Their ability to wield power due to their being from the dominant culture is thwarted and they are therefore forced to learn about how other cultures deal with conflict and other organizational issues.
To assess how well the team is functioning, I would first learn about the cultural backgrounds of its members. Issues related to time are different between different cultures. If meeting a deadline is crucial to the success of the team, then I would need to understand how different cultures address time management and then counsel any team member that did not understand the urgency of deadlines. Similarly, I would learn about differences in non-verbal as well as verbal communications. Body language and other non-verbal forms of communication may or may not prove to be barriers in team effectiveness. Learning about other cultures and how they communicate would help me understand if the team was being effective or not. Imposing my own culture's communication styles on the group would not be effective. For example, some cultures value silence more than...
I might think that a relatively quiet meeting was unsuccessful whereas other members might find the meeting highly productive due to lack of conflict. Other members might assess my contributions using the same open-minded and pluralistic attitude.
3. Team building plays a central role in establishing a healthy team. During the early phases of team development, members are encouraged to learn about one another and determine whether their contributions will remain strong during the duration of the project. Team building allows the team leaders to address any interpersonal conflicts that may be immediately apparent. Finally, team building permits the team leader to introduce activities that stimulate creativity and motivation.
References
Boynton, a. & Fischer, B. (2005). Virtuoso Teams: Lessons from teams that changed their worlds. FT Press.
Fischer, B. & Boynton, a. (2005). "Virtuoso Teams." Originally published in HBR. Retrieved online Sept 30, 2008 from http://www.virtuos.com/virtuosolPPT.pdf
