Bridging the gap between I/O research and HR practice: Improving team composition, team training, and team task design

How to Make an Internal Team Coach: An Integration of Research

Team coaching has been found to increase group effort, improve interpersonal processes, and increase team knowledge and learning. However, the team coaching literature is renowned for its inability to define team coaching itself-making it difficult to solidify its place in the world of team science. So far, there is no consensus on what specific training would serve internal leaders best, and how they would connect to the team coaching literature. We know leadership and team training are effective in improving organizational outcomes, but the gap in the literature lies in identifying what specific competencies internal team coaches need, and what training could fulfill these. In this piece, we seek to (1) identify what competencies internal team leaders need based on the outcomes we know team coaching yields, (2) identify specific behaviors that can fulfill these competencies, and (3) integrate the literature to form an evidence-based guide on what training to provide to internal team coaches. By doing so, we hope to provide a definitive understanding of what internal team coaches need to be successful.

Comparative Analysis of the Functions Work Groups and Informal Subgroups Carry out in Relation to their Members: The Essence, Conditions of Implementation, Effects, and Dysfunctions

In this article, we attempt to integrate and further develop conceptual ideas about functions of small groups and the informal subgroups that arise within them in relation to their respective members, namely, the functions of: (1) creating possibilities for realizing individual goals and meeting individual needs; (2) providing protection from external and intragroup social threats; (3) providing information to members; (4) educating members; (5) providing adaptive capacities to members; and (6) providing control and regulation. First, drawing on a functional analysis, we defined the concept of "function." Next, we touched upon such issues as: the essence of each function; conditions for implementing the functions; the difference between an informal subgroup and a small group in how they implement the functions for their respective members; the effects of implementing the functions; and the related dysfunctions. This versatile account of the functions that small groups and informal subgroups implement in relation to their members allowed us to expand our understanding of these functions and their effects on attitudes, activities and the development of group (subgroup) members, as well as of some aspects of group and subgroup processes and performance. We conclude by presenting both theoretical and practical applications of the analysis of the functions of groups and subgroups and, accordingly, posed some important questions for further research and discussion.

Team diversity, conflict, and trust: Evidence from the health sector

The current study aims to determine the impact of diversity and intra-team trust on conflict within the health sector of Pakistan. This study also measures the moderating role of trust in the relationship between diversity and conflict among team members. Data was collected using personally administered questionnaires from 61 teams, including 377 respondents working in 4 public sector hospitals in Pakistan, which were selected using a simple random sampling technique. The results revealed that diversity (as a composite) positively influences task conflict, while its two components-surface-level diversity and deep-level diversity-are associated positively with task conflict. Moreover, the results also lead to an exciting finding that trust among team members could reduce the positive influence of diversity on team members' conflict. The implications for theory and practitioners are presented along with the avenues for future research directions.

Enablers of post-COVID-19 customer demand resilience: evidence for fast-fashion MSMEs

Purpose

This study aims to analyse the resilience of customer demand management post-coronavirus disease 2019, using fast fashion as an example. The paper provides insights for potential applications to micro-, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

Design/methodology/approach

Based on the qualitative analysis and an integrated Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA)-decision making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL)-fuzzy technique for order of preference by similarity to the ideal solution (TOPSIS) methodology of fuzzy multi-criteria decision-making, we explored and prioritised the enablers of resilience management for fast-fashion MSMEs.

Findings

The results reveal that the highest priority enabler is maintaining customer loyalty. Other enablers are associated with e-commerce endorsement, a customer-focussed assortment of items and flexible store operations.

Research limitations/implications

The study findings will enable fast-fashion MSMEs to develop effective actions and priorities in operations efforts to promote post-pandemic recovery.

Originality/value

Despite the importance of the resilience project and the changing fast-fashion customer patterns, only a handful of studies have explored how resilience can be managed in this field. Thus, the findings can contribute to closing this gap in the context of operations resilience research as well as MSME operations.

