Home
>
Team Building
>
Station Teams: Assembly Required

Station Teams: Assembly Required

Too often teams aren't assembled. They just happen. A project comes along and a team is assigned to work it. The group gathers and attempts to figure out a solution, but trouble starts brewing almost at once. Only some of the people do any work. Some people don't get along. Meetings are frequent and mind numbing. No one is quite sure what the assignment actually is.

I call well-assembled teams Station Teams. Station teams are based on what we know to be true about people and organizations, and are aligned with the principles of WYSINWYG (what you see is never what you get), balance and simplicity. The constituent parts of station team assembly are size, civics, and work. Each of the parts is important in its own right, but taken together, they provide for continuous and effective team operation. Their assembly optimizes the chances for success.

When it comes to teams, size does matter. By definition it takes at least two people to make a team - there is no upper limit. But studies have consistently shown that performance is directly related to team size. With over forty years of research supporting the contention, we know that team size optimizes at five members. Beyond this point, productivity plateaus between six and nine members. With more than nine members there is a distinct productivity loss. The implication is obvious - keep teams small.

A team is primarily a social unit, and as such requires liberal applications of civility in order to thrive. This entails demonstrating respect for others, exercising courtesy and acting politely. It means behaving with integrity and putting the needs of the many above your own. When exercised, civility grows strong teams that are highly resilient. It produces long lasting loyalties, builds confidence and super charges productivity. Nothing, however, undermines a team faster than a lack of civility among its members. Such a lack has a devastating and corrosive effect. It must never be permitted to take root.

People usually know what is socially required. To be sure, most employers have policies regarding employee conduct, but few of these deals with subjects such as being "nice" to one another. Yet, being "nice" is one of those low cost, high payback behaviors.

We're right sized, have great attitudes and everyone is behaving well. Now what? What exactly do teams do? Teams gather data and make decisions about planning, developing and operating projects or tasks. The type of data and sophistication of the decision will largely determine how the team is assembled. Simply put, different types of work will require different types of teams.

As it relates to the business of team work, data gathering and decision making exist on a single continuum. At one end of this continuum is factual data gathering and at the other end is subjective decision-making. Remember that this continuum represents types of work to be accomplished. The type of work will determine the type of team required to get the job done.

That's a very brief look at team assembly. Remember that the care with which team makers and leaders assemble the team will directly impact the team's success.

George Ebert is the President of trinity river seminars and consulting, a firm specializing in the custom design and delivery of team building, personal growth and ethical development programs. Mr. Ebert is a highly sought after speaker, educator and consultant with over thirty years experience in both the public and private sectors. He has presented widely throughout the Unites States. He is the author of the management cult classic, Climbing From the Fifth Station: A guide to building teams that work!

detailed home cleaning Park Ridge ..

In The News:

Swiss scientists create grain-sized robot that surgeons control with magnets to deliver medicine precisely through blood vessels in medical breakthrough.

Researchers exploited WhatsApp's API vulnerability to scrape 3.5 billion phone numbers. Learn how this massive data breach happened and protect yourself.

Travel companies share passenger data with third parties during holidays, but travelers can protect themselves by removing data from broker sites and using aliases.

Xpeng's humanoid robot moves so realistically that crowds believed it was fake, marking a major advancement in robotics technology ahead of 2026 commercial launch.

Researchers discover phishing scam using invisible characters to evade email security, with protection tips including password managers and two-factor authentication.

iPhone and Android users can reduce battery drain and data usage by restricting Background App Refresh to Wi-Fi connections instead of mobile networks.

Scammers nearly stole an Apple account by exploiting the support system with authentic-looking tickets and phone calls, users can protect themselves with safety steps.

FoloToy restored sales of its AI teddy bear Kumma after a weeklong suspension following safety group findings of risky and inappropriate responses to children.

Threat intelligence firm Synthient uncovers one of the largest password exposures ever, prompting immediate security recommendations.

Viral video shared by Elon Musk shows Tesla's Optimus humanoid robots performing tasks from cooking to construction, garnering over 58.5 million views on social media.

Chinese hackers used Anthropic's Claude AI to launch autonomous cyberattacks on 30 organizations worldwide, marking a major shift in cybersecurity threats.

Apple's new Sleep Score feature gives you a rating for your nightly rest quality. Learn how to set it up on your Apple Watch and iPhone today.

Essential phone settings to enable before losing your device, including Find My network, location services and security features for iPhone and Android.

The Fox News AI Newsletter gives readers the latest AI technology advancements, covering the challenges and opportunities AI presents.

Cybersecurity research shows weak passwords remain a major threat, with simple patterns and number sequences putting millions of accounts at risk.

New Android malware BankBot YNRK silences phones, steals banking data and drains crypto wallets automatically. Learn how this advanced threat works.

FDA approves first human trial for Paradromics' brain-computer interface that could restore speech for paralyzed patients through neural technology.

New phishing platform QRR targets Microsoft 365 users across 1,000 domains in 90 countries. Learn how to spot fake login pages and protect your accounts.

OpenTable now uses AI to track your dining habits and share insights with restaurants. Learn what data they collect and how to protect your privacy.

Google's discontinued Nest thermostats still secretly upload home data to company servers despite losing smart features, raising serious privacy concerns.

New Android malware NGate steals NFC payment codes in real-time, allowing criminals to withdraw cash from ATMs without your card. Learn protection tips.

DoorDash confirms data breach exposing customer names, emails, addresses after social engineering attack. Learn how to protect yourself from scams.

Concerned about Google's AI scanning your Gmail? Learn how to disable Gemini features that access your emails, Drive files and Chat messages for privacy.

Google warns Android users about dangerous fake VPN apps hiding malware that steals passwords, banking details and personal data from phones and tablets.

Apple's digital passport feature lets iPhone users breeze through TSA checkpoints this holiday season using Digital ID technology at 250+ airports.

Station Teams: Assembly Required

Team Building