Teams to Undertake Many Operations

¶ … teams to undertake many operations and projects. Creation of teams and team building are important first steps that the management has to recognize. There are many advantages and benefits to using teams in the modern workplace. Teams of any nature go through different stages of development and capabilities. Management then has to ensure that the focus and the dedication of the teams are maintained whenever and wherever teams operate.

This study addresses the impact of High Performance work teams. Research in the field of understanding self-managed work teams and their effectiveness in improving productivity and performance indicates that there are two schools of thought. (Tata & Prasad, 2004) Research on the first indicates that high performance work teams can be influential in improving the productivity and the profitability of the organization. The second shows that executive management and associated governing bodies have to constantly monitor team performance. While doing this, management also has to be aware that in some cases self-managed work teams can cause more harm than good. There are also other factors at play. These are organizational values and culture. Both can affect the manner in which self-managed teams are created and operated. Different ways of decision making, trust and mutual respect and levels of team member accountability can also help improve the morale and performance of the team.

Self-managed teams when functioning properly can offer great levels of flexibility, higher productivity levels and better quality. There is the possibility however, that these teams can get self-absorbed in their own mission and lose sight of the goals and missions of the organization as a whole. Labor and employee requirement is an important intrinsic factor. It affects the internal environment in an organization. In recent times, with the workforce becoming more knowledgeable about its rights, and the management increasingly focusing on keeping its workers happy, the balance of power has shifted in large part from the management to rank and file workers undertaking the task. Management has always (or must) realized that the human element can create the most variability in the system.

Discussion team is defined as a group of people that have complimentary skills and a higher commitment to common goals. This group of people also possesses a higher degree of interdependency and interaction. By virtue of this, the group is able to offer great levels of flexibility and knowledge to the organization. (Olson & Branch, n.d.)

High Performance work teams (HPWT) are generally implemented in an organization as a way of improving and increasing work skill and worker flexibility while at the same time offering a forum by which the work can be trained and developed at all times. (Thompson, Baughan, & Motwani, 1998) Self-managed teams are defined as teams that maintain a high degree of collaboration. These teams manage their operations and agendas with a focus to make themselves high performing. There are many advantages and challenges to using teams in organizations. Organizations are moving to flatter and more dispersed structures. These structures are better suited to team working. There are also many internal factors; for instance, the microenvironment of the organization that also needs to be analyzed prior to setting up teams within an organization. Teams have their own individuality and style -- just like people. and, local culture and values can also play a significant role in the creation and operation of teams. In a global environment, and with many organizations having operations in more than one location and country, high performance work teams are no longer restricted within a set geographical boundary.

Team diversity can promote thinking out the box. Team diversity can also help introduce different points-of-views in discussion and decision-making. Often, individuals get set in their ways of thinking and reasoning. While this is not always harmful to the individual, it can be detrimental to the team setting if team members are not able to view the situation from another person's objective. The team members should also be team players and work in coordination with each other. Any significant deviation from the prescribed standards by any person - no matter how innovative, creative, or potentially productive - detracts from the overall functioning of the organization. Selecting a team leader who is dedicated to the mission of the team but at the same time able to focus on the overall goals and aims of the organization is essential. It is important the team leader be able to constantly communicate the team members as well as the executive management the conditions that exist and the possible options that are available.

Often, when teams are perceived to be well managed, senior management have a tendency of ignoring symptoms and sign of discontent and drift in the HPWT when they arise. (Levy, 2001) When HPWT perceive that management does not address their issues and concerns, they might begin operating in isolation. This can result in the workers not being exposed to the actual conditions that might exist in the company as whole. Often, executive management is more likely to focus its concerns and attention on issues, which they can use to gain attention. In organizations where teams are cohesive and close-knit, HPWT might intentionally keep the management in the dark with respect to problems and issues that the team might be facing. When the management is unaware of the problems and issues they might not plan or focus on the issues being faced. Self-managed teams need the complete support and understanding of the management during the entire team period.

HPWT also need, at regular intervals, an influx of new ideas and thoughts to ensure that the team members do not in their isolation lose sight of the objectives of the organization or the changes and new inventions that might exist out of the organization. Self-managed teams require that the members constantly develop and update their skills. The commitment and dedication required by the team members has to be high when self-managed teams are concerned. It is impossible to throw a group of people together and expect them to work perfectly and comfortably with each other without adequate training and orientation of the members selected. Training and orientations should generally be provided during the initial stages of the team formation where the members are still in the learning stages of the dynamics of the team.

