Team Vision Research Articles

VISÃO COMPARTILHADA, EQUIPE DE DIREÇÃO E GESTÃO ESTRATÉGICA DE PEQUENAS E MÉDIAS EMPRESAS: UM ESTUDO MULTI-CASO E INTERNACIONAL

Abstract: This article presents a synthesis of a research realized during five years. The objective of this research was to describe and to explain the formation and evolution of the shared vision (shared mental image about a desired future condition to realize) of top management teams in six Brazilian and Canadian small and medium enterprises (SME). The methods were qualitative. The results do not indicate differences among the cases that could be related to the different regions, countries or industries of the SME studied. The main explaining models that helped us to attend the research objectives are presented here. At the end, the article identifies several research needs, besides some implications of the results to practice in SME. Key words: small and medium enterprises (SME); strategy; top management team; shared vision; strategic conversation

We've never done it this way before: Prompting organizational change through stories

AbstractOrganizations have discovered that storytelling is a powerful change management tool for addressing the emotional issues that have torpedoed many an initiative. Leaders from five businesses discuss how stories finally enabled employees and other stakeholders to get on board with major change efforts. The cases include organizations that used metaphors to create a common team vision, a road map for new business strategy, and the future vision for a massive high tech merger, as well as leaders who used personal stories to convey the essence of a difficult business issue for a skeptical audience.This article is reprinted from the book, Wake Me Up When the Data Is Over: How Organizations Use Stories to Drive Results, by Lori L. Silverman (Jossey‐Bass, 2006) © 2006 John Wiley & Sons.

Team Leadership

In response to the challenge of assigning and conducting group projects, this article lays out a brief context for team projects and puts forth a positive vision of teams and leadership. The authors provide some guiding values, tools, and goals and propose a model that expands the usual conceptualization of the student-team leadership challenge. The authors also share a number of project worksheets that they have developed over the years that have helped increase the learning that occurs through group projects.

Influence of top management team vision and work team characteristics on innovation

PurposeThis work has three main objectives – to analyse whether the strategic vision of the top management team (TMT) directly affects firms' innovation performance; to shed some light on which of the intrinsic characteristics of work teams proposed in the literature influence innovation; and to analyse the joint effect that the TMT's vision and the work team's characteristics may exert on innovation performance.Design/methodology/approachThe sample for this study was chosen from the Dun & Bradstreet database. The population consists of firms with more than 50 employees belonging to the three sectors of the Spanish economy with the largest number of registered patents according to statistics from the Spanish Office of Patents and Brands (960 firms).FindingsThe results indicate that the TMT's strategic vision alone does not explain companies' innovation performance. Innovation also requires the existence of diverse, cohesive, and autonomous work teams whose members engage in fluent informal communication.Research limitations/implicationsThe empirical evidence demonstrates the complexity of the innovation performance that has to be encouraged by the TMT, but also supported by the existence of teams with specific characteristics.Practical implicationsThese results offer relevant implications for R&D managers about the way teams should be formed to increase innovation. The paper derives some conclusions about the key characteristics of work teams that, in combination with the view of the TMT, can affect innovation in firms.Originality/valueThe majority of earlier studies have analysed theoretically the effect of both variables – the strategic vision of the TMT and the intrinsic characteristics of teams – on innovation, but separately. This paper analyses the joint effects that the intrinsic characteristics of work teams have on innovation, which resolve some contradictions regarding the way some variables affect innovation of the firm. Finally the results offer empirical evidence on how Spanish firms obtain innovation performances.

Computer visualisation of patient safety in primary care: a systems approach adapted from management science and engineering

Patient safety and medical errors in ambulatory primary care are receiving increasing attention from policy makers, accreditation bodies and researchers, as well as by practising family physicians and their patients. While a great deal of progress has been made in understanding errors in hospital settings, it is important to recognise that ambulatory settings pose a very large and different set of challenges and that the types of hazards that exist and the strategies required to reduce them are very different. What is needed is a logical theoretical model for understanding the causes of errors in primary care, the role of healthcare systems in contributing to errors, the propagation of errors through complex systems and, importantly, for understanding ambulatory primary care in the context of the larger healthcare system. The authors have developed such a model using a formal 'systems engineering' approach borrowed from the management sciences and engineering. This approach has not previously been formally described in the medical literature.This paper outlines the formal systems approach, presents our visual model of the system, and describes some experiences with and potential applications of the model for monitoring and improving safety. Applications include providing a framework to help focus research efforts, creation of new (visual) error reporting and taxonomy systems, furnishing a common and unambiguous vision for the healthcare team, and facilitating retrospective and prospective analyses of errors and adverse events. It is aimed at system redesign for safety improvement through a computer-based patient-centred safety enhancement and monitoring instrument (SEMI-P). This model can be integrated with electronic medical records (EMRs).

