Transformation entails meaningful change. In South Africa (as is increasingly the case in Europe and elsewhere), such change hinges on interaction and communication between citizens of different ...cultures, ethnicities and languages. Where the inability to speak the others' language(s) can inhibit real interaction and genuine communication, choral singing proffers unique opportunities for shared communicative experiences. In 2005, Dr Steve Booysen, then Group Chief Executive of the Absa Group, initiated an internal choir festival as a platform for social interaction and teambuilding for staff across all cultures, age groups and post levels in the bank. Booysen envisaged the choir project as a means of moral support during the Absa-Barclays merger. This article reports on the results of a Doctoral investigation into the extra-musical benefits of this project for Absa, such as transformation and teambuilding. Choral singing as social capital is discussed. The Absa choir project can serve as a microcosm of larger multicultural, multilingual macrocosms. The benefits attained through communal singing in this project may also hold possibilities for attaining unity in diversity in South Africa.
The aim of this paper is to investigate the importance of leadership in health care. It also attempts to guide the aspiring clinical leaders to acquire the necessary leadership skills to help them ...deliver safe high value care for patients. This research paper describes the ingredients for successful leadership including individual attributes, competencies, and leadership outcomes. The findings underline that health-care organizations are increasingly interested to educate and train their clinicians to improve care and ultimately become effective leaders. The main conclusions drawn from this work are that medical schools need to introduce leadership skills at the undergraduate level; and health-care organizations ought to change their policies and encourage clinicians to enroll in professional development programs. This work recommends many opportunities for networking and education for health-care leaders to improve their leadership skills.
Dans un monde où les soins de santé deviennent de plus en plus complexes- tant au plan clinique qu'administratif - on constate aussi que le leadership, l'esprit de subordination et le travail ...d'équipe constituent des éléments essentiels du succès des soins de santé. En fait, dans de nombreux secteurs de la santé, on apporte de plus en plus d'attention au travail d'équipe et à la collaboration, que ce soit dans le choix et la formation des médecins, le perfectionnement du leadership ou la mise en place d'initiatives de qualité des soins et de sécurité des patients. De plus, la documentation à l'appui du lien entre l'esprit d'équipe et l'excellence des résultats cliniques est de plus en plus courante. L'appréciation croissante à l'égard de la valeur du travail d'équipe a augmenté l'attention accordée aux modalités de constitution des équipes dans le milieu des soins de santé, notamment par les cours, les programmes composés d'activités et les ateliers de formation basés sur la simulation de haute-fidélité. Et, dans la mesure où le travail d'équipe réussi exige un leadership solide, le perfectionnement du leadership s'inscrit de plus en plus au rang des priorités des organismes de soins de santé. La présente analyse documentaire témoigne de l'importance de l'esprit d'équipe pour le succès des résultats cliniques. Nous examinons ensuite des stratégies de constitution d'équipe (plus particulièrement en thérapie respiratoire), les compétences essentielles aux dirigeants du milieu des soins de santé et les programmes mis en place pour les enseigner.
Teambuilding frequently includes setting team goals and identifying a team mission, but often neglects the important role of shared team values. Shared values positively impact a team in a number of ...ways, including increased identification with the team, increased trust in team members, and guidance to coaches and athletes in how to respond to situations on and off the playing field/court. This article describes a process that may be used by coaches to purposefully identify team values and to ensure athletes understand, accept, and are committed to those values. Teams that utilize this technique on an annual basis ensure that the values they embrace are relevant, salient, and will guide them toward goal accomplishment. Likewise, as new athletes join the team, this process helps to ensure that they understand and are committed to team values.
Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to describe a research study which is designed to explore the interrelationship between team diversity and task complexity in terms of its impact on ...performance.Design methodology approach - Team diversity was operationalised using the Belbin Team Role model. Task complexity was assessed through a questionnaire completed by team members and performance was assessed by using a questionnaire completed by the manager to whom the team reported. In total, 28 teams participated in the study. The 28 teams encompassed 270 members.Findings - The results of the study demonstrated a clear relationship between team composition (diversity), complexity of task and team performance. Diversity was found to be positively related to performance for complex tasks and negatively related for straightforward tasks.Research limitations implications - The findings indicate that there can be benefit in considering the complexity of a task or project before assembling a team. The degree of complexity could inform the mix of individuals to be included in the team in terms of diversity of personal traits. The study took place within a single organisation and therefore care must be taken in generalizing the findings without evidence from further research.Originality value - The results of this study provide a potentially useful framework for establishing high performance teams.
The key to ensuring quality care for older adults is a nursing workforce that collaborates across professions and provider levels (Wright M.C., Phillips-Bute, B.G., Petrusa, E.R., Griffin, K.L., ...Hobbs, G.W., & Taekman, J.M. (2008). Assessing teamwork in medical education and practice: Relating behavioural teamwork ratings and clinical performance. Med Teach, 29, 1-9).
To improve communication and teamwork among interprofessional health care providers (HCPs) by using innovative teambuilding activities over three years.
Participants: 97 multi-disciplinary HCPs from five long term or home care agencies in an underserved region of New England. Participants attended six interactive sessions focused on teambuilding skills through the use of role play, case studies, games, exercises and teambuilding strategies. The J. A. Hartford Foundation's (John A. Hartford Foundation. (2001). The John A. Hartford Foundation Geriatric Interdisciplinary Team Training (GITT) Program. Available at: http://www.nygec.org/index.cfm?section_id=26&sub_section_id=18&page_id=98) Geriatric Interdisciplinary Team Training (GITT) instrument and Interdisciplinary Teamwork IQ test were used to measure changes in knowledge and attitudes.
