Wisdom of Teams

Teams are fast becoming a flexible and efficient way to enhance organizational performance. Yet, in the view of the authors of this work, today's business leaders consistently overlook opportunities to exploit their potential, confusing teams with teamwork or sharing. They argue that we cannot meet the challenges ahead, from total quality to customer service to innovation, without teams. Katzenbach and Smith talked with hundreds of people in more than 50 different teams in 30 companies to discover what differentiates various levels of team performance, where and how teams work best and how to enhance their effectiveness. Among their findings are: formal hierarchy is actually good for teams; successful team leaders fit no ideal profile; commitment to performance goals is more important than commitment to team-building goals; top management teams are often smaller and more difficult to sustain; and team "endings" can be as important to manage as team beginnings.