In reply to LO16794 -
J.B. suggested:
> * A team must not have a designated leader. If everyone on the team is
> not a "supervisor" for the team, the team will break down into a
> traditional hierarchy.
I'd like to offer another alternative. This is what we're doing for
quality improvement teams at the State of Ohio. I'm sharing this because
the employees have used this structure for other teams, not only those
chartered for quality improvement purposes.
It's a structured team, but one which seldom "break[s] down into a
traditional hierarchy."
There are 5 roles on a team:
* Facilitator
* Team Leader
* Team Member
* Timekeeper
* Scribe
These are the role definitions:
The Facilitator is an "outsider," usually NOT close to the process. They
focus on the TEAM process (the HOW). They assist the team leader in
planning and structuring meetings/assignments. They monitor the
interpersonal dynamics of team members. They maintain ground rules. They
guide the team in tools and techniques (quality and educative - for
example, I've shared the "Ladder of Inference" with a team, although it's
not a "quality tool" in my state-issued toolbook ;-) ). They provide
technical guidance for data gathering and presentations.
The Team Leader, along with the Scribe, is the official keeper of the team
records, including correspondence, etc. The Leader "serves as a
full-fledged team member, participating as a 'leader among equals' ".
They call team meetings, and take care of logistics, work with the
Facilitator to plan upcoming team sessions, act as a contact point for
communicating with the guidance team (for quality projects) and various
groups in the organization.
The Team Members (including the Team Leader) need to be diligent in
attending team meetings, recognize that their team membership is part of
their job, understand and work toward the team mission (which they define
if they aren't a "chartered" team), know and adhere to all team ground
rules (again, they define these), apply their experience and skills,
contribute as fully as possible, articulate concerns, contribute knowledge
and support, carry out between-meeting assignments.
The Timekeeper keeps an eye on time during team sessions and helps the
team stick to its agenda. This role may be circulated among team members.
The Scribe takes notes during each team session, recording both the
discussion and activities. They send out "clean" minutes (i.e., retyped)
after a session (this may be done by the leader as well).
These roles have made for some extremely high-performing teams, where
everyone can contibute equally despite the presence of a "team leader."
The facilitator helps to ensure this contribution. Facilitators are
assigned to a team (when asked for) from an entirely different division of
the agency, or, on occasion, from an entirely different agency altogether.
The source of this is "Guide for Creating a Process Improvement Team"
from the Ohio Office of Quality Services. If you want more information,
contact me (mimesis@infinet.com) or the office directly at:
The Office of Quality Services
77 South High Street
7th Floor
Columbus, Ohio 43266-0107
Hope that helps!
David Sherrod
--"David H. Sherrod" <mimesis@infinet.com>
Learning-org -- Hosted by Rick Karash <rkarash@karash.com> Public Dialog on Learning Organizations -- <http://www.learning-org.com>