LibGuides: MOE Life Skills: Interpersonal and Collaboration Skills: Library Resources

Teamwork

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Transforming Teamwork by Zimmerman, Diane P. Discover how psychological safety, constructive conflict, and actionable learning create a powerful triple helix to transform teams! In this ground-breaking resource, three experts in the field of education and teamwork each present one of three strands that, when woven together, support teamwork and forge collaborative interactions into a transformative way of working. You'll learn approaches, processes and tools to overcome common obstacles to team effectiveness such as feelings of futility, anxiety, and poor morale. Drawing on research and practical experience the authors identify strategies and tools that show how to:; Build psychological safety, where teams work towards resilient interpersonal relationships; Use constructive conflict as a powerful catalyst for team learning and transformation; Inquire into problems of practice to transform capabilities and produce actionable learning Acquire ways to develop mindful, thoughtful, and constructive teams where authentic communication drives group awareness and clear processes and goals.
ISBN: 1544319894
Publication Date: 2020
Teamwork in Talent Development by Thane Bellomo Develop Your Teamwork Skills. Teamwork allows us to engage in important work, and teams hold immense power. Those on teams share perspectives, brainstorm ideas, and produce results beyond what's possible alone. With organizations relying increasingly on teams to deliver impact, teamwork skills are needed more than ever. Part of the ATD Soft Skills Series, Teamwork in Talent Development is for talent development professionals who serve as team leaders or team members and wish to improve their collaboration abilities, build successful teams, and maximize their team performance for solving business problems, meeting learning needs, promoting culture change, and more. In this book, you will learn what teamwork means, why teams and teamwork skills matter, and how to overcome common challenges related to teaming. Organization development expert Thane Bellomo introduces a model for how you can form teams and develop your teamwork skills. It starts with framing the work around clear and important goals. This positions you and the team to encourage curiosity and build trust while you embrace conflict and engage in (healthy) conflict. Included are detailed takeaways and advice for applying the concepts. Other books in the series: Emotional Intelligence in Talent Development Adaptability in Talent Development Creativity in Talent Development Influence in Talent Development
ISBN: 1952157668
Publication Date: 2021-11-30
People before tech : the importance of psychological safety and teamwork in the digital age by Blomstrom, Duena Businesses across all sectors now realise that, if they intend on staying competitive in the 21st century, then they must embrace new innovative technologies and methodologies such as AI, automation, digital platforms and Agile. But when too much focus is placed on digital transformation, teams within the organization become overlooked - the uniquely human benefits that arise from a well-functioning, (read more)
ISBN: 1472985435
Publication Date: 2021

Information Sharing

Seeing Oneself as a Valued Contributor: Social Worth Affirmation Improves Team Information Sharing Teams often fail to reach their potential because members' concerns about being socially accepted prevent them from offering their unique perspectives to the team. Drawing on relational self and self-affirmation theory, we argue that affirmation of team members' social worth by trusted people outside the team helps them internalize an identity as a valued contributor, thereby reducing social acceptance concerns and facilitating information sharing in teams. We devised three intervention studies to demonstrate the causal effect of social worth affirmation in teams. In Study 1, senior executive teams in which members experienced social worth affirmation performed better (compared to control teams) on a crisis simulation that required information sharing in teams. In Study 2, with U.S. military cadets, we examined social acceptance concerns as a mechanism by which social worth affirmation influences information sharing. In Study 3, we showed that social worth affirmation improves virtual teams' ability to share information by exchanging unique information cues. Our results suggest that affirmation of the social worth of team members through their personal relationships broadens their sense of self, thereby reducing their social concerns about being accepted by other members. This, in turn, leads to better information sharing in teams.
Multiple team membership and job performance: The role of employees' information-sharing networks Individuals in contemporary work organizations are often involved in multiple teams at the same time. This study uses a social capital perspective to propose that employees' multiple team memberships (MTM) offer the potential for individual performance benefitsanddetriments, depending on the characteristics of an employee's information-sharing network. To test our predictions, we gathered both archival and survey data at an organization for applied research in the Netherlands. We found that individual MTM was indirectly associated with an employee's overall job performance by increasing the size of his or her information-sharing network. As expected, however, this indirect relationship was contingent on the average strength of an employee's network ties (i.e., the frequency of the respective interactions), such that MTM only improved overall performance when network ties were relatively weak. The indirect relationship between MTM and individual job performance was negative, by contrast, when an employee's network ties were relatively strong. Together, these findings advance our understanding of the mechanisms and contingency factors that shape the performance consequences associated with individuals' concurrent membership in multiple teams. Practitioner points An employee's membership in multiple teams at the same time increases the size of his or her information-sharing network within the organization. The performance consequences associated with this increased information-sharing network hinge on the characteristics of an employee's information-sharing network. If the respective information-sharing linkages are based on relatively infrequent interactions with colleagues, an employee's multiple team membership indirectly benefits his or her overall job performance. If the respective information-sharing linkages are based on relatively frequent and intense interactions with colleagues, however, an employee's multiple team membership indirectly diminishes his or her overall job performance.