A typology of principal investigators based on their human capital: an exploratory analysis

There is burgeoning literature on principal investigators (PIs) and their influential role in science, technology transfer and research commercialisation. However, there is yet no analysis of this actor from the perspective of their human capital (HC), i.e., the combination of knowledge, abilities and skills that they possess. Consequently, the purpose of this paper is to fill this gap by identifying whether a range of different PI profiles exists, based on their different HC. A cluster analysis was developed using a database comprised of 224 PIs of research teams, from a wide range of scientific fields. Three different PI profiles were identified, research-oriented PIs, accomplished PIs, management-focused PIs. The relationship between each of these profiles and their performance was analysed at both individual and research team level, and our findings reinforce the idea that there is not a size that fits all. Indeed, contrary to the ‘more is better’ statement, higher levels of HC are not necessarily connected to better results, our findings suggested an adequate combination of HC as the best option for PIs. Results of the relationship between PI gender, performance and the three different PI profiles have been examined, as well.

Struggling to Fix Teams in Real Work Settings: A Challenge Assessment and an Intervention Toolbox

After more than 80 years in predicting organizational performance, empirical evidence reveals a science of teams that seems unable to consistently implement solutions for teams performing in real work settings -outside and away from the isolated teams breeding in research laboratories in the academic context. To bridge this growing practitioners-researchers divide, we first identify five main challenges involved in working with teams today (purposeful team staffing; proper task design and allocation; task and interaction process functionality; appropriate affective tone; and suitable team assessment). And second, we offer a toolbox of interventions (empowering and restorative) to help practitioners to transform the potential threats inherent in these challenges into opportunities for team effectiveness. Our five-challenge diagnosis and proposed intervention toolbox contribute to better address research questions and theoretical falsifiability using teams performing in real work settings, and to assess and intervene in teams by adjusting their internal functioning to contextual conditions and constraints.

Effects of Group Formation on Student Satisfaction and Performance: A Field Experiment

This study analyzes the relation of group formation on outcomes of a 4-week online course for prospective students. Group formation was experimentally manipulated based on predefined criteria, personality traits conscientiousness and extraversion. As research questions, groups were considered advantageous if they were formed (a) heterogeneously in extraversion, and (b) homogeneously in conscientiousness. As a result, no uniform outcome was identified. Most variance could be explained on group level, but no significant main effect for experimental grouping was found. Significant interaction between both main effects hint that the results do not provide final answers, but guidance for further research.

Measuring the human capital of scientists in the principal investigator role

Purpose

There is an emerging literature on scientists in the principal investigator (PI) role that identifies them as central and key actors in entrepreneurial ecosystems. PIs in leading large-scale public research programmes and teams require an array of skills and abilities to be effective in this role. The purpose of this paper is to propose a human capital (HC) measurement scale that can unearth their competencies at the micro level, since there is no specific measurement scale specifically for PIs.

Design/methodology/approach

The proposed model was reached relying on both qualitative and quantitative methodologies, to then apply exploratory factor analysis (EPT) and confirmatory factor analysis (AFC) to verify its suitability, as well as its internal consistency and reliability using appropriate indices.

Findings

The proposed model is composed of six PI's HC factors, such as research knowledge, open-mind research ability, research perform ability, stoic research skill, innovation skill and critical skill.

Originality/value

In proposing this, this paper advances micro-level understanding of the competencies that PIs require to be effective in the role, and answers the call for deeper research on these crucial actors. Shedding light on this issue is beneficial for not only the administrators of the universities, the research centres or the funding agencies to obtain further essential information in selecting the best-qualified person, but also to self-evaluate their skills, abilities and knowledge so that they can direct their efforts towards improving the weak aspects of their HC. Furthermore, it can be an additional useful criterion for defining the career plans of PIs or their promotion policies.

Team building, employee empowerment and employee competencies

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of team building and employee empowerment on employee competencies and examine the moderating role of organizational learning culture in between these relationships.

Design/methodology/approach

An integrated research model is developed by combining resource-based view, signalling theory and experiential learning theory. The validity of the model is tested by applying moderated structural equation modelling (MSEM) approach to the data collected from 653 employees working in cement manufacturing companies. The reliability and validity of the dimensions are established through confirmatory factor analysis and the related hypotheses are tested by using MSEM.

Findings

The findings suggest that organizational learning culture significantly strengthens the relationships of team building and employee empowerment on employee competencies.