Self-managed work teams are generally set up for individual projects and for the analysis and launch of new products or projects. These teams have clear and definite role- division and expectations. There is no overlap of roles between team members. Additional coaching and advice may be required form personnel not directly associated with the team. It has been observed many times, that team members too close to the heart of the problem or concept lose the big picture. These members may often have to undergo a significant refocusing of the goals and objectives. Self-managed teams learn to prioritize the time spent on any task. In these teams, tasks are divided into easy and manageable bits, which all team members can tackle. Brainstorming and collecting ideas and proposals for any project helps the team identify the tasks required to be undertaken to complete the project. Periodic evaluation of these ideas and the progress of the project are also carried out by good teams.

Training and education of the team members in HPWT is important. Often, HPWT are dedicated to custom products or services that the organization might be manufacturing. "Teams and training programs are complementary." (Adams, 2002) it is observed that a self-managed work team is more valuable to a company if the types of products manufactured are of high volatility and the product life cycle is short. Organizational learning and understanding the power bases for future success of the company is important. Employees will have to understand the importance of multiple skill development in addition to the need to understand the impact of a decision on other aspects of the business. Understanding the financials goals of the company and the need for planning and scheduling is important in a worker-empowered organization. Knowledge management and labor management are one of the defining assets for any modern organizations. Knowledge management is especially gaining importance due to the fact that many midlevel management jobs have become redundant. Consequently, the worker is being made more accountable.

Developing and supporting HPWT in manufacturing

The ability of any organization to channel the organizational talent and obtain the best from its human resources is important. Of all the resources in the organization, channeling and developing the human element is the most difficult. Creating an effective team is an art as well as a science. Organizations are constantly changing and evolving. Building an effective team starts by selecting diverse members with a variety of complementary skills. Building teams is difficult. It takes experience, knowledge of human behavior and motivation, social and organizational dynamics and the type of industry in which the organizations operates to be able to put together a team that can be truly effective and productive.

It is important to ensure that the team for any specific task comprises members who are knowledgeable and posses the required skills needed to carry out the task. Teams should also try to work across organizational boundaries/levels and break down internal barriers and deal with people and issues directly and avoid hidden agendas from both within the group and from external sources.

Prior to selecting team members, the purpose and the reasons for creating the HPWT should be clear to the entire management members deciding on the team creation. Teams without a definite goal and aim, will drift and fail, since no goal and objective is set or a final objective identified. Getting together individuals possessing special skills, talents or expertise in order to build a team is critical. Important skills for a team include: "technical expertise," "problem solving," "decision making," and "interpersonal skills." (Thompson, Aranda, Robbins, & Swenson, 2000) Teams should establish and create a comfortable environment within which all the team members can operate. Good communication is required within the team for all policies and procedures to be implemented in the proper way. Teams should establish and create a comfortable environment within which all the team members can operate. A level of trust and respect will help get the best output from all team members.

The manufacturing industry especially in the developed countries are facing tremendous challenges with respect to the performance and productivity levels when compared to the less developed countries. Countries such as China have access to cheap labor and raw materials; they are able to produce goods at a much cheaper level consequently. There are however, a few companies in the developed countries that have been able to sustain and grow as a result of the smart utilization of its workforce. Thorne Lighting Ltd., a company in U.K has consistently shown that by developing and constantly training their workforce they have been able to deliver high quality goods and services while at the same time ensuring that the motivation and the skill levels of their workers are high.

Thorne realized that in order to improve its operations, the company had to ensure that "consistent information is cascaded through the business to shop-floor level." (ILO, 2000) the company was wise in realizing that it was important to involve workers at all levels in the planning and the decision making undertaken to develop strategies and plans for the organization. The manufacturing industry as a whole is highly unionized in most countries around the world. It is observed that unions display a high resistance to change and are generally not accepting of training and education that cross trains workers for different skill sets and capabilities. It is observed however, that if the union is apprised of the significance of the changes and the improvements and the impact of the improvements on the overall profitability to the company they might be more willing to aid the change. When the worker also benefits as a result of the change the work change is more easily accepted.

Berry, through his article, "The employee as customer," introduced a new dimension to the image of a company's customer. (Porter, 1996) This is true of manufacturing organizations that have been around for a long time and were often managed using either a traditional or bureaucratic form of management.. In the traditional organizational structure, the organization or business was based on a feudalistic concept. The ultimate power in the business rested with the owner of the business. Managers and supervisors enjoyed power and authority. Every decision and command was top down. Workers were merely expected to follow orders.

