Essay on Understanding Team Members' Behaviors for Optimal Group Performance

Introduction

Within a group, there exist different types of team members whose roles are different. There tend to be some team roles which are determined by the behavioral tendencies of people within a group. It is important for a leader to understand these behavioral tendencies so that he or she may be able to know the kind of roles to give to various team members to ensure that the objectives of the group have been achieved.

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Roles the Team Members are Playing within the Group

Based on the Belbin team roles, it is possible to categorize the six members into their various roles that they play in the group (Cook, 2009). To begin with, Angela is a finisher. She likes to see that things are done and she ensures that her effort is felt in every project. She works towards ensuring that all the team members are involved in the group's activities.

Tony and Gina are plants. In an organization, plants are the members who are innovative and fast to complete tasks but rarely get involved in perfectibility issues. All they want to see is see all things done. Tony and Gina rarely look at all angles but seek to ensure that tasks have been completed. Jay and Lakeisha are specialists. These seek to get the things done in the most perfect possible without caring about the deadlines.

Conflict within a Group

Conflicts within a group are problematic as it prevents the team members from achieving the objectives. When there is a conflict, it becomes hard for all the members to agree on a common thing. This delays the projects for the team.

All the members of this organization have various weaknesses which may make them unable to handle various issues or projects. First, Angela may not be given a leadership position as she may not get time to play her leadership role because she would like to get engaged in all the projects. Tony and Gina may not be involved in accountancy jobs or jobs that touch on finance as they are likely to make errors which might affect the organization. Jay and Lakeisha may not be given supervisory roles as they are likely to delay tasks past the deadlines and this could have a great impact on the overall performance of the other employees. Finally, George may not be effective in an auditing role as he is likely to end up not doing the work if there is no one to push to do it.

Making this an Effective Group

As a leader, there are many ways I would employ to make this group effective. Firstly, I would assign roles to each of the members depending on their strengths and weaknesses. Secondly, I would take the members through a form of inter-organizational training to help them address their weaknesses. With the weaknesses minimized, it would be very easy to work with a formidable team that is eager to achieve the objectives.

Conclusion

In conclusion, for a team to function effectively, it needs to be made of people who understand the objectives of the group properly. Besides, it would need a leader who is visionary and who is able to pull the strength of the members together and help them correct their weaknesses. This way, the organization will succeed.

References

Cook, S. (2009). Building a High-Performance Team: Proven Techniques for Effective Team Working. Ely: IT Governance Pub.