A group is a set of individuals who happen to be together; a team is a group of individuals working toward a common purpose. Among the ways you can tell when a group is becoming a team are:
*Group members talk with one another as much as with the team "leader." In the early stages of group formation, members tend to look to a strong, central figure to give them direction. As the group members become more comfortable with one another and understand their individual roles, they tend to become more engaged with other team members.
*The group develops norms. Norms are the "rules" (many of them informal), that govern how members should interact with one another. These rules could be as serious as "everyone will respect everyone's else right to speak" to as light as "we always go to lunch together after our meetings." Some team leaders try to speed up the norming process by asking group members to agree on rules. It's when group members themselves know the rules (and punish those who break them) that the group is going through it's "norming" process.
*Members are able to handle disputes and disagreements among themselves. Team leaders like to know what's going on in a group. But it's also a good sign when leaders learn after-the-fact that disputes and disagreements have been handled by the team to the satisfaction of its members.
Leaders have to be careful when working with emerging teams. While new groups tend to look to strong figures who can provide direction and structure, this same type of leadership might be seen as patronizing and unnecessary to a well-performing team.
To read more on group development, please consult the Free Management Library.
If you would like to learn more about how to effectively lead and manage teams, please consider enrolling in an upcoming Leading from the Middle program.
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