Productivity and management of the organization was often done using the principles of scientific management. (Taylor, 1998) Taylor identified that every process and task within an organization could be sub-divided into discrete events, each of which could be studied and analyzed for improvement. New and better "ways" of performing the tasks could then be taught to the worker. And the worker was expected to perform the task in the stipulated manner.

As management styles of manufacturing organizations have undergone various modification and changes over the years, workers view any change with skepticism and distrust. Workers in the manufacturing industry have also changed. In today's rapidly changing market, turnover times are relatively rapid. The average time spent by a worker with an employer has decreased significantly. The days of lifelong employment and worker loyalty are no more. "Sustaining emotional and psychological health is just as crucial as developing critical awareness" in any workforce. (Nesbit, 2004) by the turn of the 20th century, it was becoming clear that businesses, unions and governments had to work together to achieve any level of improvement.

While the management is often associated with having the knowledge and the formal training with respect to the task and the operations to be performed, the manager was far removed from the actual process. (Adams, 2002) on the other hand, the worker was always in close proximity with the task but did not have the intrinsic knowledge that might be required to solve a problem if it arose. Teams help in the distribution of the knowledge of the system from the management to the worker.

Training and educating of the workforce also helped in ensuring that the information was transferred in the shortest possible time from the shop floor to the manager and at the same time the worker was equipped to handle problems and issues that might arise in the course of the execution of his or her duties.

It is important that the information and data that is transferred is accurate and reliable. In this manner decision maker have dependable data sources to base their decisions on. In order to ensure that the data is accurate the worker should know the right manner of collecting the data for the analysis that will be conducted. The more training that the worker has the higher the chances that the organization employing these trained workers will be used in teams set up by the organization.

HPWT and multinational organizations

Self-managed work teams (SMWT) are used in multinational corporations. Kirkman, Gibson and Shapiro identified that a teams that had higher levels of resistance (to team concepts) also had lower levels of productivity, cooperation, and empowerment. (Kirkman, Gibson, & Shapiro, 2001) Cultural values are important for any society. These values are portrayed in the morals, laws, customs, and practices of that society. Individualism (self-interest)-collectivism (group interest) behavior can also impact the effectiveness of groups and teams that an organization set up in any country. HPWT also increasingly relies on individual accountability and responsibility that many cultures around the world may not easily embrace. Power, status and social positions also play an important role in the culture of an organization based on the geographical location. Doing-oriented and directive-oriented cultures and internal (free will) or external (deterministic) cultures greatly impact the effectiveness of the team.

Identifying and hiring the right person is important, especially when working in cross-cultural teams in a global environment. SMWT will also be more effective if the operations of the teams run in consonance with the local cultures and norms of the region. It is important that managers understand the cultural factors affecting the team in any given location, plan, and strategize accordingly to best optimize the skill set of the team members. Teams, depending on the location, may have a say in the formation, operations and effectiveness that the teams posses to attain the goal. Teams may differ in appearance based on location but the importance of the team structure for any organization cannot be denied.

Organizational structure is highly dependent and reliant on other units; and the ability to move expertise from one area to the other critical on organizations that rely on these measures. (Vires & Florent-Treacy, 2002) the organizational structure has become geocentric in nature where key decision makers may be located at various locations all over the world. Many of these locations are independent and contribute to the overall success of the organization. Global teams leaders are often faced with the challenge of ensuring that team members of HPWT at all locations feel involved and valued. This can be a challenge especially if the only contact the different team members might have is in the form of telephone or email contact. Technology and communication advancements have created a world where physical boundaries are becoming more blurred.

Mergers, acquisition and globalization have changed the face of organizations of the past. In addition, the rush to diversify and gain market share has forced companies to form alliances and collaborative ventures in order to obtain market share for their products. (Duarte & Snyder, 2001) Trust, Child identifies, is the most important factor in any organizational relationship. In the business sense, trust is having confidence in the partner or workers to conduct and perform their task in a manner agreed on. (Child, 2001) Organizations are faced with two types of uncertainties when undertaking collaborations -- the uncertainties of the future contingencies and the reaction of the business partner to the future contingencies that may occur. Traditional trust (trust of family and close society) and institutional trust (trust of ISO standards for example) are identified in the paper. It is important that team members in HPWT trust the decision and the choices that are made by other team members at different locations around the world.

