Teamwork involves a group of individuals coming together to achieve common goals. For a team to be effective, they must pay attention to four key areas: people, product, processes, and practices. The people on the team must have the right skills for the job. The product is the common goal the team aims to achieve. Processes are the systems and tools used by the team. Practices refer to the behaviors each individual and the team as a whole must demonstrate, such as working hard, respecting others, and being proactive. For a team to succeed, all four areas must be properly addressed.

1. Teamwork
Basic essentials
Steven SSAMBA
Change Consult (U) Ltd

2. What is Teamwork?

3. What is Teamwork?
To understand what Teamwork
is, we need to understand what
a Team is?
A Team is a group of individual
who have come together by
certain circumstances in order
to achieve a goal which is held
by all of them.

4. What is Teamwork?
The act of using or combining
the skills and talents of all the
individuals in a group or TEAM
in order to achieve a common
goal.

5. Common Goal?
Common means that all
individuals in the team have
accepted the chosen goal or
goals. They have decided that
those are the important goals
to pursue and achieve over a
certain period of time.

6. Pictorial representations of Teams at work

12. Teamwork
People are concerned with
team work because they are
concerned about the team’s
performance in regards to the
common goals

13. Teamwork
How do we ensure our
team works in order to
achieve all our
common goals?

14. To answer this question:
Achievement of
common goals
depends of four
things?

15. To answer this question:
The 4 Ps
People
Product
Processes
Practices

16. Achievement of Goals.
People
This is the team as it
exists. All uniquely
gifted with different
skills and talents.

17. Achievement of Goals.
Product
This is the goal or
outcome the team is
pursuing. It has to be
common to all.

18. Achievement of Goals.
Processes
These are the systems &
tools that the team uses
efficiently in order to
achieve the outcome or
goal(s)

19. Achievement of Goals.
Practices
These are the behaviors of
the entire team. Team
behavior depends on the
behavior of each individual
TEAM MEMBER.

20. Achievement of Goals.
In order for the team to
work, special attention
should be given to all
the four Ps.

21. Achievement of Goals.
People
The people who hold the
right skills and talents
should be identified &
recruited or assembled
right from the start.

22. People
Managers should ensure they
identify and hire individuals
into the organisation who are
“fit-for-purpose”. These have
the right mix of skills,
qualifications, experience &
competences

23. People…
If the work to be done is
project based, the manager
should select from the
existing staff, the individuals
who are “fit-for-purpose” i.e.
who are suitable for the task
they are picked for.

24. Product(s)
The product is the outcome(s)
we are seeking to achieve. For
the People to work well in a
team, the goal (product) should
be clearly articulated. A series of
actions that result into the
accomplishment of the goal
should also be developed.

25. Processes
Processes are the systems and
tools that the team puts in place in
order to achieve the goals.
Systems include things like
procedures, policies, manuals
which guide the team in producing
the outcome. Tools include things
like computers, vehicles,
committees and other office
machines.

26. Processes
For example in creating an effective
HR Unit an organisation may first
design the unit following David
Ulrich’s model or a general HR
model. Processes of getting the job
done would then include policies,
work plans, checklists, review
committees etc. Computers,
Information Management programs
then serve as some of the tools.

27. Practices
These are the collective behavior of
the team. In order for the team to
work, all team members must
behave in ways that benefit the
team. One individual’s behavior can
either kill or raise that of the entire
team. This means that a culture of
efficient and effective execution and
existence should be created by the
entire team.

28. Practices
For example
A team member may be in the habit
of not sharing valuable information,
or arriving late for project work, or
leaking confidential information
(e.g. staff personal information). The
list is endless. This behavior will
affect the entire performance of the
team.

29. Practices
Practices exist at two levels:
1. Leadership Level
2. Follower Level

30. Practices
Leadership Level
Leaders are the ones that drive the
vision of the team (to win). How do
you behave towards team
members?
• When they are not working hard
• When they break rules
• When they achieve goals
• When they fail to achieve goals

31. Practices
Follower Level
Followers are those that do the work
(even the leader does the work).
How do you behave when it comes
to pursuing team goals?
• Do you put in your greatest
effort?
• Do you give up?
• Do you criticize and complain?
• Do you follow the policies or

32. Teamwork
In order to achieve the team goals,
teamwork has to “work”.
Come together as a group and
consider which Process and
practices will make you win. Each
one should participate or should be
consulted in order to come up with
systems & tools that will help in
goal achievement.

33. Teamwork - Participation
Key questions to ask each team
member are:
What in your opinion or experience
are some of the processes (systems
and tools) we can use in the pursuit
of this goal in order to be the best?
Even holding regular meetings with
the concerned team to learn from
wins and losses is a system.

34. Teamwork - Behaviors
1. Continuously learning?
2. Hard work?
3. Respect for self and others?
4. Proactive nature?
5. Courage?
6. Empowering?
7. Support and help?
8. Empathy?
9. Motivation?

35. Teamwork - How to win?
Once all areas have been covered
through a process of consultation,
the Products (goals), People
(assigned team members),
Processes (systems and tools that
work) and Practices (individual
behavior that we should all
demonstrate day by day moment by
moment) should be written out and
put in a place for all to see.

36. Teamwork - How to win?
A system of communication should
be put in place to ensure that these
are remembered by all team
members.
They could be pinned on internal
notice boards, and in other places
where they can be seen.

37. Teamwork - How to win?
Everyone wants to win. No one
wants to be a loser, but the only
team that will win is that which will
be vulnerable enough to accept that
“we do not know how to win” and
then they get down to work on
finding means of winning.

38. Teamwork - How to win?
I guarantee you that if you can
practice these methods I have
shared and put your self to task to
learn even other methods, you will
win.

39. Teamwork - How to win?
Every team is meant to win, every
perceived goal is meant to be
achieved. However if organisations
get it wrong on any of the four Ps,
goal achievement becomes very
difficult. All the four Ps must be put
into consideration if organisations
want to achieve their dreams.

40. END
By Steven SSAMBA