P1 – Explain the importance of teams and the benefits of being in a team. Include the types of teams (formal and informal).
Teamwork in the workplace offers the company and staff the ability to become more familiar with each other and learn how to work together. There are several ways in which teamwork is important and vital to the success of the company and to the development of each employee. Understanding those important elements will assist in developing company policies geared toward encouraging team growth in the workplace.
Delegation
A team that works well together understands the strengths and weaknesses of each team member. One of the benefits of strong teamwork in the workplace is that team leaders and members become proficient at dividing up tasks so they are done by the most qualified people. Without strong teamwork, it can be difficult for managers and executives to determine which staff members can best accomplish job tasks.
Efficiency
Work groups and teams develop systems that allow them to complete tasks efficiently and quickly. When a task is handed to a well-trained and efficient team, the team's work pace assures that the task will be completed quickly and accurately. This allows the company to take on more work and generate more revenue without having to add more staff. This becomes helpful when efficient teams from different departments work together. Each team is well aware of its own abilities and the groups can work together effectively as opposed to disjointed groups of employees who may not be familiar with how to work together.
Ideas
Teams in the workplace often meet to discuss how to solve company issues. When a team works well together, it allows staff members to feel more comfortable in offering suggestions. Team members become accustomed to processing brainstorming information and the company benefits from the variety of suggestions that come from effective teams.
Support
There are challenges each day in any workplace, and a strong team environment can act as a support mechanism for staff members. Work group members can help each other improve their performance and work together toward improving their professional development. Team members also come to rely on each other and trust each other. These bonds can be important when the team faces a particularly difficult challenge or if the group is forced to deal with the loss of a team member while still trying to maintain productivity.
The complexity and nature of some work makes it difficult for an individual to complete assigned tasks effectively. For this reason, companies form teams of people with complementary skills who work together, pooling experience and accomplishing common goals. As employees coordinate their efforts in a mutually supportive manner, a company benefits in many ways, including increased performance in work production.
Team members interact on a continuous basis for the duration of a task or project. In the process, employees develop friendships and a sense of unity. As morale develops, team members build a sense of fellowship, common interests and commitment to the accomplishment of the team's objectives.
Job Satisfaction
Working together, team members pool their complementary skills and experience, which may improve each employee's individual performance. In turn, improved performance may increase job satisfaction, enhancing an employee's self-esteem and the joy he finds in his work. As an individual enjoys his work more, he becomes more motivated to perform well and becomes more effective in his work.
Resource Utilization
When teams of people with complementary skills mutually cooperate to accomplish goals, the employee’s complete work faster than otherwise would be possible. Using teams, multiple people can work simultaneously to complete individual tasks, which reduce the time required to complete specific activities and increases the speed with which primary objectives are accomplished.