Globalization has also introduced diversity and range of viewpoints and opinions within an organization. Many cultural and social issues not relevant in the past are playing an important role in modern day organizations. Organizations today, value knowledge of the individual higher than seniority in the organization or age of the individual. Technology savvy younger generations are at an advantage over the older generation or population that did not have access to modern technology. This has resulted in the global team not only having individuals with diverse social cultures but also varying age groups and race.

The advantages of having a diversified team have been extensively discussed. Diversified teams however, also have problems managing and completing assigned tasks. This situation gets more complicated as the team gets dispersed through different geographical locations around the world. Studies indicate that diverse teams tend to perform either better or worse than homogeneous ones, with more performing worse than better. (DiStefano & Maznevski, 2000) Globalization has brought to the doorstep of many organizations, cultural and social issues that did not exist as recently as 20-30 years back. International isolation had not prepared individuals to understand and comprehend other cultures and norms in existence around the world.

The virtual workspace is a new and recent phenomenon in the age of global organizations. Virtual teams are never in physical proximity with each other. Studies indicate that virtual teams communicate differently as compared to face-to-face teams. (Jarvenpaa & Leidner, 1998) successful example of virtual HPWT was demonstrated at Boeing. (Foster, 2003) the need for smaller aircrafts flying longer routes was emerging. Boeing did not have the design to meet this new demand. Lead times were also decreasing and the competition to offer a product to the airline industry was heating up. Understanding the pros and cons of virtual teams, Boeing set up 238 virtual design teams to tackle the task. Technology plays a critical role in the stability and success of the virtual team. The advantages that Boeing gained as a result of using virtual teams were tremendous. The company was able to bring to market a new plane in two years with a lower number of design changes and rework. The success of this mission also helped provide the foundation for virtual teams that today have been successful in building the International space station. The task of 16 countries working together in designing the various modules of the space station while being geographically distant has been amazing. The critical nature of the work, the essential requirements that all pasts fit in space and the high profile nature of the task has ensured that the virtual teams work together to achieve the higher objective.

Impact of HPWT in implementing Lean management concepts

Modern organizations are constantly striving to reduce the waste in organizations. At the same time these entities aim to improve the quality and performance of the goods manufactured. "Work teams were central to the success of lean production." (Dyer, 1995)

In the past, mass- and batch-production were the norm in manufacturing and production-based organizations. (McClure, Aft, & Schmeidler, 2003) in recent times, however, the lead times have reduced. Companies not sensitive to the market demand slowly fade away. Process and operations management has become the lifeline and support for organizations. The age of customization in manufacturing prior to the industrial revolution gave way to mass production. While there were many benefits to mass production, there were some aspects of mass production that were less than desirable. One of the primary negative aspects of mass production was the inventory. Organizations had to maintain inventories in order to ensure continuous production.

Pull manufacturing is defined as one in which a part is manufactured only if there is a real demand in the market for it. Pull strategy works on the principle of lean manufacturing where no part is completed; but, individual components (spare parts, sub-assemblies) are produced in a fewer quantities. They are used to assemble the final product, based on customer specifications.

In order for lean manufacturing to succeed, a Kanban system was implemented. Here the required part was only manufactured when its stock level fell below the minimum necessary. Lean production emphasizes waste-elimination. (Womack & Jones, 1996) in short, an organization that wishes to implement lean manufacturing or production has to eliminate waste by reducing reworked, defective products and product-scrap. Lean manufacturing requires a disciplined form of production. Here, every component of the manufacturing process is analyzed repeatedly for flaws and defects.

Lean thinking stresses the need for constant and incremental improvements rather than one-stage improvements, which cannot be sustained over a long period of time. A new way of thinking is required as far as process-interaction is concerned. It ensures that the transition is indeed created due to an improvement and nothing else. Perfection is any process is never a one-step achievement; rather, everyone involved has to constantly monitor and evaluate the system or process.

It is clear that for any lean manufacturing operation to work, it is important that the workers and the management in the organization work collectively to understand the process and the work flow in the organization. Workers, by virtue of being on the shop floor, are more in tune with the actual conditions that exists in the process; alternatively, managers, by virtue of having formal training, are able to understand the consequences of decisions and plan strategies needed to improve the process. Lean manufacturing emphasizes that if the knowledge that both sections of employee has was exchanged such that all involved were knowledgeable about the conditions that exist in the organization smarter and more effective decisions can be made.

