Developing_Individuals_and_Teams

Developing Individuals & Teams Written Assignment (15/12/2011) Assignment Word Count 2,282 Reflective Statement word count 308 Written by List of Contents: Pg 3  Introduction  Factors involved in leading a team to achieve agreed objectives Pg3-5  Factors involved in leading a team to achieve agreed objectives (continued) Pg6-8  Current competencies of individual and teams Pg8-9  Development of the competencies of individuals and teams Pg 9  Reference and Bibliography Pg10  Reflective Statement Introduction: This assignment focuses on how within my role I can develop individuals and the team within an organisation. As I work in a Nursery I will be referring to ways in which I can do this within this setting. I will also be talking about the role and responsibilities of the manager and how important it is to discuss issues with your team, as you are their first point of contact and they rely on you for results. Factors involved in leading a team to achieve agreed objectives Some of the factors involved in leading a team to achieve objectives are, • Motivation- The manager needs to get to know their staff and show an interest in each individual to get to know their strengths and weaknesses. Good managers will then provide opportunities to utilise their staffs strengths. • Commitment- Especially when working with children staff need to have a commitment and a passion for their job as some days can be challenging and under certain circumstances you may need to work overtime or cover in other areas of the nursery. • Communication- is the key factor to a smooth running organisation. When effective communication take places it provides you with a stimulating and welcoming environment, leaving employee’s feeling valued and they understand their role. • Team work- essential when running an organisation. Using individual’s strengths and weaknesses to form a well balanced team. Enthusiasm is an essential when working with children as planning and objectives are placed around the children and if staff lack commitment as well as enthusiasm this can reflect on the children and the running of the nursery. A Performance management cycle can be used in staff meetings as a guide line to set strategies to achieve objectives. Completing the middle of the Performance management cycle will help you run a successful team. To enable successful individuals the lifelong learning cycle could be used. By identifying learning needs which can be brought to attention through appraisals you can design an appropriate learning activity which could be attending workshops or completing further training. When this has been accomplished you can evaluate how effective it was. When working with individuals you can use Kolb’s learning styles to identify the best learning frame for each team member. These would be one of the following: 1. Concrete experience 2. Reflective observation 3. Abstract conceptualization 4. Active experimentation “Kolb says that ideally (and by inference not always) this process represents a learning cycle or spiral where the learner 'touches all the bases', i.e., a cycle of experiencing, reflecting, thinking, and acting. Immediate or concrete experiences lead to observations and reflections. These reflections are then assimilated (absorbed and translated) into abstract concepts with implications for action, which the person can actively test and experiment with, which in turn enable the creation of new experiences” www.buisnessballs.2010 To obtain quality within the organisation you need to have an organisational framework which has a, • Mission statement, Vision and Strategy • Objectives and Roles • Standards, Goals and Planning If one of these is missing you will not maintain the quality within your organisation. Training and development has a positive impact on performance of team members and in turn affects the way your organisation works to achieve their organisational objectives. “The impact on individuals carries right up to the achievement of corporate goals.” (Rivoallan. 2010 Work hand-out) As well as having a framework in place you also need to have everybody working towards the same mission statement. By every member of the team having Personal objectives can help to achieve the organisational objectives. The theme of linking individual objectives will be built through each working day. It also enhances staff motivation. There should be a clear link between individual objectives and other team member’s objectives, also between the manager and your area of work. There are many ways in which communication can take place to discuss individual and team objectives. Within our nursery we use Appraisals, Supervision and staff meetings. An appraisal is formal management tool which takes place generally every 6 months, it is recommended that individuals should have at least two a year. It helps us work towards the same objectives. It is on a one to one basis where individuals can discuss any issues they may have and also clarifies medium or long term goals and expectations. Staff should come prepared to the meetings with objectives in hand and ideas for further training. Any discussion that took place in the appraisal will be noted on an appraisal form and both will sign and date the form, these will then be reviewed in the next appraisal. “At the next appraisal meeting the objective will be reviewed once more. If the member of staff has not met the objectives they can be revised or the line manger may express concerns at this point.” Byers (2004) pg208 Appraisals benefit both the setting and the individual. If staff feel listened to and valued it will affect their overall performance. They demonstrate a professional approach to other practitioners and service users and provide the manager and practitioner the opportunity to discuss any issues and resolve any conflict. Targets can be set, which will have a positive impact on the running of the environment. On the other hand team meetings are in place for all members of the organisation to address and discuss any concerns they have as a whole group. At these meeting minutes are taken and copied for all members of staff to refer to if needed. Doing this reminds everybody of the issues that have been raised and if any action plans have been set. We can then work together to achieve our action plans and discuss our progress in the meeting. If these have not yet been met we can discuss why we think this has happened and if necessary adjust our action plan and find ways in which we can achieve these. Between each meeting we ask each section to make a list of anything they wish to bring to other team members attention, and these are spoken about at the next meeting. Team leaders are in place in each area at the nursery to help keep teams motivated and identify team member’s strengths and weaknesses. It also provides team members with somebody they can talk to if the manager is unavailable. At the staff meetings it is the team leader’s role to raise any issues they have found within their area or in the overall organisation. They can bring up any issues that may occur with the organisations objectives. These can then be discussed and evaluated by all team members. Team development requires strong leadership and commitment. Current competencies of individual and teams When conducting individual reviews there are many methods you could use such as coaching. “Coaching can be effective in many situations, for example in helping a person's career direction and development.” www.buisnessballs 2010 Coaching and mentoring are processes that help individuals to achieve their full potential. They share many similarities such as, assisting assessment needs, motivation, desires and skills that help individuals make changes. They provide you with the opportunity to observe, listen and question each situation to encourage a commitment to action and the development of lasting personal growth. You can then evaluate the process, using objective procedures to ensure the team member is succeeding and achieving their personal goals. A good model to follow is, I ssue- discuss the issue G oal- set a goal R oot cause- identify the cause O ptions- consider the options W hat’s next- set a follow up review Using this method you will be able to identify any issues that may occur within the organisation. You can identify why you think this has happened and how you are going to resolve the problem. Setting a review date will give you a set time to tackle this. Another is a 360 degree appraisals. They are a dominant developmental method and different to manager appraisals. A 360 degree appraisal does not replace the one-to-one process, it boosts it, and can be used as an individual development method. 