Research limitations/implications

The research is undertaken in Indian cement manufacturing companies which cannot be generalized across a broader range of sectors and international environment.

Practical implications

The findings of the study have potential to help decision makers of manufacturing companies to develop strategies which will enable them to improve employee competency, to formulate effective human resource development interventions and to enhance the capability of the employees to achieve desired goals and objectives of the organization.

Originality/value

The research is unique in its attempt to combine three frameworks to build a new theoretical model explaining the importance organizational learning culture along with team building and employee empowerment.

DEVELOPING, SUSTAINING, AND MAXIMIZING TEAM EFFECTIVENESS: AN INTEGRATIVE, DYNAMIC PERSPECTIVE OF TEAM DEVELOPMENT INTERVENTIONS

Organizations regularly make significant investments to ensure their teams will thrive, through interventions intended to support their effectiveness. Such team development interventions (TDIs) have demonstrated their value from both a practical and empirical view, through enabling teams to minimize errors and maximize expertise and thereby advance organizational gains. Yet, on closer examination, the current state of the TDI literature appears so piecemeal that the robustness of extant scientific evidence is often lost. Accordingly, we seek to provide a more cohesive and dynamic integration of the TDI literature, evolving thinking about TDIs toward a system of interventions that can be optimized. Drawing on the existing theoretical and empirical literatures, we first broadly define TDIs. We then offer an in-depth look at the most common types of TDIs, in terms of summarizing the state of the science surrounding each TDI. Based on this review, we distinguish features that make for an effective TDI. We then advance a more integrative framework that seeks to highlight certain interventions that are best served for addressing certain issues within a team. In conclusion, we promote a call for evolving this robust yet disjointed TDI literature into a more holistic, dynamic, and intentional action science with clear empirical as well as practical guidance and direction.

Team-bonding and team-bridging social capital: conceptualization and implications

Purpose

The paper aims to propose a conceptualization of two types of team social capital: team-bonding and team-bridging social capital. Throughout the conceptual effort, the paper provides suggestions for future research avenues that link team social capital, as a distinct team-level construct, with other team research topics.

Design/methodology/approach

The conceptualization of team social capital is based on a review and synthesis of prior research about social networks. The propositions about the relationships of team social capital with other team process and effectiveness variables are developed within the classical input-mediator-output framework.

Findings

The conceptualizations of team-bonding and team-bridging social capital and the common measures for each are provided. Moreover, a series of testable propositions regarding the associations between team social capital and team process, the influence of team social capital on team effectiveness and the antecedents of team social capital are made.

Research limitations/implications

Because of the chosen research approach, the research results may lack generalizability. Therefore, researchers are encouraged to test the proposed propositions further.

Originality/value

This paper elaborates the concept of team social capital and specifies its implications to various team phenomena. With this conceptual effort, this paper has advanced our knowledge about the nature and role of team social capital in team research.

Linking Team Condition and Team Performance: A Transformational Leadership Approach

Because project teams in the construction industry shape the primary focus of the industry's project life cycle, a high-performance construction workplace facilitates employees’ technical and innovation skills through team development. Drawing on the current research in general teamwork and leadership, this study, from a theoretical perspective, extends the team condition as a hierarchical construct, incorporating six associated components. This article argues that team building and team development can be studied as ongoing processes that are crucial to project success. In order to reduce the risk of common method variance, the research analysis was completed using 94 construction teams from three different sources, within which team members rated their leader's transformational leadership behavior. The team leaders evaluated the team's conditions, and, lastly, the supervisor of each team rated the team's performance. The model shows that the team condition, which is defined as the factors that contribute to making a great team, has significant direct and indirect impacts on team performance. Furthermore, the transformational leadership behavior of team leaders showed a mediating role between the team condition and the performance.

Viewing team selection through a temporal lens

This paper builds synthesized coherence (Locke & Golden-Biddle, 1997) across disciplines such as organizational behavior, personnel psychology, entrepreneurship, project management, and strategic management by developing a temporal team selection framework that delineates three temporal team selection processes (i.e., simultaneous selection, sequential selection, and substitution selection). Of these three processes, sequential selection, which could either be constraint-driven or coevolution-driven, is a new conceptualization. This framework speaks to the broader research stream on membership dynamics, and therefore its key constructs such as arithmetic of membership change (Arrow & McGrath, 1993) and temporal patterning of membership change (Arrow & McGrath, 1993) have been systematically applied to the temporal team selection processes. Finally, the implications of this theorizing for both research and practice are discussed.