Application of the Hoshin Kanri methodology at a higher education establishment in the UK

Hoshin Kanri has been described as one of the core aspects of Japan’s management system, for integrating the principles of total quality management (TQM) within the organisation’s business strategy. Although most of the published case studies have involved large multinational manufacturers, the authors believe that Hoshin Kanri can be applied in any type or size of organisation. This paper describes how the quality and reliability (Q&R) team of the Warwick Manufacturing Group (WMG) at the University of Warwick has applied Hoshin Kanri to create a deeper understanding of customer requirements, a team vision and strategic goals. Deployment has led to achievement of team consensus and commitment to delivering and reviewing the plan, and has demonstrated that the technique works well in a small team within the service sector.

CONTRIBUTIONS OF COMMUNION ECCLESIOLOGY TO THE COMMUNAL-CONTEXTUAL MODEL OF CARE

(2002). CONTRIBUTIONS OF COMMUNION ECCLESIOLOGY TO THE COMMUNAL-CONTEXTUAL MODEL OF CARE. Journal of Pastoral Theology: Vol. 12, No. 2, pp. 28-50.

Nurses happy to become patients’ first port of call

British Medical Association report sets out new vision for the healthcare team

The fuzzy front end and success of new product development: a causal model

While managers and researchers agree that the fuzzy front end of new product development (NPD) is critical for project success, the meaning of the term “front‐end fuzziness” remains vague. It is often used broadly to refer to both the exogenous causes and the internal consequences of fuzziness. This imprecise language makes it difficult for managers to separate cause and effect and thus identify specific prescriptive remedies for “fuzziness” problems. The vagueness of the concept and the lack of a framework for defining “front‐end fuzziness” also impede empirical research efforts. Building upon uncertainty theory, we define front‐end fuzziness in terms of environmental uncertainties. Front‐end fuzziness has consequences for a project’s team vision. It reduces the team’s sense of shared purpose and causes unclear project targets and priorities. Describes how foundation elements of a firm’s overall product development program can help project teams cope with front‐end fuzziness.

Development of an Interdisciplinary Dysphagia Team in the Public Schools.

This article describes the development of a school-based dysphagia team (swallowing action team [SWAT]) within the St. Tammany Parish School System located in Covington, Louisiana. The team's vision was to ensure safe nutrition and hydration for students at risk for swallowing dysfunction during school hours. This article addresses how the team was initially formed, the process of identifying students who were exhibiting a swallowing disorder, steps taken for staff development, and problems encountered in seeking administrative approval. The current status of the dysphagia program, as well as future plans for further implementation, are also presented.

Analysis of teamwork in an NHS community trust: an empirical study

The following paper describes the results of an empirical investigation into four different types of teamworking within an inner-city National Health Service (NHS) community trust in the UK. The four kinds of team were: (1) single-disciplinary (e.g. district nursing teams, health visiting teams); (2) multidisciplinary (a group of professionals working within a clinic or health centre); (3) management (e.g. planning and development teams); and (4) primary health care (a group of health professionals and support staff arranged around a general practice or set of practices). The present study involved a survey of 259 members of 30 teams. Nineteen of the teams were multidisciplinary clinic or health centre teams. Six of the teams were primary health care teams, two were single-disciplinary teams, and three were NHS management teams. Team members were surveyed during team building workshops with the Team Climate Inventory (TCI: Anderson & West, 1994) which measured team climate on four levels: participative safety; innovation; task orientation; and team vision. A one-way analysis of variance of the data collected from each of the 30 teams found statistically significant differences on two out of the four factors of team functioning. The present study uncovered similar findings to those obtained by West & Poulton (1997). The paper discusses the results in light of the UK government's White Paper on the National Health Service The New NHS: Modern, Dependable (Department of Health, 1997) and offers recommendations for resolving difficulties in primary health care teamwork.

Developing effective social support: Team building and the social support process

Team members who provide each other with several types of social support (e.g., listening support, reality confirmation support, and task appreciation support) offer each other the opportunity to increase their physical and emotional well-being. Also, teams that employ strategies to enhance their social support as part of a team-building intervention are more likely to build a working, achieving, successful organization, one with effective communication and a shared commitment to team goals and a team vision of success. This article presents a rationale for enhancing the development of team social support, describes the social support process and a measurement tool based on the characteristics of that process, outlines strategies for maintaining and enhancing student-athletes' social support, and concludes with comments regarding intervention evaluation.

METHOD BEHIND THE MADNESS IN SYSTEM MODELING

AbstractAs systems grow in complexity, the value of system modeling is magnified. In addition to the system design itself, many benefits — ranging from a common team vision to improved design quality — are obtained from a system model. Important considerations in model development are discussed, including the introduction and utilization of methodologies, evaluation and application of automation tools, and training for project team members. Emphasis is placed on the significance of using a methodology for defining system design scope, design completeness, and process repeatability. Where applicable, effective metrics are also identified. Experiences in the administration and use of a specific methodology to produce multiple, graphical views of a system model are related by the author.