Team Roles at Work

Description

Considered one of the first and most important ‘management gurus’, the name Belbin is synonymous with Team Role theory, a familiar concept for managers and management trainers across the world. This fully updated third edition of Team Roles at Work provides the practical application of the theory in everyday work situations. This new edition has up-to-date practical examples and summaries to reflect contemporary scenarios, and a brand-new chapter on remote team working, an issue that has gained even greater significance in recent times. The book also includes a Foreword to capture the impact of Meredith’s work in the field of management and team working. Further information accompanies the book on the Belbin website, www.belbin.com, including a summary of the nine Team Roles with their icons, descriptions, strengths, and allowable weaknesses. Team Roles at Work is the best-selling, second book written by Meredith Belbin, designed for any manager who wants to understand the practical application of Team Role theory. Cover Half Title Dedication Title Page Copyright Page Table of Contents List of Illustrations Foreword Preface to the Third Edition Preface to the Second Edition Chapter 1 How Roles at Work Emerged As Primaeval Teams Recede, Tyrannical Order Develops Some Traditional Ways of Assigning People to Work Roles The Most Senior Person Gets the Job The Impact of Gender Racial Roles and Hierarchies The Rise of the Free City Skilled Labour in a Free Market A Dilemma in Work Identity A Strange Outcome Summary Chapter 2 The Qualifications Mystery Who Are the Elite? Selecting Without Eliminating Real Ability Getting to the Shortlist Doing the Right Thing With Disappointing Consequences The Rush for Qualifications Increases the Problem Exceptions to the Rule Highlight the Mystery The Hidden Advantages of Informal Learning Summary Chapter 3 Emergence of a Team Role Language The Continued Evolution of Team Roles Identifying and Developing Team Roles Team Role Versus Functional Role Predictors and Overriders The Lessons Drawn From Life The Effects of Current Situation Role Versatility Versus Role Priority A Language in Common Use Summary Chapter 4 Eligibility Versus Suitability The Qualifications Dilemma Obstacles to Identifying Talent Four Important Quadrants Emancipation Into Management Surprise Fits and Why ‘Ideal Fits’ Are Not Always the Right Choice Special Problems Amongst the Unsuitables A Case for Backing a Suitable A Strategy of Compromise Summary Chapter 5 Coherent and Incoherent Role Profiles The Road to Maturity Improvers Versus Non-Improvers at Work Self-awareness in the Team Generates Coherent Behaviour Differing Styles Linked By a Common Maturity When Weaknesses Become Allowable High Performers With Apparent Weaknesses When Allowable Weaknesses Veer Towards Unacceptability Qualities That Combine Well Unusual Combinations Problematic Referrals The Great Advantages of Coherence Summary Chapter 6 Interpersonal Chemistry in the Workplace Single-role and Multiple-Role Relationships Shaper Relationships Plant Relationships Specialist Relationships Monitor Evaluator Relationships Completer Finisher Relationships Implementer Relationships Resource Investigator Relationships Co-ordinator Relationships Teamworker Relationships Summary Chapter 7 Managing Difficult Working Relationships Avoiding the Issue Different Forms of Strained Working Relationships Identifying Hidden Strengths Making a Team Role Sacrifice Managing the Paradoxical in Working Relationships Third-party Relationships Summary Chapter 8 A Strategy for Self-Management Finding Yourself Mimicking Others Usefully Comparing Self-Perception With Outside Observation Becoming a Stronger Example of a Given Team Role Making a Sacrifice Contracting Out Summary Chapter 9 The Art of Building a Team Where Teamwork Fails Some Intermediate Steps Ensuring That Balanced Teams Can Be Formed Basic Steps in Team Building The Practicalities of Team Construction What Can Happen When There Is No Team Strategy When to Keep and When to Change the Team The Technology of Casting Summary Chapter 10 The Management of Succession Where Can We Find Another Harris? Someone New at the Helm The Heir Apparent Is Waiting Some Ways of Modifying Divine Right in Succession Team Roles and Succession A Strategy for Fail-Safe Succession Summary Chapter 11 Leadership for the Modern World Industry and Politics Contrasting Styles of Leadership Some Consequences of the Two Leadership Styles Variations On a Theme A Current Equivalent Interactions Between Beliefs and Team Roles A Teamworker as a Leader Leadership Within a Context Summary Chapter 12 Real Teams in a Virtual World Flexibility Is Key Designing Virtual Teams Plant Team Role Behaviour Teamworker Team Role Behaviour Specialist Team Role Behaviour Completer Finisher Team Role Behaviour Resource Investigator Team Role Behaviour Implementer Team Role Behaviour Shaper Team Role Behaviour Monitor Evaluator Team Role Behaviour Co-ordinator Team Role Behaviour Embracing Diversity in Virtual Teams Leading Virtual Teams Summary Index