Monday, November 3, 2008

On Team and Group

How many times I have used the words team and groups interchangeably…many times. A discussion in the class on the difference between these two terms lead me to have a hard look at it.

Let’s look at the dictionary…the online Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary among dozen other definitions described team as “a number of persons associated in some joint action”. While group is defined as “a number of persons or things ranged or considered together as being related in some way”. So, the basic difference between a group and a team is that to become a group the members has to be somehow related. So, we can say IT 7130 students are a group because they are enrolled in the same course. On the other hand, to be a team, members have to have a common vision, goal, and interest.

I goggled the terms group and team to find many sites explaining the difference. Followings are the conclusion from them…

There are few criteria among others that differentiate a team from a group…

Why we are here: While group members might think their being together is for administrative purpose only, team members understand they are there to get results or achieve victory. Team members also do not need to engage in territorial dispute within the team. They have their assigned tasks and responsibilities. That is not the case in a group where one might need to struggle over “Turf”.

Who is the leader: Group does not have a clear structure of leadership. Accountability is not well enforced. But, in a team the leader takes much more responsibilities. A team leader has to be a beacon for the other members.

Who is responsible: In victory or in failure of the whole team all the team members are equally responsible. That is not the case with a group. A group member is only responsible for her or his own deeds.

In fact, it’s the responsibility of the manager of any organization to transform a group into a team. In a competitive world a team is more likely to perform better and bring result than a group.

Now, here is a quote I found in the net...

"Teamwork is a make or break situation. Either you help make it or the lack of it will break you." – Kris A. Hiatt

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