Teamwork: From Team Building to Team Performance

Teams are usually the smallest collective unit in organizations. Their complexity goes beyond the mere composition of individual employees, and thus team performance is more than the sum of individual performances. Successful teamwork starts with team composition, the promotion of team competencies, and continues through to continuous team development. If this process is not implemented and managed holistically, team performance cannot be sustained in the long run.

Definition of ##Teams##

Let's start with a common understanding – the definition of a team. The complexity of the topic becomes apparent here. There is no universally accepted definition of the construct of a team. However, there are various approaches to distinguishing teams from groups. One of them is the definition by John Katzenbach (1994):

"A small number of people with complementary skills, who are committed to a common purpose, performance goals and approach, for which they hold themselves mutually accountable."

This definition already sets a high standard for a team. In our experience, these aspects are often deficiencies and reasons for limited team performance: lack of skillset, lack of shared purpose, goal understanding, and unclear responsibilities.

This definition also provides focal points for effective team development and, consequently, teamwork.

##Challenges## of Successful Teamwork

The challenges in teamwork are not only the internal team aspects outlined in the definition but also dynamics within the team and between teams.

In contrast to promoting individual performance, teams add another dimension: the collective level. Each team member assumes implicit and explicit roles in a team, and there are varying degrees of interdependence. Additionally, subgroups with their own competing motives and agendas can always form. Social processes and phenomena can be decisive in determining whether teamwork is successful and whether team performance remains strong over time.

Furthermore, there are the interfaces that teams have horizontally, vertically, and externally with other teams. The main challenge here lies in communication and coordination. This becomes even more critical the shorter the lifespan of a team. Project teams are an example of this. Additionally, someone may work on a project team but still belong to their original team, leading to role changes, additions, and potential role conflicts.

The Solution: ##Data-Driven## Team Development

To ensure sustainable team success, a holistic process is needed that starts with team building and team profiling, defines team goals, and establishes measures for team development. Goal achievement must be continuously monitored, and development must be adapted accordingly.

Team Building and Team Profiling

Team building is much more than a simple workshop or a short team event. It's about designing the team's composition with targeted attention to the individual strengths and areas for development of its members. Through team profiling, it is precisely analyzed what personal, social, and technical competencies exist within the team, how they interact, and what potential conflicts or synergies may arise. Possible team deficits can also be identified so that necessary competencies can be supplemented or learned. This forms the foundation for efficient and effective teamwork.

Best Practice – Regular Team Profiling:
A one-time team profiling is often not enough. Teams evolve, and it makes sense to update profiles at regular intervals. This way, changes in team dynamics, caused by the entry of new members or the departure of existing ones, can be recognized and addressed early.

Team Goals and Team Development

Once the team has reflected on itself, its respective roles, competencies, and interfaces, team goals come into focus. A shared understanding of the goals to be achieved is essential to harmonize cooperation. Targeted team development must then continuously strengthen and support the team. This involves not only developing the competencies of individual members but also collective progress in areas like communication skills, conflict management, clear role distribution, and setting mutual expectations within the team.

Best Practice – Setting SMART Goals:
An established and simple framework to start with goal definition is the SMART model (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and time-bound). This helps increase clarity in goal pursuit and fosters a common understanding within the team.

Development should be viewed as an ongoing process that is optimized through reflection and adjustments to goals and measures. Regular team evaluations and feedback loops can be useful to measure progress and make necessary corrections.

Team Monitoring and Team Tracking

A one-time team building or team development effort is not enough to ensure long-term success. This is where team monitoring comes into play. By continuously tracking progress toward goals, team dynamics can be regularly evaluated. Data plays a crucial role, providing real-time insights into the challenges and successes of the team. This allows for timely adjustments and early identification of problem areas.

Best Practice – Real-Time Data Analysis:
With digital tools, team leaders can track collaboration in real-time and identify where difficulties arise. These tools allow quick responses before larger problems develop.

This proactive goal tracking ensures that the team stays on course in its continuous development, adapts quickly to challenges, and learns from them effectively.

##Conclusion##

Sustainable teamwork requires a systematic, well-thought-out process that goes far beyond the simple assembly of a team. From team building to the clear definition of team goals, through to continuous team development, all steps are essential to ensuring long-term team performance. Crucially, the team must not only be developed but also monitored through ongoing team tracking to regularly assess and adjust goal achievement. Only through this holistic approach can lasting, successful collaboration be guaranteed. Teams are more than the sum of their parts – their performance and value creation are as complex as they are crucial to the success of an organization.