Question

Working in Teams. At worst, working in teams can be a frustrating waste of time. The disadvantages of teams include the following:

• A team may develop groupthink, the willingness of individual members to set aside their personal opinions and go along with the rest of the team members, even if they are wrong.

• Some team members may have a hidden agenda—private, counterproductive motives that affect the group’s interaction.

• Still another drawback to teamwork is the high cost of coordinating group activities. Aligning schedules, arranging meetings, and coordinating a project can eat up a lot of time and money.

Do you agree, why or why not?

Answer 1

There is always a negative side of every alternative.Looking from the positive perspective, teamwork has more benefits than negative issues. Teams provide excellent opportunity to learn from a diverse set of people who differ in their viewpoints, backgrounds and cultural attributes. Teams, when thoughtfully put together, may find innovative ways to solve huge problems in little efforts, saving cost, time and other resources for the company. Teams are also a source of employee motivation and improves interpersonal interaction leading to better cohesion among the workers and thus enhances culture of the company.

The negative aspects listed in the question are more of exception than norms, and even if all of them are present a any given time, the benefits always overweigh these negative issues associated with teams and their working.