1. Team Leadership
AGED 3153

2. If you look for the worst in people and expect to find it, you surely will.
~ Abraham Lincoln

3. Overview Team leadership approach perspective
A functional model of team leadership
Dimensions of leadership on teams
Characteristics of effective teams
Strategic leadership decisions
How does the team leadership model work?

4. Team Leadership
Most popular & rapidly growing areas of theory and research
Organizational groups composed of members who are:
Independent
Share common goals
Must coordinate activities
Examples:

5. Importance of Team Leadership
Organizations are:
Rapid organizational changes
Organizational team structure
Quickly respond/ adapt to constant changes

6. Team Leadership Approach Description
Effectiveness research (Parker, 1990)
The use of teams has led to:
Greater productivity
More effective use of resources
Better decisions & problem solving
Better-quality products & services
Increased innovation & creativity
Issues
Team process is difficult to understand
Complex
Leader ineffectiveness is major obstacle to overall team

7. Critical Leadership Functions
Facilitate the group in accomplishing its task
(Task Function/Team Performance)
Getting job done, making decisions, solving problems, etc.
Ensure group maintenance and functioning
(Maintenance Function/Team Development)
Developing positive climate, solving interpersonal problems, satisfying members’ needs, etc.
Interrelated

8. Team Leadership Model (Hill)
Provides a tool for understanding the complex phenomenon of team leadership.
Based on the functional leadership claim that the leader’s function or job is to:
Monitor the team
Then to take whatever action is necessary to ensure team effectiveness

9. Dimensions of Team Leadership
Leader: “medium”
One who processes and acts on information
Functions
Monitoring (objection mediation)
Action taking (action mediation)
Helps group form an organizing framework
Effective team performance starts with a leader’s mental model of a situation

11. McGrath’s Critical Leadership Functions
Effective team leaders:
Analyze and balance the internal and external demands of the group and react appropriately
Model incorporates two dimensions
Analysis of situation (internal/external)
Monitoring/ taking action
Leader or experienced team members can carry out functions

12. McGrath’s Critical Leadership Functions
Diagnosing Group Deficiencies 1
Taking Remedial Action
Forecasting Environmental Changes
Preventing Deleterious Changes

13. Dimensions of Team Leadership
Monitoring:
Leaders need to monitor both internal and external environments
Create an accurate model of team functioning
Search - seek out information to assess current state
Structuring - analyze, organize, interpret information
Improve information search by:
Obtaining member feedback
Engaging in networking- outside the team
Conducting team assessment surveys
Evaluating outcomes

14. Dimensions of Team Leadership
Action Taking
Involves
Selecting from competing courses of action
Assisting the team in developing an organization system that facilitates quality decision making
Skills of action mediation
Material resources - Decision making & task accomplishment
Personnel resources - Managing interpersonal relations
For team success, leaders must:
Remain open and objective in understanding and diagnosing team problems
Skillful in selection of appropriate action/inaction

15. Effective Team Characteristics (Hackman & Walton, 1986)
Conditions of Group Effectiveness
Clear, engaging direction
An enabling performance situation
Group structure fostering competent task work
Organizational context supporting and reinforcing excellence
Available, expert coaching and process assistance
Adequate material resources

16. Effective Team Characteristics Larson & LaFasto, 1989
Clear, elevating goal
Involving or motivating goals
Results-driven structure
Meet needs of group & accomplish team goals
Competent Team Members
Right number & mix of members
Informed, educated, trained
Unified Commitment
Involve members in all aspect of the process

17. Effective Team Characteristics Larson & LaFasto, 1989
Collaborative Climate
Based on honesty, openness, consistency & respect
Problem focused, listen to each other, feel free to take risks
Standards of Excellence
Feel pressure to perform at their highest levels
Principled leadership
Understands and performs tasks
External Support & Recognition
Enables group to become more effective and achieve performance goals

18. Team Leadership
Effective team leadership is related to team effectiveness
Leader influences team through four sets of processes:
Helps team understand the problems
Helps the team become cohesive & capable
Affective
Helps team handle stressful circumstances
Coordination
Helps coordinate the team’s activities by matching members’ skills or roles

19. How does the team leadership approach work?

20. Focus Model provides a cognitive map
identify group needs
offers suggestions on appropriate corrective actions
Assists leader in making sense of the complexity of groups
Provides suggested actions to improve group effectiveness

21. What are the strengths of the team leadership approach?

22. What are the criticisms of the team leadership approach?

23. How can we apply the team leadership approach?

24. Summary Team process is complex Critical leadership functions
Facilitate the group in accomplishing its task
Ensure group maintenance and functioning
Effective teams have identifiable characteristics