Making the Team

Written for managers and team leaders at every experience level, this guide explains how to strengthen teamwork inside an organization through a clear, stepwise approach. Its foundations draw on social psychology, organizational behavior, sociology, and cognitive psychology, and it covers established methods alongside newer developments in team building and management.

The book starts with the core elements needed to analyze and improve teamwork, then shows how to measure a team's performance and output. It also considers when and how rewards should be tied to teamwork. Internal dynamics are addressed first: arranging tasks, choosing members, and building relationships. Next come communication, information processing, and the development of collective intelligence, followed by methods for drawing out a team's creativity.

Attention then shifts outward to team boundaries, relations and networking between teams, and the leadership responsibilities that pull in two directions. It examines conflict and competition among teams within a company, and how information technology affects teamwork both across global operations and in local settings.

Each chapter opens with a case study of a real team at a real company. Practical appendices offer advice on running meetings, forming and sustaining an effective study group, and sample 360-degree evaluations.