Personal and Team Effectiveness free essay sample

The main characteristics in health care organisation are values and beliefs. Values and beliefs in a health care organisation teach us many things. it teach us how to behave with one other in a team at work. When working in a team team members have to co-operate with each other. There should be good communication among team members. Each team members has different strength from several people can be combined and used to benefit the whole team and make a better product. Combining different skills also lead to increased creativity. This can be achieved only if there is good communication among the team members. Each team members has to treat other team members with respect. According to Chrissy Scivicque, senior content manager at Office Arrow, Professional values are the principles that guide your decisions and actions in your career. Although some values are considered more important than others in certain professions, there are some universal values that should be, and usually are, held and practiced in all of them. These universal values are: first, do no harm; keep it simple; honesty is the best policy; were all in this together; and stay balanced. While these values may seem intuitive, failure to adhere to these five principles is at the root of much of the economic and social  damage  that brought the entire worlds economy nearly to its knees in 2008. (http://www. ehow. com/about_5048393_definition-professional-values. html#ixzz29Rl8NMDc). Organizational values define the acceptable standards which govern the behaviour of individuals within the organization. Without such values, individuals will pursue behaviours that are in line with their own individual value systems, which may lead to behaviours that the organization doesnt wish to encourage. (http://www. teal. org. uk/mat/page6. htm) NHS VALUES These values reflect the best of who we are and what we want to be; they’re a pledge to our patients, the wider NHS, our stakeholders and our commitment to each other. Our values are being embedded in all our practices and processes. Our values inform our actions and decisions; they underpin the delivery of our objectives and the achievement of our vision. Our values are about our culture and our behaviours; they reflect how we conduct ourselves individually and corporately, through the services we provide and in the way we engage with our patients, the public, our members and our partners. (http://www. nhsdirect. nhs. uk/About/WhatIsNHSDirect/OurValues) Teamwork also strengthens relationship and builds unity. Team work has a dramatic affect on organisational performance. An effective team can help an organisation achieve incredible results . A team that is not working can cause unnecessary disruption, failed delivery and strategic failure. Nowadays it is almost impossible to avoid being a member of a team . In this case study I am trying to explain how team effectiveness can be improved in mid Stafford nhs trust hospital. (wwwiminottools. com) A persons values and beliefs has a critical impact on the way they make decisions, design programmes, and conduct themselves. it is important to be clear about their own values and beliefs and those shared in a group when working with others , making decisions that impact on others or undergoing changes when an individuals or the shared , group values and beliefs are challenged by others . The person is asked to justify or account for their behaviour or when there is conflict about someone else behaviour values and beliefs help to recruit people with right ability . To motivate them ,to provide them to use opportunities to use their right skills in well designed jobs . In case of Stafford hospital we can see that there was no proper communication among the staff ,relatives and patients. There was no proper training and evaluation, And we can also see that there was always a gap between the top level and bottom level. staff shortage was another factor which lead to stress and negatively affected in the service delivered. www. det. net. gou. au) According to Chrissy Scivicque professional values are the principles that guide your decisions and actions in your career. Organisational values define the acceptable standards which govern the behaviour of individuals within the organisation without such values individuals will pursue behaviours that are in fine with their own individual value system , which may lead to behaviour which organisation does not like to encourage [www. teal. org. uk/mat/page6htm . It is clear from the case study that the keeping of organisational and professional values in Stafford shire hospital was very low. Administering medicines at wrong time, ignoring the call for help , poor record keeping. (www. ehow. com) A condition that arise whenever the interest of an individual or a group clash with those of another group in such a way that the strong emotions are aroused and compromised . Conflicts are of two types Functional conflict and Dysfunctional conflict . Functional conflict is a form of conflict in which the managers think supports organisational goals and improved organisation performance where as in dysfunctional conflict the managers think interferes the organisational goals and reduces organisational performance.. Sources of conflict : goal conflict , role conflict , competition , communication failures ,individual differences , leadership and control ,differences in perceptions , interdepental conflict , environmental changes . Causes of conflict: changes in the atmosphere , status quo . poor communication , poor performances. Positive implications of conflict :it may structure creative solutions ,it can release pent up tension and air issues that would other wise demonstrate. Congnitive conflict- it occurs when team opposes ideas, philosophies and policies. The conflict usually arises due to organization’s position on a particular area. This type of team conflict is not commonly blamed on a person or group but is instead taken out on the organization. An example of cognitive conflict can be when your com about pany requires a specific dress code that seems un