Functional diversity appropriateness

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to investigate how perceptions of team performance and teamwork processes relate to functional diversity appropriateness perceptions (FDAP), that is, whether one believes that the right functions are represented in a team. Thereby, the authors distinguish between perceptions of team managers and team members.

Design/methodology/approach

– The study involved a cross-sectional survey study among 48 sourcing teams from 12 multinational companies, all from different industries.

Findings

– Members’ and managers’ congruent perceptions of performance showed differential relationships with their perceptions of the team’s functional diversity appropriateness. For managers, perceptions of team performance and functional diversity appropriateness were directly and positively related. For team members, this relationship was moderated by teamwork behavior. Moreover, unlike team members, purchasing managers did not consider functionally diverse teams to be more suitable for executing sourcing tasks.

Research limitations/implications

– This study identified teamwork behavior as a critical element for explaining the differences in FDAP of members and managers of sourcing teams.

Practical implications

– Rather than homogenizing team structures, managers should stimulate good teamwork behavior that allows for an the integration of interests and insights from different functional areas.

Originality/value

– This study adds to functional diversity literature as well as perceptual distance literature by revealing how different team effectiveness criteria shape managers’ and members’ perceptions of functional diversity appropriateness.

A proposed improvement to the multilevel theory for hierarchical decision-making teams

The multilevel theory proposed by Hollenbeck et al. identified a set of core variables that are central to accuracy in decision-making in hierarchical teams with distributed expertise. Following the identification of the limitations of the original core variables, a new set of core variables is proposed: (a) member validity, which represents the overall predictability of team members with regard to the correct decision and (b) hierarchical sensitivity, which represents the effectiveness of the leader's weightings of members' recommendations. To test the revised theory, a computational model called Team-Soar is used. The simulation results show that the small set of new core variables explains a large portion of the variance in the team decision accuracy and mediates the effects of other variables on the accuracy. The revised theory can be used as a conceptual vehicle to parsimoniously explain the performance of hierarchical decision-making teams. The theory could also be used to diagnose and train real teams in terms of the core variables.

The opponent process theory of leadership succession

Groups are increasingly conceptualized as self-regulating, adaptive social systems, where time and history play central explanatory roles. Despite this, concepts related to opponent processes, which are central to theories of self-regulation, have been absent from discussions of leadership of groups. In this paper, we introduce the opponent process theory of leadership succession, and argue that the impact of leadership on current outcomes can be fully appreciated only by complementing the understanding of the current leader’s behaviors and style with the behaviors and styles of his or her predecessor. We outline both the process and content of opponent processes highlighting their potential to explain both adaptive and maladaptive behavior in groups.

There’s a Science for That

As teams have become an increasingly necessary component of organizational structure, organizations have turned to team development interventions in hopes of facilitating performance gains in their teams. However, it is critical to understand that team development interventions are not “one size fits all.” This review provides a close examination of the two most prevalent intervention approaches, team training and team building, in order to highlight their contributions to improving teams when designed according to team development science.

A proposed improvement to the multilevel theory for hierarchical decision-making teams

The multilevel theory proposed by Hollenbeck et al. identified a set of core variables that are central to accuracy in decision-making in hierarchical teams with distributed expertise. Following the identification of the limitations of the original core variables, a new set of core variables is proposed: (a) member validity, which represents the overall predictability of team members with regard to the correct decision and (b) hierarchical sensitivity, which represents the effectiveness of the leader's weightings of members' recommendations. To test the revised theory, a computational model called Team-Soar is used. The simulation results show that the small set of new core variables explains a large portion of the variance in the team decision accuracy and mediates the effects of other variables on the accuracy. The revised theory can be used as a conceptual vehicle to parsimoniously explain the performance of hierarchical decision-making teams. The theory could also be used to diagnose and train real teams in terms of the core variables.

