Effective Team Members Research Articles

Facilitating Transfer of Skills between Group Projects and Work Teams

As organizations have adopted team-based work arrangements, the use of group projects in education has also grown. One objective is to help prepare students to be effective team members in organizations. Yet, student comments and instructor observations suggest we may not be achieving this objective. This article shows how to apply transfer of learningprinciples, and findings related to work team effectiveness, to improve the chances of skill transfer between school and work. Recommendations include specific ideas for instructors to use before, during, and after group work, and for faculty to consider from a program-level perspective.

Training students to become effective workplace team leaders

Employers often comment on the lack of good team leadership skills exhibited by newly graduated business students. While an understanding of the factors that contribute to effective communication in workplace teams does exist, are we certain that the factors influencing quality of communication between student team leaders and team members are the same as the factors influencing quality of communication in workplace teams? To investigate this issue, students were surveyed. Results indicate that student team leaders mirror workplace team leaders in all but one important factor: the use of exchange as a tactic of influence. Use of supportive influence tactics and recognition that assertive tactics are not effective was consistent with workplace team leader tactics. As with workplace team leaders, trust was an important determinant with satisfaction with the team leader’s communication. Implications and suggestions for training students to become effective team members in the work world are discussed.

Caregiving in nursing homes. Views of licensed nurses and nursing assistants.

This investigation is a qualitative study of the views held by 36 licensed nurses (25 registered nurses and 11 licensed practical nurses) and 40 nursing assistants regarding caregiving in nursing homes. Because these care providers are most directly involved in the delivery of care, their views are important as determinants of quality of care. Study findings focus on the extent to which nurses and nursing assistants agree on what contributes to good care and how they perceive the work that each does. Also reported are their perceptions regarding factors that make care delivery easy or difficult. Results suggest that nurses and nursing assistants share selected perceptions about the division of labor in the nursing home. Also evident are areas of less agreement among these members of different status sets. A discussion of how these caregivers can work together as effective team members is presented.

The effective team member: avoiding team burnout.

This article outlines specific suggestions for team members designed to help ensure that team membership is a satisfying experience. The suggestions offered provide clear guidelines for the responsibilities individual health care providers must assume when working on teams. Your proactive engagement in addressing the suggestions provided is part of an integrated, holistic approach to teams.

Learning to Be an Effective Team Member

The Problem and the Solution. People in organizations are increasingly being asked to work in teams It is often assumed that they can informally learn the competencies they need to be effective at working and learning in groups, but experience suggests that this is not the case This chapter identifies struc tured on-the-job training as the most effective formal strategy for becoming an effective team member It also identifies facilitators of team building and barriers to it and explores implications for practice

Total quality management teams in the office of administrative services, u.s. department of the interior: a success story

Using a multiple case study research technique, this study investigates the hypothesis that Total Quality Management (TQM) teams that function within the Office of Administrative Services, U.S. Department of the Interior in Washington, D.C., successfully achieve their goals when either one of two conditions exist: a team has effective leadership and/or team members are motivated. Using an explanatory case study approach, four TQM teams were used as case studies to examine the various facets of causal arguments. The case study projects include: recognizing and rewarding TQM achievers; conference rooms and auditoriums scheduling/setup; improving Contracting Officer's Technical Representative understanding of the procurement process; and improving workplace services. Based on the findings and the analyses of the case studies, evidence generally supports the original hypothesis with the difference between the original hypothesis and findings being that the conditions of leadership and motivation are both requ...

Teams: group process, success, and barriers.

The business philosophy of total quality management is saturating the healthcare arena, and with it brings new meaning to the old concept of team. Nurses are not exempt from this concept, and will be expected to become effective team leaders and team members. The author reviews the literature on teams to define the concept of teams in the context of group process, and discuss effective team characteristics and barriers that often impede the success of teams. Whether the nurse carries the hat of educator, administrator, practitioner, or staff nurse, all will be part of a team within the changing healthcare environment.

Cross‐cultural collaboration: Whose culture is it, anyway?

By examining the cultural assumptions about what makes an effective team member, this essay argues that we typically design collaborative projects and evaluate student participants by using a Western model of how people should behave in groups. In order to enhance cross‐cultural understanding in collaboration, instructors can help students focus on cultural differences in group emphasis, achievement, decision‐making, and communication styles.

Promoting Productivity of Individuals with Psychiatric Disorders in the Work Setting

Just as physical supports have been provided for the physically disabled in the work environment, psychological supports are needed for the psychiatrically disabled. The occupational health nurse is the best trained and most cost effective health team member to develop the training programs that would provide these psychological supports in the work setting. A four phase comprehensive program is needed to destigmatize psychiatric disabilities and develop adequate support systems. Among the most prevalent psychiatric disabilities, episodes of symptom exacerbation can be managed with the help of a trained peer support person.

Lunar settlements—A socio-economic outlook

The primary ingredient in a Lunar Settlement Program is the people. At the very high cost that will be required to transport, maintain and supply the people who will staff the Lunar operation, it is important to do everything possible to ensure their continued effectiveness in such an isolated, confined, and barren environment. This paper will attempt to identify the issues involved in providing for effective human performance in Lunar Settlements. The approach to be used will be contextual, and thus will not only examine the facets of the Lunar Settlement ifself, but will also look at the organizational elements and the design and development processes used in project management from the point of view of long term success and cost effectiveness. The approach will also attempt to look at the Lunar Settlement in time as it is connected to events and experiences as they will evolve from the Space Station to Lunar Settlements. Finally, the approach will be contextual in the range of disciplines considered and their impact on planning, evolution, and activities in the entire process of Lunar Settlement. We will hope that Lunar settlers will be able to work and live as effective team members, and to make that possible, the designers, developers, builders, and managers must also function as a coherent team working together to bring about a common goal.

Profile of an Effective Hospice Team Member

This study was designed to determine the competencies that hospice practitioners and experts in the field would agree upon as necessary attributes to being an effective hospice team member. The Delphi method was employed to solicit the desired competencies. Subsequently, after further data analysis, the final version of the questionnaire was reduced to twenty-nine items. The results indicated strong positive agreement between the rankings of the practitioners, emotional and interpersonal characteristics needed by hospice personnel to effectively function with the dying and their families in a hospital environment.

Safety in Team Building — The Contracting Process

The process of team building may be inhibited by feelings of personal risk and insecurity. The individual needs to feel safe before becoming an effective team member, and contracting can provide this safety. The “contract” is the system of rules defining acceptable behaviour between people, and two important components of the package are the “task” and “personal” elements. The whole contract must be discussed openly and carefully maintained as the team matures and changes.