of leadership of teams. Second, this research incorporated social exchange theory into the framework of team performance in social cognitive theory. Specifically, this study theorized and validated justice as a moderator in the development of team performance.

Neighbourhood Care Development in Inverness, Highland, Scotland

Introduction: NHS Highland is responsible for the delivery of all adult health and social care services in this area with the Highland Council responsible for the delivery of children’s services under a Lead Agency model developed as part of health and social care integration in 2012. Whilst integration had brought together adult health and social care services into a single organisation the real benefit was not realised in Inverness due to the comparatively large size of the teams this created. There was an extended length of stay in hospital and waiting lists for assessment and commencement of care packages. Description of practice change: From 2 large district teams 7 community neighbourhood teams were formed with a single referral route to each team. The teams are responsible for all aspects of caseload management with decision making supported by multi-professional huddles. Work in progress to support the teams includes the introduction of an electronic record MORSE, the inclusion of independent care at home providers in huddles, community asset building with Inverness Community Planning Partnership, coaching development for managers and the development of team performance and governance information. Aim and Theory of change: The change is based on the principles of the Buurtzorg model of neighbourhood care in the following ways, Autonomous team decision making and caseload management Neighbourhood teams with a community asset approach to delivering and sustaining care. Coaching enabling team function and efficiency. The aim is to prevent unnecessary admission to hospital and care homes, prevent delay in hospital, provide palliative, preventative and rehabilitative treatment for the neighbourhood population through the effective use of combined team and community resources. We aim to improve staff and patient experience by increasing face to face time between staff and patients and reducing bureaucracy and duplication. Targeted populations and stakeholders: All adults requiring health or social care support in Inverness. Stakeholders are community team members, managers, GPs, independent sector care providers, acute and community hospitals in Inverness. Timeline: The model has been developing since 2016 with further supporting changes planned over the next year. Highlights: Builds on the foundations laid by the formation of the Lead Agency model which has not required cross organisational boundary work so restructure has been quick to effect. Comment on sustainability: The model requires organisational and community planning support to be sustainable. Comment on Transferability: Readily transferable to other integrated teams with effective cross-organisational working. Conclusion: These are early days but the smaller teams have embraced the change with a real sense of responsibility for supporting their local communities. Metrics are in place to measure the impact which will be reported on in due course. Discussions: What level of autonomy is desirable and possible in NHS organisations? Challenges for social care inspection and registration bodies. Lessons learned: Large teams lead to silo working. Clearer focus on meeting outcomes requires not just multidisciplinary but joint multi-agency and community engagement in its widest sense to be successful.

Modeling knowledge sharing and team performance in technology industry: the main and moderating effects of happiness

This study complements previous literature by bridging activity theory and the broaden-and-build theory to examine how happiness (as an intrinsic driver) and knowledge sharing (as an extrinsic driver) influence team performance. The contributions of this study are twofolds. First, this study fills a research gap concerning what mediates the simultaneous influences of happiness and knowledge sharing on team performance. Second, both main and moderating effects of happiness in the development of team performance are explored in this study, which is rarely discussed in the literature. By surveying 116 teams from high-tech firms in Taiwan, this study opens a black box regarding the mediation of team proactivity and team proficiency and the moderation of happiness in the development of team performance. Lastly, managerial implications and limitations based on the empirical findings are provided.

Exploring the Characteristics of Effective Teams Using a Cots Team Task

In this study we examined the relationship between individual and group factors in the development of team performance in a distributed synthetic task. Individual characteristics included interaction anxiety, learning style, age, and video game experience. Group factors included cohesion, communication, and cooperation. We matched participants on video game experience and divided them into two teams. Teams ranged in size from 5–9 teammates. Over the course of four days of experimentation, participants in both groups learned a complex distributed team task called Microsoft Allegiance. First, participants trained as individuals, then as teams in noncompetitive tasks, and finally as teams in head-to-head competition. Results indicated that teams winning the head-to-head competitions showed no difference on the individual factors. However, winning teams showed higher group cohesion and communication. These results are discussed in terms of learning and performance support for military application of command and control.