A Double-Edged Sword? Exploring the Curvilinear Relationship Between Organizational Tenure Diversity and Team Innovation: The Moderating Role of Team-Oriented HR Practices

Although team diversity facilitates team innovation, research on the relationship between organizational tenure diversity and team innovation has produced mixed findings. To reconcile these inconsistent past findings, the present study is designed to investigate the possible curvilinear relationship between organizational tenure diversity and team innovation, and the moderating effect of team-oriented HR practices. We collect data from 67 R&D teams, including 321 engineers, for our sample, and hierarchical regression analyses are conducted to test hypotheses. The results show that the curvilinear relationship does exist between organizational tenure diversity and team innovation, and this nonlinear relationship is moderated by team-oriented HR practices.

Team training for creating performance templates

Purpose

This paper seeks to explain how team training in template construction and maintenance is achieved to improve the performance of individuals and teams on the job. The aim is to explain the training model in detail and to present the theory base for the model. Also, another important purpose is to demonstrate how the model is actually used in the field.

Design/methodology/approach

The methodology consists of two major features: the explication of how the template approach is applied, in general; and then the performance of teams and groups of employees is compared following training. It shows that one group was trained in the template approach, while the other group was trained using more conventional methods.

Findings

The hypotheses stated that in comparing the differently trained teams/groups there would be no difference in performance on these measures: gross sales attained; manager rating of employee performance; and customer satisfaction with regard to sales representatives; product knowledge; helpfulness in the business context; and overall performance. Significant differences were noted for manager rating, product knowledge, and overall performance. The groups could be compared; however, the teams were too small to rely on standard statistical tools for analysis.

Research limitations/implications

The study was exploratory in nature with a limited range of performance measures. The sample sizes (teams) were not large; however, the groups were large enough to make comparisons. The use of different pairs of trainers for the sub‐samples helps to dampen trainer bias but also creates differences in training conditions that could influence employee learning and performance.

Practical implications

The results demonstrate that the training approach has merit and warrants further study. The study depicts how a partnership among trainers, managers, and employees can lead to successful training outcomes. Another implication is that it is possible to involve trainers, teams and managers, cooperatively, to create models of training and performance improvement.

Originality/value

There are only a few templates or script‐based approaches reported in the training literature; hence this work adds to the literature. The template approach helps team members leverage their learning and also improve performance.

Does team training improve team performance? A meta-analysis

OBJECTIVE

This research effort leveraged the science of training to guide a taxonomic integration and a series of meta-analyses to gauge the effectiveness and boundary conditions of team training interventions for enhancing team outcomes.

BACKGROUND

Disparate effect sizes across primary studies have made it difficult to determine the true strength of the relationships between team training techniques and team outcomes.

METHOD

Several meta-analytic integrations were conducted to examine the relationships between team training interventions and team functioning. Specifically, we assessed the relative effectiveness of these interventions on team cognitive, affective, process, and performance outcomes. Training content, team membership stability, and team size were investigated as potential moderators of the relationship between team training and outcomes. In total, the database consisted of 93 effect sizes representing 2650 teams.

RESULTS

The results suggested that moderate, positive relationships exist between team training interventions and each of the outcome types. The findings of moderator analyses indicated that training content, team membership stability, and team size moderate the effectiveness of these interventions.

CONCLUSION

Our findings suggest that team training interventions are a viable approach organizations can take in order to enhance team outcomes. They are useful for improving cognitive outcomes, affective outcomes, teamwork processes, and performance outcomes. Moreover, results suggest that training content, team membership stability, and team size moderate the effectiveness of team training interventions.

APPLICATION

Applications of the results from this research are numerous. Those who design and administer training can benefit from these findings in order to improve the effectiveness of their team training interventions.

Interdisciplinarity as Teamwork

This essay discusses interdisciplinary research in the context of science policy and the practice of science. Comparisons between interdisciplinary research and other forms of cross-disciplinary research are made, and a brief discussion of the development of the concept of interdisciplinarity is provided. The overarching thesis of this essay is that interdisciplinary research is team research, that is, research conducted by a team. This notion is developed via recent policy discussions of team science and the need to understand interdisciplinary research in action. The author shows how it may be possible to consider the implementation of principles from teamwork and team training to improve interdisciplinary research and the practice of team science.