Culture of a Team

Case Analysis M2A2 Culture of a Team
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Instructions
[Learning Objectives Assessed: 5a, 5b, 5c, 5d, 5e]

What can a group of engineers who had scant resources, limited support, and a cast of characters straight out of a sit com teach you about successful teams? On the SPC online library locate and read the article: Bolman, L. G., & Deal, T. E. (1992). What makes a team work? Organizational Dynamics, 21 (2), 34-44. Think about what made this group so successful. It was not financial rewards – group members said they did not work for money. It was not because they had well-defined and perfectionist goals – the team leader believed that “not everything worth doing is worth doing well”. It was not because the team was led by a good communicator- the team leader was called the “Prince of Darkness” by the team members because he was so unapproachable. What was it?

Directions:
Discuss the following questions, and submit your answers in a written paper. Head each section of your paper to correspond to the numbers of each question (1, 2) below:

1. Discuss how organizational culture made the Eagle Group successful. Be sure to apply the course material, and use critical thinking skills and examples from the article to support your statements.

2. How can you apply some of the elements that made the Eagle Group so successful if you were to be on a team in this course?
Provide a title page.
Your content should include 600 words, and use a double-spaced Times New Roman font.
You should include headings, topic sentences, and the inclusion of the weekly learning.
Citations and references should be APA compliant.

What makes a team work? Can be found:
https://go.gale.com/ps/i.do?p=AONE&u=lincclin_spjc&id=GALE|A13884348&v=2.1&it=r
I have also attached it in a pdf version

ANSWER

Culture of a Team

Question 1

Organizational Culture and the Success of Eagle Team

Organizational culture is an essential part of any organization. Team culture is a combination of values, beliefs and norms that employees share. The culture of a team is supported by the team members. The eagle team ensured that anybody who joined the team shared the same values as the team members and were determined to sacrifice themselves to win. The culture of the eagle team was one where they were determined to win, not because they wanted to win but because they wanted to achieve the set goals (Bolman & Deal, 1992). The culture of the team was created from the beginning. The new members were told about what they were about to get into, and they went through a test to ensure that they shared the culture of the team. The team also focused on a culture of diversity where the team members had different talents. All the members of the Eagle team were Engineers, but each carried a different skill. The diverse talents focusing on achieving one goal led to the success of the Eagle team.

Values such as leadership are part of organizational culture. The leadership in the Eagle team involved more of example than command. A good leader does not command instead, they show their followers how things should be done. The team had a culture where much was accomplished without following any rules, as everybody on the team was aware of their responsibilities. The heroes of the moment in the team were used to provide direction. Humour and play were the culture of the Eagle team (Bolman & Deal, 1992). Engineering can be quite intense, and therefore, the team used their humour and laughter to reduce the tension and increase creativity in the team. For example, Alsing used a game to help the microkids learn how to manipulate Trixie (the computer).

The culture of the Eagle team is comprised of different characteristics. The first and most important contributor to their success is that they ensure that the people joining their team share the same values. They do not have to be talented in the same way, but they share in their passion for success. The second contributor to the success of the team is that they do not have the command type of leadership. In their setting, they did not follow rules. The leaders of the team led by example. Everybody was aware of their roles in the team, and therefore they did not need rules to perform their roles in the team effectively.

Question 2

Integrating Lessons from Eagle Team in a Coursework Team

The first element of the team that made it successful was that they chose team members whose values aligned with theirs. If I were to be in a team in this course, that would be the first element I would borrow from the Eagle team. It is important to find a group of people who share the same values. By doing so, it is easier to define the roles and the goals of the group. It is harder to work with people who do not share the same values and aspirations, as the team will not be working towards the same goal (Warrick, 2017). The next element of the team I would borrow and use in my team is the leading method, where leaders do not command but lead by example. Assuming the team is a classwork team, and we are working towards building better grades, I would lead by example by showing up to the discussion meetings in good time, doing research beforehand and contributing. Doing so will motivate the members of the team to work harder.

The other element of the team that I would borrow is the use of games and jokes to reduce the tension. This mostly would be used when people are under the pressure of completing tasks and meeting deadlines. The use of games will help the members of the team to relax and also ease the tension. We can play games such as ten questions in 10 seconds. The questions will be class-related. This will make studying fun, and people will also learn. It is also a good way of activating one’s mind, and some of the lessons learned during the games are likely to stick with the team members for much longer. Games also activate the minds of the embers of the team. The Eagle team’s success was not fueled by the rewards but by their culture. They formed a culture and recruited people who shared the same values. Therefore, it is important to establish a culture to ensure that the people one is working with are moving in the same direction.

References

Bolman, L. G., & Deal, T. E. (1992). What makes a team work? Organizational Dynamics, 21 (2), 34-44.

Warrick, D. D. (2017). What leaders need to know about organizational culture. Business Horizons, 60(3), 395-404.