Idea in Brief
The Changing Reality
Traditional thinking about teamwork has often been based on intuition and observation. But that approach isn’t well suited to today’s workplace, which demands that teams adapt to constant change and disruption.
The Problem
New ideas are emerging, some based on experience, some guided by new practices, some made up on the fly. But none of this has yet cohered into a systematic approach to improving how teams work.
The Way Forward
The authors set out a new, systematic approach to teamwork that relies on continuous, real-time testing, learning, analysis, adaptation, and improvement.
Not that long ago, teams were typically composed of people with similar skills working in the same place. Their efforts were based on the idea that by working together in a well-managed process, they could deliver replicable results. They primarily operated with efficiency and effectiveness but would frequently encounter obstacles, such as internal siloes or bureaucratic processes, that hindered their overall performance. In response, they began to innovate how they worked together, establishing the groundwork for a more flexible, cross-functional approach to their rituals and practices. From the Skunk Works engineers of the 1950s to Brazilian football in the 1960s to the aviation and surgical collaborations that delivered stunning improvements in the 1990s and early 2000s, organizations have continually searched for ways to enhance their teams’ effectiveness.