A team needs to have certain enabling processes in place for people to carry out their work together. Certain things need to be in place that will allow the task to be achieved in a way that is as efficient and as effective as possible. Glaser and Glaser (1992) comment, ‘both participation in all of the processes of the work group and the development of a collaborative approach are at the heart of effective group work. Because of the tradition of autocratic leadership, neither participation nor collaboration are natural or automatic processes. Both require some learning and practice.’
Typical areas that a team need actively to address by discussing and agreeing include:
- frequency, timing and agenda of meetings;
- problem-solving and decision-making methodologies;
- groundrules;
- procedures for dealing with conflict when it occurs;
- reward mechanisms for individuals contributing to team goals;
- type and style of review process.
In the turbulence created by change all these areas will come under additional stress and strain, hence the need for processes to have been discussed and agreed at an earlier stage. During times of change when typically pressures and priorities can push people into silo mentality and away from the team, the team operating processes can act like a lubricant, enabling healthy team functioning to continue.