Differences between groups and teams Group
Differences between groups and teams
|
Group |
Team or work group |
|
Indeterminate size |
Restricted in size |
|
Common interests |
Common overarching objectives |
|
Sense of being part of something or seen as being part of
something |
Interaction between members to accomplish individual and
group goals |
|
Interdependent as much as individuals might wish to
be |
Interdependency between members to accomplish individual and
group goals |
|
May have no responsibilities other than a sense of belonging
to the group |
Shared responsibilities |
|
May have no accountabilities other than ‘contractual’
ones |
Individual accountabilities |
|
A group does not necessarily have any work to do or goals to
accomplish |
The team works together, physically or
virtually |
A group is a collection of individuals who draw a boundary around
themselves. Or perhaps we from the outside might draw a boundary around them and
thus define them as a group. A team on the other hand, with its common purpose,
is generally tighter and clearer about what it is and what its raison d’être is. Its members know exactly who is involved and what their goal is. Of course it
turns out that we are speaking hypothetically here, as any one of us has seen
teams within organizations that appear to have no sense at all of what they are
really about!
Let us illustrate the difference between a team and a group by
using an example. We might look into an organization and see the Finance
Department. The Finance Controller heads up a Finance Management Team that
leads, manages and coordinates the activities within this area. The team members
work together on common goals, meet regularly and have clearly defined roles and
responsibilities (usually).
Perhaps the senior management team has decreed that all the high
potential managers in the organization shall be members of the Strategic
Management Group. So the Finance Controller, who is on the high potential list,
gets together with others at his or her level to form a collection of
individuals who contribute to the overall strategic direction of the
organization. Apart from gatherings every six months, this group rarely meets or
communicates. It is a grouping, which might be bounded but does not have any
ongoing goals or objectives that require members to work together.
STOP AND THINK!
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2.1 |
Within your working life, what teams are you a member of and
to which groups do you belong? |
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|
2.2 |
Within your personal life, what teams are you a member of
and to which groups do you belong? |
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2.3 |
In what ways was it easier to answer in your personal life,
and in what ways more difficult? |
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