360 degree appraisals involve the manager receiving feedback from their team members, these can be named or anonymous. They will be ask to review job skills, abilities, attitudinal, behavioural and then recorded on a scoring basis, the manager should also use the same scoring system. Anyone who comes into contact with the appraisee can be a component for a 360 degree appraisal as their reviews, thoughts and opinions are valued. When conducting team competences a review you could use is Training Needs Analysis. This is an effective way to identify any fault between the skills the business needs and those your employees have. You will need to gather information to detect areas in which your team members could improve their performance. To do this you could create surveys for your team members or any people that come into contact with the organisation, observations or comments from meetings. TNA can help you to illuminate your objectives when training your team. To put in place a TNA you need to, 1. Analyse your business goals and the training which will be needed to meet these goals. 2. Decide whether you are changing business processes and if so what information or possible training your staff will require to do their role effectively. 3. Evaluate who you want to train and how 4. If training is needed, you will need to determine whether training can be done in the setting or are funds going to be needed and how long you have to complete the training. 5. Use the Kolb’s learning styles to find the best learning style for the members of your team you are training. The activities to support development for the future depend on the individuals in your team and the skills of the overall team as your team members require different needs. For example a person who is lacking confidence could benefit from delegation. Delegation is used by the manager or team leaders to help with jobs or issues in which the manager doesn’t need to complete the task themselves and therefore can delegate that job. “Delegation involves determining what has to be achieved, assigning tasks to subordinates, conferring and authority necessary to do the work upon the subordinates, and exacting responsibility for the accomplishment of the work.” Dixon (2003) pg63 When delegating jobs there is a few things you need to ask yourself, • Is the person capable of completing this task. • Are they going to have the time and resources if any are needed. • Have you clearly clarified what you are asking of them and given clear instructions. This can be done by getting the team member to relay back to you what you have asked them to do. Also having written evidence could help. • Give them a time frame in which you would like the task to be completed. • Review sessions should be held regularly to discuss any problems and see the progress they are making. This lets your team member know that you can offer support if needed. Delegating jobs can make a team member feel valued within a team, and boost a person’s confidence. When a job has been completed well they then have the satisfaction of knowing they have completed a task successfully. Personal development plans are important as it helps individuals set goals and objectives. It gives them an incentive to work hard and provides goals and objectives to work towards. To be able to meet organisational objectives personal objectives need to be implemented. To obtain this the manager needs to be up to date and aware of staff personal objectives and self-ambitions. If staff are challenging themselves this will reflect in the overall running of the organisation. Staff will be aware of current changes, which can be implemented in the setting, providing an effective business. When creating your PDP’s it is important to remember the S.M.A.R.T method. That way you can set realistic goals and objectives. Team building activities are important as it gives members of the team a chance to stand back and look at their own ways of working, in which they can then find ways of improving them. To be successful in team building activities communication and support play a big part. Without communication you are not aware of what other team members are thinking or their next actions. You will be able to delegate individual roles by being aware of personal strengths. Team building exercises can help managers to distinguish different viewpoints and identify people who work well together, this could then implement change in the setting and key factors that have been learnt put into practice. Dr Meredith Belbin identified eight different roles in which were found to be present in the most successful teams these being, • Shaper • Plant • Resource investigator • Completer finisher • Coordinator • Implementer • Team worker • Monitor Evaluator Each of these roles has their own features, Qualities and Weaknesses. For example, the ‘Shaper’ is outgoing, dynamic, full of energy, drive and challenges apathy. But they are impatient. “To do the test the participants answer a series of questions and are given a score.” (Byers (2004) pg180 Development of the competencies of individuals and teams When identifying activities to support development it is important to always remember that these key factors need to be considered. • Honesty- Your team members need to be able to trust you and feel that they can come to you for an honest opinion. • Ownership- having a sense of control and ownership is needed. • Confidentiality- team members need to know that discussion’s on a one to one basis are going to be kept confidential. Working in a nursery data protection is a key factor in our setting and therefore procedures are put in place to ensure that confidentiality is prominent. • Recording of agreements made- evidence of issues discussed for both organisation and individuals must be recorded and signed by both parties for visual evidence. There are many processes that can be put into places to measure and review individual and team development. For example, Constructive feedback is very important at work as it allows both a company and worker to assess progress and for a company to let the employee know what practitioners have excelled at and areas where there might be room for improvement. When giving constructive feedback is to do it in the correct manner and to keep all of your comments factual and have evidence to back them up, if necessary. When planning set S.M.A.R.T objectives (PDP) for the organisation and team members to work towards and have regular meeting to review performance. Monitoring- taking time out to assess team members and keeping a written reviews will provide you with information in which you can discuss during meetings or appraisals. You may be able to identify areas of development needs. Also implementing, Evaluation and implementing are strategies you can use.