Beyond Team Building

3COMPOSITION: PUTTING THE RIGHT PEOPLE ON THE TEAM

If the organization's context is supportive of teamwork, the next task is to determine the size of the team, who should be on the team, and how team members should be managed depending on their skillset and motivation. In this chapter, we will explore these issues and provide an assessment instrument for evaluating the composition of a team.

Team Composition and Performance

For a team to succeed, its members need two things: 1) the skills to accomplish goals laid out for the team, and 2) “fire in the belly,” that is, the motivation to succeed. In addition, research has shown that successful teams are comprised of team members who also have the following characteristics:¹

• Effective interpersonal and communication skills
• A willingness to help and support other team members in their efforts to achieve team goals
• Good conflict management skills
• Ability to adapt to new situations
• Dependability and ability to take initiative to help the team achieve its goals

Effective team leaders understand that the way they manage the team and individual team members is strongly influenced by the degree to which team members are both skilled and motivated (see Figure 3.1). In some instances, team members may not have the necessary background and skills, or may not be properly motivated to work on the team, as seen in quadrant I of Figure 3.1. When team members are neither skilled nor motivated, team leaders may be wise to drop them from the team ...