Develop a plan for building an effective team with representatives from different functional areas who will work together to solve a business problem.

Introduction

In the first assessment, you learned about the different functional areas of a chosen business and where you would intern. Then you were assigned to the IT department to work on the mission, vision, and code of ethics pages for the corporate website. Up to this point, you have looked at a broad view of the company functions and then a more narrow view of one IT project.

Now you are ready to learn about one of the key points of the mission of the company: teamwork. For this assessment, you will practice building a team to solve a problem in the company.

The ability to build, lead, and contribute to high-performing, collaborative teams are critical skills in any size organization.

In today's rapidly shifting business world, organizations rely heavily on employees to navigate multiple teams that vary in duration and evolve and to successfully manage change. Understanding the challenges involved in teamwork can help organizations avoid chaos and achieve their desired results.

In this assessment, you will select members from different functional areas to form a team and plan the team guidelines for success and communication. Then you will analyze how the different members of the team might contribute to solving a business problem.

Scenario

In Assessment 1, you developed a well-rounded view of the company functional areas from the three internships you completed as a new employee. In Assessment 2, you worked with the IT department on a corporate webpage. Your task for Assessment 3 is to build and plan for a cross-functional team to solve a business problem.

In this assessment, you will bring in the knowledge you gathered earlier of your select company’s functional areas to assemble a team to solve a problem.

The business problem to be solved:

• The logistics function (warehousing, trucking, and inventory) is having a problem with channels of distribution. Some customers have recently complained that their orders are delayed 2–3 weeks, while others have praised the company for delivering the orders in advance. It will require a cross-functional team to study and brainstorm solutions for the situation.

For this assessment, you will: 

• Access the Team Planning Activity to review the profiles of eight current employees and select three members to be in a team with you. Your manager will also assign one person to your team, so be on the lookout for the additional member. You will meet the assigned individual within the Team Planning Activity.
• Highlight the strengths that each member brings to the team and indicate why those characteristics are important to an effective team by using the Team Planning Worksheet [DOCX].
• Develop a plan on the worksheet for building your team that you could present to the CEO as part of a budget plan and funding request for staff. You will also create some effective team communication practices and conflict resolution strategies that will support a successful team, and you'll wrap it up with a final pitch to the CEO about how your plan will result in an effective team that will contribute to organizational success.

Instructions

Develop a plan for building an effective team with representatives from different functional areas that will work together to solve a business problem. Use the Team Planning Worksheet [DOCX] for the team building plan.

1. In preparation for this assessment, study your chosen company website to see what characteristics make its teams successful. Notice if it has any particular team guidelines or communication strategies that contribute to the group functions. You may have to observe the images on the website to make some assumptions about their teamwork.
2. Gather the background information you need about key characteristics of effective team members, group processes such as conflict resolution, and communication strategies that make teams successful. If you choose, you can read the articles in the "First Steps" resource.
3. Access the Team Planning Activity to review the profiles of eight current employees. Select three people to be members of your team based on their representation of the various functional areas and their individual characteristics. Fill in the grid with the information about each team member. Don’t forget that your manager will also assign one person to your team, so be on the lookout for the additional member. You will meet the individual within the Team Planning Activity. 
4. Consider the business problem presented above and in the worksheet. In the Team Planning Worksheet:

• Explain the reasons for including the specific functional areas in the organizational team.
• Create a communication plan that includes recommendations for how the team will connect daily, weekly, and over the course of the project.
• List 3–5 steps of a plan to solve the problem.
• Explain strategies for delegating the various responsibilities in each step.
• Describe how business skills from the functional areas will contribute to problem-solving and how individual soft skills of the team members will help to maintain a positive working relationship and functional problem-solving on the team.
• Explain strategies that the team can use to resolve conflict.

Planning

Consider the following as rough guideposts for setting aside the time you need to do your work. You'll want to adjust these as you learn more about your own pace and working style.

• Research and Reading: 4 hrs.
• Interactive activities: 30 mins.
• Writing: 6 hrs.
• Revising: 2 hrs.

Requirements

• Font: Times New Roman, no smaller than 10-point font.
• Organization: Based on the intended CEO audience, your answers should be well-organized and written in clear, succinct language.
• Worksheet: Complete all sections of the Team Planning Worksheet, plus a reference page.
• Resources: Include at least three reputable resources to support your ideas. Include a reference page.
• APA: Follow APA rules for citing sources that support your analysis and conclusions. See Evidence and APA.

Competencies Measured

By successfully completing this assessment, you will demonstrate your proficiency in the following course competencies and scoring guide criteria:

• Competency 3: Solve business problems using critical thinking and effective decision making.
  • Explain the reasons for including specific functional areas in an organizational team.
• Competency 4: Explain the skills and characteristics of an effective team.
  • Create a communication plan that includes recommendations for how the team will connect daily, weekly, and over the course of the project.
  • Explain strategies for delegating responsibility within a team.
  • Describe the characteristics and soft skills of effective team members.
  • Describe strategies for handling conflict between members of a team.
• Competency 5: Communicate in a manner that is scholarly, professional, and consistent with expectations for the field of business.
  • Articulate meaning relevant to the main topic, scope, and purpose of the prompt.