reasonable. Team members can become irritated and frustrated with policy, leading to team conflict. Priorities of tasks and objectives- Each team member often has different views about the proper sequence of tasks and about the importance of tasks and objectives. Some team member think that the task given to them is much harder than the other team member`s task. Role conflict- This conflict occurs when the team members are doubtful about their roles. In Stafford there were only few doctors and nurses, more over poor training and supervision are given to doctors and nurses. Failure in communication- communication is a very important factor in teamwork. Poor communication gives rise to conflict and even misunderstanding. Interpersonal and personality clashes- conflicts arise on issues like status, power, control, self esteem and friendships. Such conflicts may emerge from real personality and style differences but often they are based on differences that emerge from departmental or organizational factors like varying past experience and different perspectives of time horizons. The year 2006/2007 was challenging for NHS , as the trust needed more financial stability. An agenda was made to meet national targets for cost improvements by setting a target of saving ? 10 million. For this the management in Stafford hospital reduced 8% of the total staff from various sectors, this created a conflct among the employees management team(PTE2. ) SEEKING HELP FOR SOLVING PROBLEMS The sooner you ask for help -the more options you have for resolving the problem -the better chance you have of maintaining relationships that may have been damaged by conflict. The common type of help is in three types, that is meditation arbitration and individual conciliation. HOW TO PREVENT FUTURE CONFLICTS Establish formal procedures; for dispute solut ions grievances and disciplinary issues . Explain plans it will help individual performance targets to the overall business. So everyone feels involved, reward fairly and work safely. Develop relationships; it contains employee values, encourage initiative, balance personal and business needs and develop new skills. Build trust between employee representatives and management. Organisation is committed to staff development and performance management that contributes to development of the individual and hence of the organisation. Management process should give staff the opportunity to assess their performance, receive feedback, identify their development and training needs and establish achievable work goals. The procedure has been develop to ensure fair and equitable management of staffs. Therefore,all staff in organisation are entitled to an annual formal structured staff review process. The performance management process is based on a developmental model Performance of individual in an organisation based on the following: A:Staff development reviews shouldn’t be used as a substitute or procedure as a mechanism for discipline. Seperate policies and procedures exists for this matters. B:Proper staff development and performance reviews are part of the responsibilities of the organisation to its staff. C: Reviews must involve active participation of the staff member (including self evaluation)with their supervisor and in the authority management. Everyone involved in this process having realistic expectations. Staff developmental reviews are a part of continuous planning and do not replace regular reporting on work or supervision. The reviews give opportunity for staff to express their views about the organisation as well as providing feedback on their own performance. Reviews must be confidential and records will be kept on the staff member’s personal file. Feedback is the information from the instructor to the instructor to the learners about their past performance on the words within serve to enhance or modify future actions of learners . In other way feedback is the return flow of ideas and opinions as a job is been done by leaner’s . It was clearly mentioned in the investigations done in the Stafford hospital that feedback was not given to the staff. I personally believe if we are given feedback we can understand our faults clearly and workout on it to improve our standard in our work and will increase our confidence as well. Another thing is that it is a chance for us to communicate with our senior staff and will be able to understand each other . This will reduce the communication gaps and errors that can happen. At the end of the day we can expect a better service which everyone likes to have. A positive feedback is a process in which an initial change will bring about an additional change in the same direction. An example of a simple positive feedback in everyday life is the growth of an interest-earning savings account. As interest is accrued the principal will begin to grow (assuming money is not withdrawn). As the principal grows, even more interest will be accrued, quickening the rate of principal growth. There are also negative feedbacks, processes in which an initial change will bring about an additional change in the opposite direction. An example of a simple negative feedback is your bodys cooling mechanism. When your body temperature rises, you begin to sweat. The evaporation of this sweat from your skin cools your body and your temperature returns to normal. (http://www. cdc. noaa. gov/paleo/abrupt/story2. html) Continuous professional development is quiet simply a means of supporting people in the working place to understand more about the environment in which they work ,the job they do it better . It is an ongoing process throughout our working lives (www. plymouth. ac. uk/pages/view. asp) Benefits of continuous professional development :it is an investment which helps to appreciate indiv idual strength and weakness ,keep skills and knowledge up to date links learning directly to practice . Makes employee more confident , creative and credible . Increased learning ability, finding best ways to learn ,accelerate career development . If the staffs are given training it will help to increase the knowledge and skills keep them up to date . Staff will be more confident ,risk of error will reduce . managers or senior staff can identify the strength and weakness of there co –workers ,areas which need improvement . Early identification of infection or any changes in the condition of the patient . All these changes or improvement can be seen among the staff if they are given continuous professional development. PROCESS OF CONTINUOUS PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT ( CPD) The process of CPD objectives include: gt;plan developments by creating personal development plans gt;update the objectives for development gt;plan future goals CPD benefits in many ways, it contribute staff in keeping their skills, knowledge, experience up to date. CPD helps team members to show responsibility for their own development. CPD helps team members for forward planning. Staff in Stafford hospital was not trained properly and were having no professional development. According to the report it is clear that the Aamp;E department had less staff. The nurse not had enough training and development. During the period of 2007/2008 the nurse had little service training and most of the staff no necessary skills to care and observe patients. The patient’s record were poorly recorded and maintained. These all factors lead to a total failure of CPD system in Stafford hospital (PTE2. 5) A team comprises a group of people or animals linked in a common purpose . Team normally have members with different skills and different synergy through a co ordinated effort which allow each member to maximise his or her strengths and maximise their weakness . Team members have to be helpful to each other they should have good co operation and help other members of the team to realise there true potential and should create an environment where everyone can perform beyond their limitations . A team can also be defined as a small number of people with complementary skills who are committed to work for a common purpose . Three common types of teams include functional or departmental teams , cross-functional teams and self- managing teams . Functional teams are groups of people from the same work area or department who meet on a regular basis to analyse customer needs, solve problems. Provide members with support, promote continuous improvement, and share information. Cross – functional teams are groups of people who are pulled together from or across departments or job functions to deal with a specific product . issues, customer, problem, or to improve a particular process . Self –managing teams are groups of people who gradually assume responsibility for self- directions in all aspects of work. (Susan M . Heathfield,about. com guide). Characteristics of an effective team Some of the characteristics of an effective team are as follows, 1) Clear objectives and agreed goals 2) Openness and confirmation 3) Support and trust 4) Co-operation and conflict 5) Sound procedures 6) Appropriate leadership 7) Regular review 8) Individual development 9) Maintain group relations Working as a team can increase the productivity of the work in an rganisation(PTE3. 1) Stages and characteristics of teams The four stages of team growth were developed by Bruce Wayne Tuckman published in 1965. Tuckmans stages were based on a research conducted on team dynamics. He believed that these stages are inevitable in order for a team to develop the five stages are * Forming * Storming * Norming * Performing * Adjourning The fifth stage adjourning and transforming was put forwar d by tuckman and maryan jensen in 1977. Stage 1-FORMING Forming takes place when members are introduced when they first meet each other. They gather information and impressions about each other, and about the scope of the task and how to approach it. They totally depend on the team leader to guide them. In Stafford trust there were no rules, objectives, or goals. The team members were not enough active to interact. Stage 2-STORMING Storming is a key step in the development stage as a team. At this stage, team members compete with each other enemies, their state of mind and accepted. They may have different views can be found in the conflict, they learn under the guidance of the leader of the team, solve problems, work independently and work together as a team. Some teams struggled want through this step because of the low resolution of the problem. Trust in Staffordshire poor leadership, as mentioned earlier, because of the responsibility of the leader at this stage, it should be obvious, if the system does not move. In addition there is no real participation in public communication. Stage 3-NORMING Accept different opinions towards the standardization of information sharing, and a positive decision, the need to weigh the phase behaviour. To manipulate the rules defined in the team members. Co- operation and a sense of shared responsibility develops an effective team. Most departments in Staffordshire, has passed the second stage, there is no chance to go through this step. Stage 4-PERFORMING In this stage the team members can learn how to effectively achieve its objectives. Team members will work independently, and to help each other when needed. This step also includes a reward system. Stage 5-ADJOURNING This is the final step, disengagement termination of work behaviour and social behaviour occurred during this period. To build an effective team it should follow the above five steps (PTE3. 