T tests performed on matched pre/post GITT instruments (n=26) revealed no significant change, although scores improved slightly from pre: (71%) to post test (73.3%) (p=.39). Teamwork IQ scores also improved slightly though not significantly. Qualitative data gathered suggest that teambuilding exercises were helpful in practice and allowed for better understanding of other provider roles.
Rarely is a variety of health care disciplines invited to participate in educational opportunities together. The interprofessional small group methodology used is a replicable model with potential to overcome barriers in communication and teamwork skills.
OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this report is to describe and evaluate the impact of a 1-day retreat focused on developing leadership skills and teambuilding among postgraduate year 1 residents in an ...internal medicine residency. METHOD: A group of organizers, including members of the staff, the chief medical residents, administrative individuals in the residency office, and an internal organizational development consultant convened to organize an off-site retreat with activities that would provide experiential learning regarding teamwork and leadership, including a "reef survival exercise" and table discussions regarding the characteristics of ideal leaders. In addition, several energizing activities and recreational free time was provided to enhance the interaction and teamwork dimensions of the retreat. To evaluate the impact of the retreat, attendees completed baseline and follow-up questionnaires regarding their experience of the retreat. RESULTS: Attendees universally regarded the retreat as having value for them. Comparison of baseline to postretreat responses indicated that attendees felt that the retreat enhanced their abilities to be better physicians, resident supervisors, and leaders. Follow-up responses indicated significant increases in attendees' agreement that good leaders challenge the process, make decisions based on shared visions, allow others to act, recognize individual contributions, and serve as good role models. Results on the survival exercise indicated a high frequency with which team-based decisions surpassed individual members' decisions, highlighting the importance and value of teamwork to attendees. CONCLUSIONS: Our main findings were that: participants universally found this 1-day retreat beneficial in helping to develop teamwork and leadership skills and the experiential learning aspects of the retreat were more especially highly rated and highlighted the advantages of teamwork. In the context that this 1-day retreat was deemed useful by faculty and residents alike, further study is needed to assess the impact of this learning on actual clinical practice and the durability of these lessons.PUBLICATION ABSTRACT
Virtual teams: a leader's guide Hunsaker, Phillip L; Hunsaker, Johanna S
Team performance management,
01/2008, Letnik:
14, Številka:
1/2
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Purpose - The purpose of this article is to provide guidelines to help leaders understand and lead virtual teams.Design methodology approach - This paper discusses the importance and implementation ...of effective leadership for virtual teams. It begins with a review of conventional versus virtual teams, and then describes the two primary leadership functions in virtual teams - performance management and team development. Following the discussion of the development and function of new teams, the article then provides a detailed guide for the leadership of virtual teams over the life of a project. These guidelines follow the four stages of a project timeline: Pre-Project, Project Initiation, Midstream, and Wrap-Up.Practical implications - Following guidelines and understanding the differences between conventional and virtual leadership will enable managers to become effective virtual team leaders.Originality value - The paper shows how, in the context of increasing globalization and technology, leaders can manage the challenges of leading virtual teams.
Jean-Luc Nancy is a contemporary continental philosopher who argues that the hope of fully unifying a community through work is problematic. This is because people cannot be reduced to their function ...as workers. Thus, community is, at best, inoperative. This article takes Nancy's ideas of community and applies them to the notion of teamwork in business. It shows how in some literature on business teamwork, there is a desire to build a team through shared work experiences. It then explains Nancy's view as to why this cannot work, and it enters into Nancy's positive account of how a community should be seen as a web of people communicating and sharing with each other in a variety of ways. The practical conclusion the study draws is that team members need to be careful about allowing goal orientation to obfuscate the richness of the relationships that occur among team members. People need to explore all of the ways in which people share with each other rather than just those ways that advance a narrow set of goals. If the richness of those relationships is recognized, many new directions for business and for general human development may appear
Purpose - This article aims to provide business managers and executives with a framework of how to best utilize and implement teams in the workplace so as to maximize both internal and external ...diversified skill sets capabilities in team members.Design methodology approach - A combination of primary and secondary research was conducted to highlight and strengthen the authors' views and opinions. The original ideas and basic concepts are based upon the authors' own experiences.Findings - Companies have much to gain from utilizing teams and teamwork within and across corporate boundaries. Success is more likely to be achieved if the team has certain core characteristics. In addition, a heterogeneous team composition could optimize efficiency, quality, and innovation. By collaborating and teaming with external parties companies can overcome internal resource limitations and achieve competitive advantage, greater profitability and maximize chances for long-term survival.Research limitations implications - The article is primarily based upon the authors' own experiences and opinions, which may differ from results of studies and research done on the subject. The secondary research was limited. The survey conducted by the authors was not scientifically constructed. The sample size was small (n=32) but yet statistically significant and based upon a convenience sample.Practical implications - The article may help company executives and managers who want go get the most out of their employees and enhance their work teams' productivity levels, output quality, and creativity.Originality value - The article is a clear and concise read relating to a highly relevant business topic. It takes a multi-level approach to the concept of teams in the workplace, and could serve as a good guide to business leaders on how to create the most efficient and effective work environment for their employees that will ultimately result in more successful and profitable operations.
PDF