Knowledge management in organization is proving to be the competitive edge that organizations can help foster. Every worker, at any level of the organization, has the knowledge that is essential for the operation within the organization. Over time, the knowledge possessed by individuals gets incorporated into the knowledge of the organization. The ability of individuals at different levels of the organization to retrieve necessary information as and when needed in a form that can be easily understood and applicable to the situation is important. Team structures in organizations can ensure that the information is transferred effectively and constantly to all members. As operations become more intertwined within organizations, it becomes important that the workers are able to understand the consequences of their decisions and plans in the organization.

Teams especially when they are set up for improving the process or implementing lean principles can act as change agents for a company and introduce new ideas and methods of performing a task. Lean manufacturing emphasizes the role of worker education and training on the success of reducing waste and improving product quality. It also stress that an educated worker is more capable of making decisions. This can help the organization understand the root cause of the problem rather than just find solutions to problems. HPWT that are set up to introduce lean manufacturing concepts can face tremendous challenges, especially if the organization is large and has a well established method of "doing things" and employees are unwilling to change.

Every worker and manager might not adopt the "lean" methods of thinking from the start. Constant and regular reinforcement of these ideas will be needed at periods following the initial training. The management in this setting is no longer solely responsible for running the operation. Worker empowerment is necessary if lean manufacturing has to accomplish the high throughput low variability and zero-defect product quality. The general tendency is to avoid any regressing of "lean thinking" within the operation. The initial stages of lean manufacturing are generally the most difficult. After the workers make the transition, going back to traditional methods can confuse and confound. Finding the right metrics to measure the improvement and changes is also needed.

HPWT for lean manufacturing purposes are generally set up with the express purpose of achieving or performing a specific task. Based on the specificity of the task the team members are selected to achieve the results desired. Projects for the purpose of lean manufacturing should be manageable. Selecting too big a process change for a novice HPWT in the field of Lean Manufacturing might cause more harm than good. If workers and the team members cannot observe results within a short time, they might get discouraged and not achieve the best results for the company. Teams members are also generally selected for their ability to introduce changes and improvements to the process.

Any lean manufacturing concept introduction in an organization can differ significantly based on the culture and the values of the organization. Every variable in the plan selected by the team for the purpose of change should be communicated well to all the relevant parties. By investigating all the variables thoroughly, the team can ensure that there are no major surprises that the team expects while executing their tasks. It is important to note that teams set up for introducing lean concepts might not have solutions to all the problems and issues that the organization face but might have to address the issues as they arise during the implementation process. This requires that team members are sufficiently flexible to handle changes in the process and are able to investigate and scope out new issues that the organization might face.

Team members are supposed to know solutions for a majority of the problems that the team as a whole experience. When the team does not have the solution to a problem, it will collectively work at solving the problem or identifying the procedures by which members can solve the problem. Team members have to trust and rely on each other to help find solutions to the problem, while at the same time perform the routine tasks to which they are assigned and with which they are comfortable. The importance of trust and team member dedication is often the primary requirement in identifying a successful problem solving team. Teams set up for implementing lean management concepts have to understand the issues causing the problems. They have to do this effectively and come up with creative solutions. Team members have to constantly educate and improve their knowledge of existing conditions in the organizations. Thus, team members should have the ability to "resolve issues they still have to identify" and "obtain knowledge of issues that are new." To do this, team members have to be able to constantly have the freedom and the motivation to go ahead and investigate new ideas and option without the fear of reprimand. Team members have to interact frequently and brainstorm to find the best optimum solution to the problem. The outcome or mission of this type of a team is not to arrive at one specific solution, but rather to identify the processes that can be used to arrive at the solution.

While the concepts of lean manufacturing are relatively simple, in reality, the variables and constraints that exist within the organization have the potential to impact the manner in which the decisions are made and the choices that might be available to the organization. There may be more than one way to perform a task; and, the team should be able to understand all solutions and weigh each one of its merits and benefits. Teams need to have members who can connect both intellectually and socially in order to get the best performance. Egos and hidden agendas can seriously damage the working relationships that might be experienced by the team members. Teams setup for the purpose of implementing lean manufacturing often also have to ensure that the plans and strategies suggested by them help the company improve the bottom line. Balancing new ideas with the cost savings can become a challenge over time. During the initial stages, small changes could introduce large profits in the organization; but over time, modifications and changes might no generate the necessary profits and this could affect the morale and motivation of the team members.