2) Benefits of team working: teams can achieve results than individuals working alone through synergy. Team members support and encourage each other’s growth and development Team demonstrates commitment to the task, the organisation and each other. In a team there is a sense of belonging leading to improved motivation. Group: a work group is two or more independent individuals who interact and influence each other in a collective pursuit of a common goal . Konopka 1963defines group work as a method of social work that is utilised in order to help individuals to enhance their social functioning through purposeful group experiences, and to cope more effectively with their personal, group or community problems. This definition shows a tradition with in the group work of helping individuals with problems. Brown provide a modern and more comprehensive definition of group work (1994,p. 8) he states that group work provides a context in which individuals helps each other ; it is a method of helping groups as well as helping individuals ; and it can enable groups and individuals to and change personal ,group ,organisational and community problems. Thus the role of group work can be seen as one which places emphasis on thoughts, ideas , problems , and activities . youthworkcentral. trophid. com/sean3. htm) . Team versus Groups: There is a difference between people working as a team and those who are a part of a group ,often do not have clear or unified goals and targets , often ignore or accommodate conflicts. Do not display high level of trust and openness , often do not support each other ,team shares a common purpose which may be set up for a specific purpose to achieve a set objective project or outcome have clear goals ,teams share a common purpose. Belbin team roles : He defined team as a bunch of people with job titles ,but a congregation of individuals , each of whom has a role which is understood by other members . Members of a team seek out certain roles and they perform most effectively in the ones that are most natural to them. Belbian rules are used to identify peoples behavioural strengths and weakness in the workplace . This information can be used to build productive working relationships , select and develop high performing teams , raise self – awareness and personal effectiveness , build mutual trust and understanding , aid recruitment processes . Belbin team roles measures behaviour, not personality , and so can be defined as a tendency to behave , contribute and interrelate with others in particular way . (www. belbin. com /rte. asp? id=8) . Strength and allowable weakness: the first role of a team to be identified was the plant. The role was so called because one such individual was planted in each team. They tended to be highly creative and good at solving problems in conventional ways. The strength or contributions they provide, each team role also has an associated allowable weakness. or example plants could be unorthodox or forgetful , resource investigators might forget to follow up on a lead ,monitor evaluators could be overly critical and slow moving , co –coordinators might over delegate leaving themselves little work to do ,implementers might be slow to relinquish their plans in favour of positive changes , completer finishers could be accused of taking their perfectionism to be made, team workers might beco me indecisive when unpopular decisions need to be made , shapers could risk becoming aggressive and bad –humoured in their attempts to get things done . Specialist may have a tendency to focus narrowly on their own subject of choice . Features of high team spirit : team members share objectives of the group goals / organisation goals ,high productivity / willingness to work , self motivated / no need of close supervision , working together for a common goal , co operation and participation , feel good factor present , prepare to openly ac cess performance , inclusive decision making. Features of low team spirit : lack of interest in group goals/ organisational goals ,low productivity / reluctance , hard work / absentiseem , need of close supervision , management constant pushing , morals is depressed , un willing to change , majority voting with little concerns for minority. Employ autonomy and involvement, team working to give variety and responsibility developing flexibility skills, support for employ performance , integrated performance management , appropriate selecting and recruitment , processor to support high performance culture . If the management of Stafford hospital try to improve the team effectiveness using the solutions explained earlier they can expect a great change in the service delivered. By this management can gain customer satisfaction by providing a service above their expectations . staff motivation will increase more over quality , quantity and innovation also increase . DEVELOPING EFFECTIVE TEAM Successful performance often requires a good interaction with the team members. The basic characteristic of an effective team member are to share information in order to achieve common goals. Efforts to improve performance, and should focus on individual performance. However individuals rely on other members information sharing and co-ordinate activities of the behaviour of these hazards are collectively referred to as a team. Team must be able to measure self-efficiency. Therefore, the team needs a simple framework for self –assessment. The following explains a plan to develop teams. Teams are made up of individuals. The team functions are as follows Task functions * defining the task * making a plan * allocating work resources * controlling quality amp;tempo of work checking performance against plan * adjusting plan Group functions * Setting standards * Maintaining discipline * Building team spirit * Encouraging ,motivating, giving sense of purpose * Appointing roles * Ensuring communication within the group * Training the group Individual functions * Attending to personal problems praising individuals * Giving status * Recognising amp;using individual abilities * Training the individual Staffordshire’s lack of open communication amp; leadership caused problems, the customers were unsatisfied. The complaints recorded were not paid any attention . he staff were not flexible. There is no reward or Leadership is a function of knowing of yourself , having a vision that is well communicated , building trust among colleagues , and taking effective action to realize your own leadership potential(Warren Bennis ) . A leader should understand his or her own needs and characteristics, leader should understand the needs and characteristics of the members of the group, this understanding will help in planning things and getting the work done , this will increase the trust and build confidence among the team members . learningforlife. org/explor†¦resources/99-720/x10. pdf) . Leadership involve  ¦Being able to motivate amp; direct others  ¦Taking responsibility for the direction amp; actions of a team  ¦ Setting objectives.  ¦Organisin g amp; motivating others.  ¦Taking the initiative  ¦Persevering when things are not working out.  ¦Taking a positive attitude to frustration/failure.  ¦Being flexible: prepared to adapt goals in the light of changing situations  ¦Accepting responsibility for mistakes/wrong decisions. How to become a leader 1. Use initiative to act on opportunities. Become a leader before other people view you as one. Healthy organisations reward those who take the lead, not just those with formal management roles. 2. Take responsibility for own objectives: set priorities. 3. Display a can do attitude even in demanding situations.. Try to solve problems, rather than to pass them on to other people. First answer is ‘yes, I’ll make it happen’ . 4. Go the extra mile when asked to do tasks. Go beyond your job description. Do work that gets you noticed. 5. Show enthusiasm: this will be noticed and you will eventually be rewarded. 6. Take ownership of problems: anticipate potential problems, take pre-emptive action and act quickly to resolve problems. 7. Introduce improvements to the way things are done. 8. Develop innovative practices. Value innovative thinking. 9. Learn new skills that will enhance capability. 10. Common sense is not common! (www. kent . ac. uk/careers/sk/leadership. htm) Leaders role in motivating team members : be positive and set a good example for the team , share information on projects and business openly with the team , when possible , let team work through their conflicts , but be ready to resolve negative conflict and bad situations before team morale is damaged , give feedback for improvement for when necessary in a positive and thoughtful way , show appreciation for the work team does using different methods for rewarding team and members , if a team request or members idea is not understood , ask for clarification of examples , actively listen to the team complaints , ideas , and improvements , allow the team to evaluate its leader and suggest improvement ideas to help the team with respect , trust , and confidence in their leader , show confidence in the team by supporting their work and needs , do periodic team assessment with the members on how the team doing as a way to increase awareness of what is right and identify opportunities for improvement . (www. Smallbusinessdelivered. com/.. ) Authority can be defined as institutionalized and legal power inherent in a particular job, function or position that is meant to enable its holder to successfully carry out his or her responsibilities, or it can be defined as a power that is delegated formally, it includes a right to command a situation commit resources . give orders and expect them to be obeyed , it is always accompanied by an equal responsibility for ones actions or a failure to act . (ww. businessdictionary. com) Differences between Leadership and Authority Ron views leadership as being different from authority. Leadership is not a set of personal characteristics or an individuals role; it is the ability to meet an adaptive challenge, the gap between values and reality. It focuses work on resolving internal conflicts and contradictions. It involves intricate diagnostic work in which values are clarified. Leadership is not value-neutral; it is value-laden. Leadership is about getting people to tackle hard problems and to not engage in work avoidance. Not only does leadership identify the adaptive challenge, it regulates the degree of disequilibrium, gives the work back to relevant publics, mobilizes them to do adaptive work, and instils a discipline of attending to the gap between values and reality. It is this level of depth of work where work avoidance occurs and groups engage in distractive behaviours. While individuals exercising leadership generate disequilibrium in order to get the group to do adaptive work, an authority figure focuses on monitoring the distress of the group and restoring equilibrium. Authority is power conferred by others in an exchange for a service. It provides five social functions: direction, protection, orientation, control of conflict, and maintenance of norms. The person in authority defines where the group is headed, what outcomes are expected, and establishes clear boundaries, roles, and relationships in the performance of tasks. In performing these functions, they must ensure a safe, predictable environment where anxiety is kept to a minimum and the rules are enforced. Authority requires a holding environment, the management of basic boundaries, and acute sensitivity to the groups needs. â€Å"The person in authority is most sensitive to levels of distress in the system,† says Ron. Many of the characteristics attributed to authority are ones some of us use in describing leadership. The distinguishing difference is that leadership creates dissonance in order for adaptive work to occur whereas authority, because of its definition and function, operates to constrain this level and depth of work. (ron,www. kithoughtbridge. com) In all these ways if the management of the Stafford hospital try to make changes then we can see a better result in the quality of service delivered, staff cooperation and can become an example for other organisations as well REFERENCES. Chrissy Scivicque ,2008,internet  (http://www. ehow. com/about_5048393_definition-professional-values. html#ixzz29Rl8NMDc). The real trust,the value of organisation,2009,online,(http://www. teal. org. uk/mat/page6. htm) Brown (1994, p8)(youthworkcentral. trophid. com/sean3. tm) . NOAA,what are positive feedbacks,journel,internet. (http://www. ncdc. noaa. gov/paleo/abrupt/story2. html) Warren bennis,(learningforlife. org/explor†¦resources/99-720/x10. pdf) . Susan M Heath field, human resources , journe l,online (www. about. com guide). Bruce Wayne Tuckman , 1965. Tucuman’s stages online(www. d. umn. edu. ) Elaine Biech,2008, Sucessfull team building tools,2nd edition, prefer publications. Rollan amp;Francis Bee, 1966,constructive feedback, 1st edition. John Lorriman 1997,continuing professional development 1st edition