Appreciate Diversity

Building Better Ideas by B. Kim Barnes Why do teams settle for bad ideas or kill good ones? Popular consultant B. Kim Barnes's unique process of constructive debate shows how teams can create better ideas and outcomes by eliminating obstacles to honest discussion, creativity, and collaboration. In too many organizations, great ideas and unusual solutions can be suppressed, ignored, or attacked. Departments defend their turf, and people choose what is safe over what is better. Bad ideas move forward and good ideas die, which can lead to disastrous results--financial or otherwise. Luckily, there is a workable path out of this dysfunction. Kim Barnes's process of constructive debate shows how to establish conditions that encourage the free exchange, discussion, and development of ideas and eliminate conditions that prevent potentially useful ideas from getting heard. By using this tested model, any company or team can improve outcomes and bring out everyone's best ideas. A constructive debate is one in which a diverse group of individuals can express their ideas, engage others in building on and improving them, explore ideas deeply, and challenge one another's positions in a fair and productive way. In this book, you'll learn a set of behaviors you can model and encourage and a process you can facilitate, lead, or support your client in leading. In this time, where opinions can be tribal and differences can lead to unconstructive conflict, it's important to find ways to build robust ideas through a thoughtful, fair, and inclusive approach.
ISBN: 1523085606
Publication Date: 2019-11-05

The Impact of Leader Eye Gaze on Disparity in Member Influence: Implications for Process and Performance in Diverse Groups One important benefit of teamwork is the exchange and integration of diverse knowledge, experience, and opinions group members bring to the table. However, demographic attributes-such as race, gender, and functional background-may create asymmetric influence patterns between group members in diverse groups because these demographic characteristics are often associated with status differences. In the current research, we examine how to attenuate this disparity in member influence in diverse groups by focusing on the role of a leader's gazing behavior. Across two studies, we found that asymmetric influence patterns in which high-status members tend to wield greater influence in group decision-making processes were attenuated when a leader increased their visual attention toward low-status members in the group. This reduced disparity in member influence which in turn improved group information elaboration and group performance in a collective decision-making task. Theoretical and practical implications for leaders' visual attention, diversity, group decision-making processes, and group performance are discussed.
A framework for culturally diverse teams and the importance of agility In this study, we investigated the conditions for successful collaboration in culturally diverse teams from a Positive Organizational Scholarship perspective. As a result of globalization, organizations increasingly rely on culturally diverse teams. Based on 19 semi-structured interviews with international managers of a large German car manufacturer, we analyzed how these teams work together and which factors promote collaboration. Our findings result in a new framework for understanding culturally diverse teams, which indicates that agile team behavior is an important factor for performance in culturally diverse teams. Agile forms of collaboration enable better adaption to change through iterative learning processes. Agile methods have strong structural elements, but in between, allow the greatest possible scope for continuous adjustment. These structuring and flexible elements seem to meet the requirements of culturally diverse teams in particular. The minimal structure provides the opportunity to bring in all perspectives and views of a culturally diverse team. In addition, we confirm the influence of well-studied factors such as openness, perspective taking and leadership behavior. Our findings help to further sharpen the understanding of culturally diverse teams and point to a fruitful future research direction on agile behavior and cultural diversity in teams.

Positive Attitude

How attitude certainty tempers the effects of faultlines in demographically diverse teams Lau and Murnighan's faultline theory suggests that strong demographic faultlines can undermine cohesion in work teams. A strong faultline splits a team into internally homogeneous but mutually dissimilar subgroups based on demographic characteristics. Social influence processes within these subgroups then lead to the polarization of team members' attitudes along the divisions imposed by the faultline. However, faultline theory hitherto neglects effects of attitude certainty. Research shows that the certainty with which individuals hold their attitudes affects social influence processes. We extend theoretical faultline research by integrating attitude certainty. For this, we incorporate the interplay of the dynamics of attitude certainty and social influence into a formal model of demographic faultline effects developed by Flache and Mas. Computational experiments suggest a moderation effect. Demographic faultlines only affect team cohesion if attitude certainty is low. We discuss implications for future research.
How leaders can deploy the power of positivity to uplift their teams The article presents several suggestions to offer positive reinforcement to supercharge employee engagement and morale. It includes recommendations to consider a staffer who is experiencing life's joys; to call them to offer a personal welcome before they start the job; and to find out the names of the people in support roles who don't always get recognition.

