The First-Time Manager’s Guide to Team Building

Chapter 3. The Four Team Models

There are four different ways you can structure, organize, and manage your teams. These four ways, or team models, have different communication and decision-making styles. As a first-time manager, you need to decide which model best fits the people you manage, the nature of their work, and the culture of your organization. Before we look at the four team models, let’s briefly discuss the three factors that determine the best way to set up a team.

The Three Factors of Team Life

There are three major factors that you should consider when deciding on how you need to structure you team’s communication and decision making. The first and most important factor is the current subject-matter expertise of your team members. ...