Internal Competition- A Curse for Team Performance Case Solution And Analysis, HBR Case Study Solution & Analysis of Harvard Case Studies

Internal Competition- A Curse for Team Performance

Introduction

The paper attempts to elaborate the characteristics, processes, and the communication approaches that were used by the project team for FIS Consulting services which had the company’s reputation at stake. The paper also discusses the consequences either positive or negative that has resulted from the analysis of the team’s processes relating to job satisfaction, organizational commitment, overall job performance and other factors. Lastly, the paper aims to provide recommendations for improving the current performance of the team.

Project Team Characteristics and Diversity

The project team, which was created by the FIS Consulting Services included 15 team members, led by a team leader which was headed by a project manager. Each employee possessed technical set of skills in their respective fields to carry out the special requirements of clients. The team members included a combination of senior developers and junior developers. Sara and Shalini were the junior members of the team, but they had the highest experience with respect to the on-site visits than other team members. The main essential element for team characteristics involves the common purpose, clarity of roles, and shared goals which were all lacking in a FIS Consulting Service project team (Paludi, 2012).

The project team was based on individuals from different departments that were assigned to different tasks within a team. This nature of a team represented a diverse workplace team which can better cater the needs of clients because individuals have a variety of skills and knowledge. The project team had technical and a cognitive diversity in nature as team members and had different technical expertise, approaches and tacticsto deal with problems by assimilating new thoughts and ideas. However, diversity is good for a team and for the organization, but managing diversity poorly can decrease performance and effectiveness of a team as happened with the particular project team.

Project Team Processes and Communication

The project team members created mini groups that had their own sub-goals which limited the interactive decision making and cohesive work environment approach. The information was not shared amongst other team members and a sense of internal competition had surged up which had given rise to the negative conflict amongst team members. The mini groups which were formed, did not consult any of the other group members as they were solely based on fulfilling their own interest. The integration amongst team members lacked a great deal due to a rivalry mindset and reluctant to give away information that might be helpful to other team members. The leadership responsibilities were lacking as the group members were unaware of the formal leadership structure of where to report if they had any complaints or problems.

The Project teammembers were lacking communication amongst each other as they were in an isolation phase and internal competition was fierce. The project manager was unable to communicate well with the entire team and was influenced by the individualistic approach. The manager made decisions on the basis of team leader’s opinions without ensuring if his opinion is accepted amongst other individuals. The manager was incompetent in making rude remarks without the basis of facts and evidenceswhich created disagreements.

Team’s Characteristics and Processes Contributed towards Process Loss

The entire teams’ characteristics and processes contributed towards process loss and the reputation of the company was at stake. While reviewing to the team effectiveness model, it is mandatory that the team members shall have clear roles and responsibilities as an individual in a team (Landy & Conte, 2010). In the project team, the roles were not clear as none of the team member knew what to report and where to report because of the groups that were formed within the team. The team had the required technical expertise, but majority of the team members did not have the experience of working offshore visits. The junior developers had the required experience, but the authoritative approach from the team leader did not want juniors to participate in decision making. Similarly, positive relationships were not developed as individuals did not have mutual trust and respect for others. Integration must involve support, involvement of every individual, listening, and feedback. Dividing into sub-groups allowed disagreements to occur and the decisions were made as group oriented. Therefore, the information that was collected by one group were not shared to other groups due to which unnecessary delays occurred.

The team clearly lacked strong leadership where the team leader or the project manager were not capable enough to lead an entire set of team. The project manager was under the influence of the team leader and did exactly of what he was told by the team leader as he did not have his own opinion or a vision. The project manager blamed Sara for not meeting the deadline without any evidence and made approvals for showing the first draft to the client that contained errors. This showed that the...............

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