Collaboration Tools

Beginning Microsoft 365 Collaboration Apps by Ralph Mercurio; Brian Merrill Start making the most of the latest collaboration tools in Microsoft 365--including Teams, SharePoint, Power Apps, Power BI, Power Automate, Microsoft Groups, Office ProPlus, Yammer, Planner, Stream, Forms, and OneDrive. Integrate these collaboration tools into your team's projects to boost productivity, engagement, innovation, and enjoyment at work. This book walks you through all the latest features, teaching you how to choose the right tools and get the most out of them for your situation. While technologies for collaboration are more advanced than ever before, there also are more of them, making it all the more confusing. Beginning Microsoft 365 Collaboration Apps will help you make sense of what is available and provide prescriptive guidance to you and your team on how to be more productive. This fully updated and expanded new edition contains lots of new content, screenshots and samples, and all new chapters on Power BI and Power Apps. What You Will Learn Know the collaboration applications and features available across Microsoft 365, and how to choose the ones that are right for you and your colleagues in any given situation Understand the software-as-a-service (SaaS) model and how it enables users to be more effective and productive in remote situations Discover how multi-device usability and real-time cloud synchronization can help your team collaborate anytime, anywhere, across the apps Find out how Planner can help you manage projects and tasks, even without a project manager Explore Microsoft Power Automate and Power Apps to connect applications and services and create codeless applications and workflows Who This Book is For Microsoft 365 business users with a limited technical background. You should be familiar with the Microsoft Office suite of products such as Word and Outlook, and work in a team environment. An active Microsoft 365 would be useful as well.  
ISBN: 1484269357
Publication Date: 2021-06-10

Utilisation of e-collaboration tools for effective decision-making: A developing country public-sector perspective Collaboration is about coming together of two or more individuals or entities to combine either tangible or non-tangible resources in achieving a set goal or objective, regardless of distance, time and location; an outcome that may otherwise have been difficult to accomplish independently. However, utilisation of e-collaboration resources for exchange of knowledge is yet to be adopted by developing country public organisations for effective decision making.Objectives: The objective of this study was to assess and determine the extent to which public-sector managers currently use e-collaboration resources to support their decision-making processes, and examine challenges hampering e-collaboration.Method: A qualitative approach was followed using a case study design on a public organisation in Namibia. The selected case has departments, directorates and divisions and offices across Namibia. Case study data collection instruments were utilised. A judgemental sampling technique was used for the selection of 120 participants.Results: There is somewhat usage of e-collaboration resources in public organisations; however, lack of enabling competencies to use available e-collaboration functionality; most public-sector managers continue to depend on the traditional callaborative approaches.Conclusion: E-collaboration resources have become an integral part of facilitating decision-making in organisations, including the public sector; because information or knowledge sharing is essential for effective decision-making. Collaboration among stakeholders can have great influence on managers and foster change in the processes and approaches currently being utilised. This study contributes to the collaboration of resources for improving the managers’ decision-making in public organisations.
Revolutionising communication and collaboration after covid. The article focuses on firms will have to overcome the limitations of communication and collaboration tools if they are to embrace hybrid working in a post-pandemic world. Topics icnlude the views of Alexia Cambon, a research director at Gartner, on the epidemic of fatigue, the bulk of work has to be done in meetings rather than working, using a drive or email or collaborating separately, and the symptom of remote working has also been inadvertently exacerbated by organisations' strategies.

Gartner research

Collaboration Equity Helps Build Team Unity and Improve Performance Application leaders are actively seeking guidance to help them deliver equitable and inclusive collaboration experiences for their teams. The goals of this strategy are to foster team unity and improve performance.
Market Guide for Content Collaboration Tools Content collaboration helps employees create and collaborate and is essential for remote working, but content collaboration tools are not the only source for this functionality. Application leaders responsible for the digital workplace should use this Market Guide to evaluate the product landscape.
Technology to Support Collaboration for a Hybrid Workforce Technology choices are shifting as organizations adapt to a hybrid workforce. Gartner’s Digital Worker Experience Survey reveals that digital workplace application leaders must prioritize collaboration, with a focus on three key aspects.