roductivity, higher quality and can be more cost efficient than traditional solo efforts. Teamwork also tends to improve job satisfaction, motivation and employee morale. This research examines team environments, the benefits associated with such environments, how teams can be organized, the stages of team development, and how those stages can be accelerated in order that companies can realize the benefits sooner. Drawbacks and potential pitfalls are identified throughout the report.
A study conducted by the American Society for Training and Development interviewed 230 human resources directors about teamwork results (Montebello and Buzzotta, March 1993, p. 59). The survey found that productivity improved in 77 percent of the respondents' companies after a team approach was implemented. Quality improvements due to teamwork were reported in 72 percent of the companies. Waste was reduced in 55 percent of the companies included in the survey. Job satisfaction improved in 65 percent of the companies, and customer satisfaction improved in 57 percent of the companies. Additional benefits cited by those responding to the survey included more efficient production scheduling, improved production goal setting and increased ability of team members to resolve their own disputes. With these types of benefits to be gained by implementing a team approach, companies are increasingly turning to this type of management in today's highly competitive environment.
Traditional management approaches of one manager with many subordinates are based on compartmentalized functions, fragmented tasks and sequential, simplified activities. Such characteristics are reflective of the assembly line that Henry Ford pioneered. Modern work processes are more complex, often nonlinear, and frequently unable to be simplified into strings of quick and sequential tasks. The productivity and quality that companies need to survive require a high degree of colla...